Free version of Vcenter / Vcenter Appliance ??

W

wildbill001

Weaksauce
Joined
Jun 2, 2012
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I would like to see what all the hub-bub is about with regards to Vcenter. I have the free version of ESXi5.1 (U1 I believe). But everytime I try to get a copy of VCSA I get a message that basically says, "I'm not worthy".

Is there a version of Vcenter/Vcenter Appliance that is free and if so, where do I download?

If not, then am I doomed to re-install the trial version every 60 days or whatever the length of the trial is?

Bill W
 
There is no free vCenter. The best you can do is the 60-day key unless you buy or get longer keys (like year long eval keys for vExperts).
 
The free version of ESXi cannot be managed with vCenter anyway, so there's no point in downloading it.
 
Kinda figured that might be the case (no free Vcenter) and that I might have to use the eval copy. DID NOT know, however, that it would not work with the free version of ESXi. That was a bit of a surprise, but kinda makes sense if I stare at the wall long enough. :eek:

Thanks folks....ya'll saved me several hours of beating yet another flat spot into my forehead.

Bill W
 
I found someone selling a license to vSphere for $350 on Amazon.

3 hosts license from IBM
 
Essentials is barely better than running 2 standalone ESXi servers, you don't get vmotion, HA or anything else. That said, if you don't need those extras and density is the only goal, it's a pretty cheap way to get over the 32GB ram limit.
 
Maybe I should start another thread for this but I guess it is ok to hijack my own topic. ;)

Simple question: Does this (the release of ESXi 5.5 and no free Vcenter) signal the beginnings of end of "free" VMware? Should I start looking into VirtualBox or other platforms?

Bill W
 
I didn't read it that way. I read it as "the release of esxi 5.5, which can't be managed through the thick client, and no free vcenter, means no free esxi for you...)
 
danswartz said:
I didn't read it that way. I read it as "the release of esxi 5.5, which can't be managed through the thick client, and no free vcenter, means no free esxi for you...)
Click to expand...

You can manage the free ESXi using the thick client all you want.
 
Not for hw version 10 though. I thought that's what they said. So unless you want to forgo whatever advantages HW v10 give you...
 
danswartz said:
Not for hw version 10 though. I thought that's what they said. So unless you want to forgo whatever advantages HW v10 give you...
Click to expand...

And there are no real advantages to HW v10. The ONLY real reason to move VMs up to that level is if you want to use vFRC and you can't do that with free anyway. So it's a big non-issue.
 
Fair enough. I wasn't making a recommendation either way, just trying to clarify what I thought he was saying...
 
Danswartz interpreted my question correctly. So if I don't need to move to HWv10 I'm okay--for the moment. I get that. And, in my case that should not be necessary for another couple of years so I'm ok with staying with ESXi 5.1. But I do see handwriting on the wall becoming more legible and it is saying, "No more free VMware. You want to play, you got to pay."

From a VMware's business standpoint I can both understand the decision and dislike their decision. I understand they need to be able to keep the doors open and you can't do that if you are giving away product. I don't like it, because for folks like me, who are using it to either learn or perish, I'm going to have to pony up some money. So POSSIBLY sometime in the future, VMware will turn off the "free" and say, "Show me the MONEY!" In which case I suspect a lot of us will be moving to some other platform.

That's all I'm saying...... :cool:
 
wildbill001 said:
Danswartz interpreted my question correctly. So if I don't need to move to HWv10 I'm okay--for the moment. I get that. And, in my case that should not be necessary for another couple of years so I'm ok with staying with ESXi 5.1. But I do see handwriting on the wall becoming more legible and it is saying, "No more free VMware. You want to play, you got to pay."

From a VMware's business standpoint I can both understand the decision and dislike their decision. I understand they need to be able to keep the doors open and you can't do that if you are giving away product. I don't like it, because for folks like me, who are using it to either learn or perish, I'm going to have to pony up some money. So POSSIBLY sometime in the future, VMware will turn off the "free" and say, "Show me the MONEY!" In which case I suspect a lot of us will be moving to some other platform.

That's all I'm saying...... :cool:
Click to expand...
We can play "possibly" and "what if" all day, but in the end, you're just making guesses.
 
which is true for pretty much any tech thing nowadays no? it's not like he's making his family business dependent on a guess, sheesh...
 
danswartz said:
which is true for pretty much any tech thing nowadays no? it's not like he's making his family business dependent on a guess, sheesh...
Click to expand...

Very true. AND, history does repeat itself--especially in the tech world where the executives who make the decisions have very short memories and whose ego will always get in the way.

Bill W
 
If vmware free was to go I would just go back to CitrixXen. I like VMWare and the free option is good for home use and messing around.
 
vCenter and vSphere will be changing a lot as we move to the next major version. No use wondering what is going to happen until it does. We're just in this weird in-between right now. No reason to move off of free ESXi if you're using it.
 
Hi,

Due to the reduced HW support for non-server grade HW in ESXi 5.5 and the lack of a free vCenter license, I have been looking into XenServer lately.

To me, the products seem to be very similar, and as XenServer has been open sourced we will never get the same problems using it.

So, what are the main reasons one should stick to ESXi, and not go for XenServer?

Can those who have tried both please share their experiences?
 
wildbill001 said:
Danswartz interpreted my question correctly. So if I don't need to move to HWv10 I'm okay--for the moment. I get that. And, in my case that should not be necessary for another couple of years so I'm ok with staying with ESXi 5.1. But I do see handwriting on the wall becoming more legible and it is saying, "No more free VMware. You want to play, you got to pay."

From a VMware's business standpoint I can both understand the decision and dislike their decision. I understand they need to be able to keep the doors open and you can't do that if you are giving away product. I don't like it, because for folks like me, who are using it to either learn or perish, I'm going to have to pony up some money. So POSSIBLY sometime in the future, VMware will turn off the "free" and say, "Show me the MONEY!" In which case I suspect a lot of us will be moving to some other platform.

That's all I'm saying...... :cool:
Click to expand...

There are zero plans to stop offering a free version that I am aware of. There will be a solution for standalone hosts, don't worry - it's high on the list not just for free users, but paying ones as well (have to configure the damned thing somehow for brand new environments, otherwise how would you deploy / build a VC server anyway?). So, solution will come ;)
 
And there is a Fling on the way to provide a local web UI for basic admin stuff.
 
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