VMware Updates Delayed

VMware plans to make available a free entry-level virtualization server this quarter but will delay the delivery of its highly anticipated ESX3 and VirtualCenter 2 until the second quarter, sources said.

The Palo Alto, Calif.-based EMC subsidiary plans to announce Feb. 6 its VMware Server, a free offering that runs on Windows and Linux and can be used in production at no cost without support. Interested customers can then buy support subscriptions for a fee.

Similar to VMware Player, VMware Server will be available for download and is designed to expose new customers to the benefits of virtualization. VMware Player, unveiled last fall, allows customers to run any virtual machine on the Linux or Windows desktop.

VMware Server, in contrast, is designed for server use and provides a GUI wizard for creating virtual machines. It supports Windows, Linux, Solaris, NetWare and 64-bit guest operating systems, as well as Intel VT technology and VMware’s SMP.

VMware said it has not briefed partners on the new offering yet but insisted the channel won’t be cut out of the sales equation, since partners can sell support subscriptions for VMware Server and continue to sell the more full-featured ESX server, which runs on bare metal and won’t be cannibalized by the new offering.Although intrigued by the new offering, some partners are disappointed that they must wait longer to sell VMware’s next-generation virtualization platform. Sources told CRN that ESX3 and VirtualCenter 2 are now scheduled to be released to manufacturing in mid-June.

VMware would not comment on any delays for its next-generation platform, which the company said last fall would ship in the first quarter of 2006.

However, last week, executives said the release will be available by the end of the first half of this year. “We’re making sure the release is very stable,” said Brian Byun, a vice president of products and alliances for VMware. “It will ship before the first half [of 2006] is up.”

“This would ultimately bode well for consultants, driving demand for our services and solutions,” said Paul Ghostine, CEO of Emergent OnLine, Reston, Va.