VMware to end support for third-party virtual switches

VMWare vSphere allows users to finally support third-party virtual switches.

Virtual switches allow you to handle traffic generated by virtual machines. They were part of vSphere for years because it makes sense to have a virtual switch to connect virtual machines instead of sending traffic from a crowd to a physical switch over and over again.

VMware's first effort in this area was modest. The Cisco Nexus 1000V, however, was best regarded and adopted as reasonably widely adopted. IBM and HPE also have virtual switches.

Over the years, VMware has made better efforts: the vSphere Distributed switch is now considered a rival to the Nexus 1000v. VMware also offers VMware vSphere Standard switch. There is also open Linux vSwitch Foundation.

A VMware spokesman said the reason for this change is that some users are more committed to third-party virtual switches. "The VMware native virtual switch implementation has become the de facto standard for more than 99% of vSphere customers today," said the spokesperson.

"The strategy is to invest in the priorities of our customers and simplify the platform to create the best and safest possible experience."

This also involves some pain for those who use third-party virtual switches because they will have to migrate away from them every time VMware will provide its next vSphere upgrade. If the current form is carried out, it will take time next year.

Perhaps more significantly, this week saw rumors arise suggesting that Cisco is working on an IOS decoupled from the hardware output. If this rumor is true, it would set the cat among the pigeons if vSphere did not do well with the future virtual versions of the various Cisco switches.

And then there's the question of the lock. An employee of a hyperconverti systems provider who supports multiple hypervisors and asked for anonymity, believes that some users feel it's worth considering a multi-hypervisor strategy to make sure they are unrelated to VMware virtual switches.

VMware Identity Manager

VMware Identity Manager is an identification of the offer as a service (IDAAS) capabilities providing single sign-on (SSO) and user-based mobile web applications, clouds and controls. Identity Manager is based on the technology acquired by VMware TriCipher in 2010 and is part of the cloud-based management platform ONE with Wake Workspace Enterprise Mobility Management.

Managing the identity of the offer provides SSO access to any application of everything based on policies created by the IT service device. Administrators can create and delete accounts automatically with permission and restrictions for applications managed by Identity Manager VMware. Administrators can also use VMware Identity Manager in different VMware management interfaces, such as vRealize and vCloud Air. Supported applications include Office 365, Salesforce, Dropbox, and Amazon Web Services.

With VMware Identity Manager, administrators provide employees with a way to access a self-service catalog of securely-approved applications and workstations from a variety of devices. It eliminates the possibility that employees sign dangerous devices and important access documents and information, and possibly confidential information.

The underlying local operating system VMware is SuSE Linux Identity Manager 11. If an organization wants to use ThinApp packages, the VMware Identity Manager agent is required for each client. Using VMware ThinApp Packages Identity Manager allows users to run the Windows virtualized application on a Windows system, even though it is not the system in which the application was originally installed. Administrators can also deploy Identity Manager in vCloud Air as software as a server (SaaS), but a local connector is required to connect, as vCloud Air Direct Connect, the organization's data center.

Identity Manager also offers IT a single place to manage multiple accounts and applications. The administrator can set policies to manage devices have access to selected applications. An administrator can give access to all devices or only managed.

Users need one or more VMware ESX servers to deploy Identity Manager and vSphere Client or vSphere Client Web is required to implement a virtual device as an OVA file that is available on the VMware Web site.