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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    IBM Cloudability

    Score8.9 out of 10
    N/AIBM Cloudability is a cloud cost management and optimization (FinOps) tool that enables IT, finance, and business teams to optimize their cloud spend across all cost sources, all maturity levels, and for all stakeholders.N/A

    XenServer

    Score8.1 out of 10
    N/AXenServer (formerly Citrix Hypervisor) is a virtualization management platform optimized for application, desktop and server virtualization infrastructures.N/A
    Pricing
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Considered Both Products
    Apptio an IBM Company
    No answer on this topic
    Cloud Software Group
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    94%
    Would buy again
    145 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    94%
    Delivers good value for the price
    107 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    90%
    Happy with the feature set
    139 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    88%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    87 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    90%
    Implementation went as expected
    98 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Server Virtualization
    Comparison of Server Virtualization features of IBM Cloudability and XenServer
    Feature
    IBM Cloudability
    -
    Ratings
    XenServer
    7.6
    12 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Virtual machine automated provisioning00 Ratings7.011 Ratings
    Management console00 Ratings7.012 Ratings
    Live virtual machine backup00 Ratings8.010 Ratings
    Live virtual machine migration00 Ratings8.012 Ratings
    Hypervisor-level security00 Ratings8.011 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Proxmox VE
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    No answers on this topic
    VMware vSOM (discontinued)
    Score10 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    IBM PowerVM
    Score9.6 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.8
    (147 ratings)
    7.0
    (12 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    6.4
    (6 ratings)
    10.0
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    7.8
    (147 ratings)
    7.0
    (3 ratings)
    Availability
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    5.5
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    5.5
    (1 ratings)
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    2.3
    (3 ratings)
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    1.0
    (1 ratings)
    2.7
    (1 ratings)
    Online Training
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    Configurability
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    5.5
    (1 ratings)
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    5.5
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    6.4
    (1 ratings)
    Professional Services
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    IBM CloudabilityXenServer
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Apptio an IBM Company
    I don't have much exposure to the tool. I mean, I'm relatively new to using it as a platform, but I haven't really seen the benefit, especially with the actual renewal talks at the company. I'm not seeing what AWS native solutions are, how probability improves on that as opposed to just using AWS and just, I don't know. I'm not seeing the benefit, at least in my eyes.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    It can be really helpful & useful if we are using Citrix Hypervisor with other provisioning tools. Here are some specific scenarios where Citrix Hypervisor (formerly Citrix XenServer) is well-suited: Server Consolidation, Virtual Desktops, Disaster Recovery, Development & Testing Environments. On the other hand, there are some scenarios where Citrix Hypervisor may be less appropriate: Small-scale Deployments, Highly Heterogeneous Environments, and Limited Virtualization Requirements.
    Incentivized
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    Pros
    Apptio an IBM Company
    • We are able to integrate multiple sources of data to have a comprehensive view of our spend.
    • We are able to get more detailed insights via container dashboard for kubernetes spend
    • A unified platform to manage overall cloud spend along with related FinOps spend
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    • Citrix hypervisor does price very well for small organizations. It is free.
    • Since this product is open source it does not have any type of vendor lockdown issues.
    • Allows live migration of VM's so you can keep systems up and running when changes are needed to the hardware in the background.
    • The GUI management tools are quite easy to learn.
    • Has Snapshot capability which is a great way to protect against malware as well as do risk-free upgrades.
    Incentivized
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    Cons
    Apptio an IBM Company
    • For me, it is a lot of anomaly detection and I think there's a lot of improvement that can be made to show anomalies that happen over time because if it's just day to day or week to week, you may not see the change. But if you see the trend over a period of time, show me something that has grown 40%, 50% over the past three months and maybe you can do those things and we just haven't figured them out yet. So we are very new to the product, but I think anomaly detection for me is one of the bigger things.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    • Adding or presenting additional storage to the host can often be a task that is far more involved than competitive products.
    • The product can require reboots more frequently than competitors due to the DOM kernel getting "hung up".
    • Sometimes when a virtual machine is deleted it still leaves behind orphaned vdisks.
    • Recovering from the loss of a host can sometimes cause virtual machines to require lengthy command prompt scripting to fix so they can be powered back on from another host.
    Incentivized
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    Likelihood to Renew
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Cloudability has been one solution for almost all of our FinOps needs. Except for Data transfer costs, we have covered all use cases and have made significant savings across our cloud infrastructure. Reporting has provided management a deeper analysis into their spending and helped them forecast their budgets for next year
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    With the knowledge and usage of solutions from VMware and Microsoft offering more compelling cloud integrated options it makes it more compelling in many environments which I consult. XenServer is a good product and fits the bill in many smaller environments but as clients look to the cloud or a hybrid cloud it can in some cases make it a bit more difficult.
    Incentivized
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    Usability
    Apptio an IBM Company
