If you have not already noticed, a lot of my work these days is in the OpenStack space, specifically using VMware Integrated OpenStack. As often happens when working on a new technology or service offering, I get the question
Is OpenStack going to replace VMware vCloud Director as my primary cloud management platform (CMP)?
I remember during TAM-day at VMworld 2014 the announcement for VMware Integrated OpenStack (VIO) and one of the members of the audience asked Carl Eschenbach why VMware was pivoting away from vRealize Automation (vRA) only a year after telling customers that was the go-forward strategy. It begged the question, just which CMP was VMware backing long-term? I don’t have an answer for you. Personally, I think the three CMPs serve different purposes and fit within different customer use-cases — some of which overlap, others don’t.
In order to answer the question, I put together some information comparing the two products to highlight both their similarities and differences. The following is not a complete list, but will highlight the key points for a team or business trying to determine which direction to use for their private cloud.
Comparison Chart
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Ultimately the answer to the question is going to depend on your use-case and your requirements. I believe either option could work in a majority of the private cloud architectures out there — especially considering how VMware Integrated OpenStack has simplified the deployment and lifecycle management of OpenStack.
Let me know what you think on Twitter! Enjoy.
