Your 6 Most Pressing Azure VMware Solutions Questions Answered

From the moment it was announced during day one of last month’s Dell Technologies World, Azure VMware Solutions has had people buzzing. Following in the footsteps of VMware’s other industry-rattling cloud partnership, VMC on AWS, Azure VMware Solutions brings together two of the IT world’s giants. In doing so, VMware and Microsoft have given customers a way to continue using the VMware tools they already know even as their environments become more diverse, stretching from on premises and across multiple clouds.

Also just like the VMC on AWS partnership before it, Azure VMware Solutions has stirred up a lot of questions. Much info is still to come on the inner workings of this pairing. However, let’s go over what we know so far.

Looking deeper into Azure VMware Solutions

Here are six of the most frequent questions our experts have heard regarding Azure VMware Solutions (along with the accompanying answers).

Q: First things first, what VMware products are going to be Azure VMware Solutions-friendly?

A: Organizations are able to lean on most of the same VMware solutions they always have for on-premises environments. This includes tools such as VMware vCenter, vSphere Client, vRealize operations, NSX Manager, and more.

Q: Same question, but from the Microsoft side. What Azure tools can integrate with this solution? 

A: Azure VMware Solutions integrate with a variety of native Azure services, including Azure Active Directory, Azure Cognitive Services, and more. The idea is that, through these native tools, organizations will be able to enhance their applications with advanced features such as AI, Machine Learning, and IoT data.

Q: If I roll out Azure VMware Solutions, how much time will I need to spend re-architecting my existing VMware workloads and apps to make them compatible?

A: In short, none. Those VMware workloads and apps can travel seamlessly from on-premises, to Azure and back with no need to redesign them. Regardless of where they live, the experience will be the same, saving precious time and resources.

Q: OK, so who does what in this partnership? How does it work?

A: In bringing Azure VMware Solutions to life, Microsoft has collaborated with not just VMware, but some of its trusted cloud partners, CloudSimple and Virtustream. As such, Azure VMware Solutions can be delivered by Microsoft, certified by VMware, and run on Azure architecture.

Q: If something goes wrong, who should I call?

A: In the event of a problem, a partner (like Arraya!) would work first with Microsoft and VMware’s supporting partners to try to remedy it. If those efforts fell short, VMware would also step in to find a resolution.

Q:  When can I get started?

A: One flavor of Azure VMware Solutions is currently available, Azure VMware Solution by CloudSimple. Virtustream will release their own variant later this year. CloudSimple and Virtustream were chosen due to their status as VMware Metal-as-a-Service authorized partners. This means they run VMware’s latest software-defined data center solutions. They provide a consistent data center experience, on premises, in the cloud, and everywhere in between.

Next Steps: What Azure VMware Solutions could mean for your data center

Have an Azure VMware Solutions question not answered above? Our data center and cloud experts are here to help. Connect with them by visiting https://www.arrayasolutions.com//contact-us/ and they’ll be happy to take you and your team deeper into this new solution and what it could mean for you organization.

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