The Future of VMware After the Acquisition: A Look After 6 Months of Broadcom

After Broadcom completed its acquisition of VMware, little was known about the company’s future and how these changes would affect customers. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, check this other article here)Today, after nearly six months into this new era, we can already see some differences.

Keeping up with all the news can be a real challenge, so in this post I’ll share the main developments that have been affecting customers, and explain how to calculate your licensing requirements under the new subscription model.

New Subscription Licensing Model

“How many licenses does my environment need?”

Perhaps that’s a question many people have been asking in recent months. The reality is that calculating what you need isn’t a complex task. Fortunately, VMware has published a Knowledge Base (KB) article with instructions on how to do it.

Before following the KB step-by-step, you need to install VMware PowerCLI — a PowerShell library for VMware administration. You can install it with:

Install-Module VMware.PowerCLI -Scope CurrentUser

Then download the script provided in the KB article. Connect to your vCenter, import the sizing script, and run it.

# Connect to vCenter Server:
Connect-VIServer -Server vCenter_Server

# Import PowerCLI function:
Import-Module .\FoundationCoreAndTiBUsage.psm1

# Run Get-FoundationCoreAndTiBUsage function and specify deployment type to retrieve results. By default, the script will iterate through all vSphere Clusters.
Get-FoundationCoreAndTiBUsage -DeploymentType VCF
Get-FoundationCoreAndTiBUsage -DeploymentType VVF

With the results of the script, you’ll have the total number of licenses needed for your environment. You can also export this information to CSV format.

Get-FoundationCoreAndTiBUsage -DeploymentType VCF -Csv
How to understand this licensing?

Even if it seems obvious, it’s important to state it clearly: 1 core = 1 license. So if you have a server with 24 CPU cores, you’ll need 24 licenses just for that server.

There’s also a minimum licensing requirement per CPU, which is 16 cores. Imagine that you have a server with 2 CPUs and 12 cores per CPU. Simple math would lead us to a requirement of 24 licenses (2 CPUs X 12 cores per CPU). However, if you run the Broadcom sizing script you will noticed that the core count is 32. Why? Because the minimum licensing requirement per CPU is 16 cores, which means 2 CPUs X 16 cores = 32 cores/licenses.

If you have vSAN in your environment, you’ll need a bit more planning — I suggest that you read the official KB and contacting your VMware account representative for help.

Transition of Platforms

Since the end of “Day 2” of the VMware → Broadcom transition, the migration of backend systems has advanced greatly. Most of the customer service sites (https://customerconnect.vmware.com), knowledge bases (https://kb.vmware.com) and downloads portals (https://vmware.com/download), have now been migrated to Broadcom’s systems.

Here are some useful links under the new Broadcom branding (the old VMware URLs may still work during transition):

  • Customer Connect/Support

Old: https://customerconnect.vmware.com/home

New: https://support.broadcom.com/

  • Downloads

Old: https://vmware.com/download

New: https://support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/downloads (select VMware Cloud Foundation).

  • Security Advisories

Old: https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories.html

New: https://support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/security-advisory

  • Product Lifecycle Matrix

Old: https://lifecycle.vmware.com/

New: https://support.broadcom.com/group/ecx/productlifecycle

  • Knowledge Base

Old: https://kb.vmware.com

New: https://support.broadcom.com/web/ecx

  • Developer Portal

Old: https://developer.vmware.com/home

New: https://developer.broadcom.com/

  • API Documentation

Old: https://developer.vmware.com/home

New: https://developer.broadcom.com/xapis

  • PowerCLI Documentation

Old: https://developer.vmware.com/home

New: https://developer.broadcom.com/powercli

  • SDK Downloads

Old: https://developer.vmware.com/home

New: https://developer.broadcom.com/sdks

  • Communities

Old: https://communities.vmware.com

New: https://community.broadcom.com/

Unchanged Resources

VMware Certification Program

Despite all these controversial changes, VMware certifications will become more accessible. As of May 6, 2024, prerequisites for VMware certifications are no longer required. This means you can pursue a VMware certification without having to buy official training — potentially a significant cost saving, even if the exam fee itself (around $250 USD) still represents a meaningful expense in some regions.

The future

In summary, while these changes may cause some initial discomfort, they also create opportunities for VMware customers to adapt and grow in this new environment. Staying updated is key to successfully navigating this new phase of VMware under Broadcom’s ownership.

Sources

Counting Cores for VMware Cloud Foundation and vSphere Foundation and TiBs for vSAN

Useful Links for VMware by Broadcom Day 2 Transition

https://blogs.vmware.com/learning/2024/05/06/exciting-updates-to-the-vmware-certification-program

https://lanznot.com/2025/05/27/como-usar-especificacoes-de-personalizacao-do-vmware/

Published by

thomaslrodrigues

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