VM /ETC

A Few Thoughts on Xen posted on blog.scottlowe.org got me thinking about the pricing differences between Citrix XenServer and VMware ESX Server. It is a general assumption that Xen Server is more affordable than ESX. I decided to figure out exactly what the products cost and how they compare to each other. I am not factoring in the cost of Sales and Support in this post because I would want that regardless of which vendor I choose.

I found Citrix XenServer list pricing from a Citrix presentation slide deck that was presented to me via a webinar several weeks ago. Click on the image to see a larger version.

My first thoughts looking at the Citrix pricing was about the free version, Xen Express, and the free VMware Server. Xen Express has a limit of 4 running VMs and 4 GB of physical RAM. Does that mean that the $999 Xen Server edition is really the equivalent in features to the free VMware Server product? VMware Server is a hosted (installed on top of Windows or Linux) platform but Xen Server installs it’s own OS on the server bare metal. If I were looking to implement a free virtualization solution with more than 4 VMs I’d have to use VMware Server.

My real intent is to focus on the Citrix Xen Enterprise product at list price $2999. That is the edition that is enterprise ready for production server loads and is the competitive product on the market.

So , what do I get for $3000 from VMware? Here are the VMware Infrastructure offerings from http://www.vmware.com/products/vi/buy.html.

¹ These products require VirtualCenter Server (previously VirtualCenter Management Server).

² ESX Server 3i cannot be managed with VirtualCenter Server when purchased as a stand-alone product. Managing ESX Server 3i with VirtualCenter Server requires purchase of VMware Infrastructure 3 Foundation, Standard, or Enterprise.

³ Support and Subscription (SnS) is required to be purchased with these editions.

There are a couple of VMware editions available for $3000 or less – VMware Infrastructure Foundation for $995 and VMware Infrastructure Standard for $2995. Comparing the features of the virtualization hosts I would have to lean towards Citrix XenServer because VMware does not include Virtual Center in these editions while all Citrix Xen editions include XenCenter. XenMotion, or live migration of VMs between hosts, is also included in all Citrix Xen editions. I do not get VMotion licences in the Foundation or Standard versions of VMware ESX.

However, VMware has some compelling SMB bundles that make me think twice. VMware’s Infrastructure Acceleration Kits for SMB present an option to purchase Virtual Center and three ESX Foundation servers for $2995.

For the same $3000 I am able to scale to three virtualization hosts and manage those hosts with Virtual Center. Although I still do not have licenses for VMotion, I am now getting management, monitoring, and administration features. VMware also includes Consolidated Backup and Update Manager in the SMB kit. I checked with my local VMware Sales Engineer to see if I could purchase add-on licenses to the Foundation SMB package for just VMotion, but found out it would cost several thousand dollars more. So the difference on paper between the two companies is the live VM migration feature and it’s cost versus Update Manager and VCB.

I want to point out that this is the pricing TODAY. Citrix XenServer 4.1 is in beta and has numerous enhancements. Virtually speaking: Citrix lays a foundation is an article from serverwatch.com explains:

“Citrix XenServer 4.1 is currently available as a public beta from the Citrix Web site. It’s expected to be generally available in March. Citrix XenServer Platinum Edition is slated for a second-quarter release. Pricing will start at $900 for the Standard edition, $3,000 for Enterprise Edition and $5,000 for Platinum Edition (assuming 2 CPU socket systems in all cases).”

In less then 2 weeks this cost analysis will have to be re-thought.

Today, after putting on my “vendor neutral hat”, I have to admit it’s a tough choice when just looking at the cost of purchasing licenses. I’ll admit it’s hard to keep that same hat on past this point. To be fair I haven’t implemented or supported Citrix XenServer so I will hold my opinions until a time in the future when I have worked with both products. Besides, you do not have to look too hard to find smarter engineers then me having the “technical discussions” that ultimately determine the best choice for my $3000.

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