With the release of VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.0, VMware Cloud Service Providers (VCSP) have an exciting opportunity to deliver next-generation private cloud solutions more efficiently and profitably, thanks to deeper integration and the benefits of strategic VMware vSAN licensing.
In the past, some providers opted out of vSAN deployments due to cost or architectural preferences. However, as many VCSPs standardize on the VCF software stack, vSAN is getting a new look and for good reason (Read the blog to learn more about vSAN in VCF 9.0). The included 1 TiB vSAN per vSAN licensing core within VCF dramatically shifts the Total Cost Ownership (TCO) equation and forces many partners to rethink their storage architecture and strategies.
vSAN + VCF 9.0 = high performance + high ROI
If you’ve been a long-time vSAN user or recently adopted the vSAN Express Storage Architecture (ESA), you’re likely familiar with its strengths of high performance, scalability, resiliency, and operational flexibility. These capabilities make vSAN ESA particularly suitable for dedicated multi-tenant private cloud environments. You can start small for single-tenant workloads and seamlessly scale to support multi-petabyte clusters, all while maintaining performance and availability.
This consistency and scalability is critical for VSP providers looking to deliver private clouds of varying sizes based on a single architectural model. vSAN-based environments enable better return on investment by precisely tailoring infrastructure to customer needs, providing better financial predictability and higher margin potential.
Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
One of the most significant benefits of vSAN within the VCF 9.0 private cloud is its ability to directly reduce both CapEx and OpEx, thereby significantly reducing TCO for VCSPs.
Here is the procedure:
Converged infrastructure = 2 for 1 efficiency
With vSAN, storage becomes an integral part of your computing infrastructure, leveraging local disks on ESXi hosts. This software-defined storage model eliminates the need for expensive and complex external SAN or NAS infrastructure.
By consolidating compute and storage into a single platform:
- You will reduce the demands on hardware
- Reduce power, cooling and rack space requirements
- Avoid redundant vendor licensing and support agreements
- Provide a repeatable architectural model for both small and large deployments
The result is a leaner, more cost-effective architecture that delivers the dual benefits of performance and simplicity, translating into both capital savings and long-term operational benefits.
Simplified operation and lower labor costs
Managing a standalone storage stack typically requires a dedicated team, additional tools, and significant administrative overhead. vSAN changes this dynamic. As one VCSP Pinnacle partner noted,
“We already manage ESXi servers, they just have disks in them now. The incremental time to manage storage through vSAN is significantly reduced compared to a traditional storage array“
This integration allows a single operations team to manage both compute and storage, reducing the silo effect of skills and reducing operational complexity.
And combined with robust VCF Lifecycle Management (LCM) capabilities and infrastructure-as-code automation, VCSPs can:
- Automate Day 0 to Day 2 warehouse operations
- Reduce manual intervention in repairs/upgrades
- Achieve faster storage provisioning and patching for both compute and storage spaces
This significantly reduces staffing requirements and support costs while improving the speed and consistency of service delivery.
The strategic case for vSAN in VCF 9.0
In today’s competitive cloud environment, VCSP must deliver agility, performance and profitability. VCF 9.0 combined with vSAN gives you all three. Whether you’re building small, high-margin customer pods or large multi-tenant platforms, the architectural consistency, reduced operational complexity, and improved economics make vSAN a compelling choice.
More importantly, it is not just about infrastructure, but about unlocking new business models with predictable cost structures, simplified operations and the ability to offer differentiated services at scale.
Elastic pay-as-you-grow model
Why buy storage now when you can buy it later. Traditional storage models often require large initial investments and over-provisioning “just in case”. vSAN removes this limitation with a modular, scalable approach that aligns infrastructure growth with actual demand.
Whether serving a small customer tenant or scaling to a multi-petabyte environment, VCSPs can:
- Start with minimal storage space
- Scale horizontally by adding nodes and internal disks
- Ensure cost efficiency at every stage of growth
This flexible consumption model leads to better utilization of resources, alignment of costs with customer revenues and higher return on investment over time.
Faster deployment, better SLA
The combination of integrated lifecycle management, automated cluster build, and native storage policies within vSAN provides granular control over performance, availability, and other storage characteristics at the VM level, optimizing resource utilization and simplifying consistent enforcement management for different workloads.
VCSP benefits from:
- Accelerated time to market for customer environments with unified storage controls.
- Faster incident response and root cause analysis with tighter integration between desktop, network and storage managed by VCF Operations
- Stretched clusters that deliver higher data resiliency with the possibility of zero data loss can be provided by providers to customers with critical application requirements.
- Fewer moving parts, which means less downtime and fewer misconfigurations
Ultimately, this translates into higher service availability, better SLA compliance and greater customer satisfaction, which are decisive factors for long-term client retention.
TCO reduction that supports business growth
With vSAN as the foundation for your VCF 9.0 deployment, you’ll not only optimize infrastructure, but maximize business results. The TCO benefits of vSAN directly support your growth and competitiveness in the cloud market, from lower initial CapEx and lower operational overhead to faster ROI and better margins. Your finance team will see the improvement in Time to Value that vSAN brings to your organization.
Source: Signal65, The Economics of Disaggregated Private Cloud Storage VMware vSAN and Fiber Channel SAN Total Cost of Ownership Analysis, in collaboration with VMware by Broadcom, July 2024
Final thoughts
As VCSP partners continue to adopt VCF 9.0, vSAN is proving to be more than just a storage platform; it becomes a strategic tool for private cloud innovation. By combining software-defined storage with a unified lifecycle approach and integrated enforcement management, partners transform their operations, improve margins and deliver greater value to their customers.
Now is the time to rethink how vSAN in VCF 9.0 fits into your cloud strategy. With the right architecture, tools, and pricing model, your cloud can be more agile, cost-effective, and scalable than ever before.
Next steps
To view the full report and better understand how VMware vSAN can reduce storage costs during your private cloud transformation, read the full report on the Signal65 website.
Read the blog to learn more about how vSAN outperforms traditional disk arrays.
Special thanks to Steve Lord for co-authoring this blog with me and contributing his deep expertise.