Item: VMware ESXi
Rating: 9
Author: Kyle Reyes

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

At present we are utilizing VMware ESXi across the entire organization. We are utilizing this for our entire Production & Development Windows environment, as well as some Linux implementation. There are also various VM appliances in place via VMware ESXi service various functions within the organization. ESXi allows us a dynamic & "easy" way to manage our infrastructure environment.

Pros and Cons

Implementation of ESXi is extremely straightforward given the correct experience
The HA capabilities of ESXi are extremely hard to beat when compared to other Hypervisor options

As much as the upgrade path for newer versions of ESXi has improved, there is still room for improvement in the process
A better/easier way of handling some network features would be ideal

Return on Investment

The ability to regain time towards other daily tasks due to automation has been extremely beneficial.
The mostly "set it & forget it" for HA has been great to not have to constantly be watching the workloads.

Alternatives Considered

Hyper-V

While Hyper-V has it's place, it is still in it's infancy in comparison to ESXi at this time. There are far too many "basic" features/functions that should be available that are not quite there yet. ESXi was selected due to it's now long time experience in the field of hypervisors, proven stability, and great support both from VMware and the IT community.

Support Rating

For any situation that has risen wherein I had the need to contact VMWare support, it has always been a great experience. The timeliness in replies, the level of the technicians knowledge, and the communication is without question some of the best in the business. This is by far one of the determining factors in continuing with ESXi, as well as a talking point when recommending to others.

Key Insights

Do you think VMware ESXi delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with VMware ESXi's feature set?

Yes

Did VMware ESXi live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of VMware ESXi go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy VMware ESXi again?

Yes

Other Software Used

VMware vCenter Server, Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM), SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor

Likelihood to Recommend

In any scenario, I've yet to find many reasons where ESXi is not best suited for what is being thrown at it. From small organizations with 2-5 virtual machines to the larger organizations of 1000+ virtual machines it scales extremely well and the features, options, etc. remain the same given correct licensing. The options for HA, again given proper licensing, work extremely well once implemented and have saved myself and others I work with many hours of additional work automatically migrating VMs once a host has failed.

Given the options with the licensing, there are times where something else may have to be reviewed to see if it makes more sense unfortunately to say. The licensing is the only place where ESXi does not scale very well

ESXi, a great product in the right environments!

Overall Satisfaction with VMware ESXi