    I gave the IBM Cloudability a 7/10 because it is good, but it could improve in some places. It is easy to get data uploaded and ready to view, but it is only up to a certain point in time, and not live data. As for how it looks, the interface is good for viewing, however navigation could be a little better, maybe supported with a roadmap.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    XenServer is a good product in its use and probably free if you have the right Citrix licenses already. However, it does require specific knowledge to manage, which makes it harder to manage if you don't have that knowledge in house.
    Incentivized
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    Reliability and Availability
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Only been 1 or 2 occaisions when not available, in 3 years
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    It's been a little problematic in the past at larger VDI deployments requiring a bit more care and feeding than other vendors. But the latest releases (6.5.x) have brought about huge improvements in the stability and availability.
    Incentivized
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    Performance
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Afternoons tend to be a little slower, due to US traffic I assume
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    When running like a top XenServer is a fantastic hypervisor. There is relatively low overhead on the Dom0 so workloads get the most of the resources.
    Incentivized
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    Support Rating
    Apptio an IBM Company
    While there have been few support cases where the experience was good. But in multiple support cases it's firstly delayed and even after weeks or months of time, team is not able to provide us with the RCA of the issue. All they are claiming is the issue is now fixed which I still see coming back after few days or weeks as we've never identified and addressed the root cause.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    The staff I've worked with are very knowledgeable or able to get a very well articulated and capable support team member on the phone or helping them if necessary and they always want to ensure the best experience possible for you on the platform. The ability for the support team to reach out to hardware vendors for assistance is a nice plus too.
    Incentivized
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    In-Person Training
    Apptio an IBM Company
    No answers on this topic
    Cloud Software Group
    Part of a training for certification to become a trainer for Citrix included an in-person training with a Master CCI. The XenServer training at this time was pretty simplified due to the product primarily being installed however you did have to work with it and mildly configure the system.
    Incentivized
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    Online Training
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Training was adequate, but the real learning begins when you start using the product, like most things. All major functions were covered so as an entry point, was a good introduction to the product. The training pace was good as well, the areas were covered in decent depth, without being too much of an information overload.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    Haven't given it a real go with any online training however there are some options out there. I have taught a course following Citrix material for XenDesktop which leverages XenServer and it is pre-built so not the best for XenServer specifically for installation but configuration is mildly touched on
    Incentivized
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    Implementation Rating
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Within months
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    Cloud Software Group
    Ensure you review the HCL (hardware compatibility list) and reach out to the hardware vendors to ensure they support the platform and in case they have documentation that can be followed for the implementation. Also ensure the prerequisites are completed prior to implementation so that as few unexpected delays occur as you can control.
    Incentivized
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    Alternatives Considered
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Before Apptio we extensively used the cloud native and in house automated and developed cost optimization tool using python , powershell and leveraging the various cloud native services like AWS systems manager , Azure Functions and Azure automation run books.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    Feature for feature they are neck and neck. I have used Hyper-V 2012 and 2016, VMware ESXi and XenServer evenly. XenServer is a fast install, good documentation, with enterprise features out the box that compare or exceed what VMWare offered with a higher cost of entry.
    Incentivized
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    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    Apptio an IBM Company
    I wasn't personally involved, but all dealings with Apptio have been easy
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    No answers on this topic
    Scalability
    Apptio an IBM Company
    Works as designed
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    The servers latest versions have made massive improvements to scalability. But from past experience there have been issues when running workloads for extended periods of time without reboot on the hosts. I would need to run similar workloads on the 6.5 release which has changed much of the bottlenecks or issues so I'd imagine its far more capable now, Perhaps able to stand near the best in the market.
    Incentivized
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    Return on Investment
    Apptio an IBM Company
    • Apptio Cloudability has enabled us to charge back 100% of our cloud spend to our business users and on an automated basis through the use of ApptioOne
    • Apptio Cloudability's transparency and metrics have enabled us to save millions of dollars in cloud spend across our user base.
    Incentivized
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    Cloud Software Group
    • Xenserver is easy to learn. We paid for support only for installation and deployment in the first three years, and now our team has the knowledge to solve most problems.
    • Low CAPEX if you have a team that uses open source software day by day.
    • But paid support is necessary to solve critical problems. The open source community is not enough. Actually, we have difficulty solving some bugs without paying for support.
    • Medium OPEX if you have a team that uses open source software day by day.
    Incentivized
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    ScreenShots

    IBM Cloudability Screenshots

    Screenshot of ML backed rightsizing recommendations surfacing multiple scenarios with tools to help sort those that can me realistically actioned on, with Jira and ServiceNowScreenshot of an allocation of cloud viewed through the enterprise grade tools to tailor data for chargeback/showback across an organizationScreenshot of intelligent forecasting including seasonality, cost drivers and net new spendScreenshot of anomaly detection capabilities to stop issues in their tracks via the right people for the job