VMware vSAN
Hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solutions
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What is VMware vSAN
VMware vSAN is a software-defined storage product that aggregates local disks in VMware ESXi hosts into a shared datastore for hyperconverged and virtualized environments. It is used by IT infrastructure teams running VMware vSphere to provide clustered storage for virtual machines across on-premises data centers, ROBO sites, and private cloud deployments. vSAN is tightly integrated with vSphere and is typically deployed as part of a VMware-based HCI stack, either on customer-selected hardware or as part of validated appliance offerings. It supports policy-based storage management and integrates with VMware operations and lifecycle tooling.
Deep vSphere integration
vSAN is built into the VMware vSphere/ESXi stack and is managed through familiar VMware administration workflows. Storage policies can be applied per VM or per VMDK, aligning availability and performance requirements to workloads. This tight coupling reduces the need for separate storage management tools in VMware-centric environments. It also enables consistent operations across compute and storage within the same virtualization platform.
Flexible deployment models
vSAN can be deployed on a range of server hardware configurations that meet VMware compatibility requirements, supporting both all-flash and hybrid designs. It scales by adding hosts and capacity devices, aligning with common HCI expansion patterns. Organizations can use it in standard clusters, stretched clusters for site-level resilience, and smaller footprints for edge/ROBO scenarios (subject to configuration constraints). This flexibility supports multiple infrastructure patterns without introducing a separate external SAN/NAS array.
Mature ecosystem and tooling
vSAN benefits from a large VMware ecosystem, including validated hardware compatibility programs and integrations with backup, DR, and monitoring vendors. It integrates with VMware lifecycle and operations products for patching, health checks, and performance visibility. For organizations standardized on VMware, this can simplify procurement and operational alignment. The product also supports encryption and data services that fit common enterprise governance requirements.
VMware platform dependency
vSAN is designed for VMware vSphere environments and does not serve as a general-purpose storage platform for heterogeneous hypervisors. This creates dependency on VMware licensing and roadmap decisions for core storage capabilities. Organizations pursuing multi-hypervisor strategies may need additional storage solutions or parallel HCI stacks. Migration away from VMware can require re-architecting storage along with compute.
Licensing and cost complexity
Total cost can be difficult to estimate because vSAN is typically licensed alongside other VMware components and may vary by edition and feature set. Some capabilities (for example, advanced data services and operations tooling) may require additional licensing. This can make comparisons with appliance-style HCI offerings or alternative stacks less straightforward. Budgeting often requires careful mapping of required features to the correct VMware bundles.
Hardware and design constraints
vSAN requires adherence to VMware compatibility and configuration guidance, including controller, drive, and network requirements. Performance and resiliency depend heavily on correct cluster sizing, network design, and failure-domain planning. Misconfiguration can lead to operational issues such as rebuild overhead, capacity contention, or unexpected performance variability. Organizations without strong VMware storage expertise may need partner support for design and ongoing tuning.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| vSAN Standard | Not published on VMware official site — contact VMware sales/partners for pricing | Core vSAN capabilities (policy-based storage, distributed RAID, basic data services). Licensed under VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF)/vSphere Foundation bundles or as vSAN add-on; metered in some channels by consumed storage capacity. cite |
| vSAN Advanced | Not published on VMware official site — contact VMware sales/partners for pricing | Additional features such as all‑flash optimizations and enhanced storage services (depends on product version). Available as part of HCI Kits and VCF bundles. cite |
| vSAN Enterprise | Not published on VMware official site — contact VMware sales/partners for pricing | Includes stretched clusters, encryption, and enterprise features; available via VCF/VCF add-ons and HCI Kits; ROBO/Desktop variants sold in packs. cite |
Additional licensing/packaging notes (official VMware sources):
- vSAN is commonly sold/packaged via VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) and VMware vSphere Foundation (VVF); VVF includes a vSAN capacity entitlement (e.g., 0.25 TiB per core in recent VVF offers) and customers purchase add-on capacity if they exceed included entitlements. Contact sales for exact pricing. cite
- For cloud provider channels (VCPP), vSAN is metered and billed based on consumed GB/TB of storage multiplied by edition-specific points; VMware publishes metering/usage guidance rather than public list prices. cite
- vSAN ROBO and vSAN Desktop are licensed/sold in packs (25-VM ROBO packs; Desktop per-concurrent-user packs). HCI Kits bundle vSphere + vSAN and are often licensed per CPU. For exact SKUs/prices contact VMware or an authorized partner. cite
Seller details
Broadcom Inc.
Palo Alto, California, USA
1961
Public
https://www.broadcom.com/
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