Google, VMware Team on Cloud Services
Deal provides businesses flexibility in using Google Cloud, as well as alternative to Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services
Google pulled off a coup, of sorts, in forming a partnership with VMware to enable enterprises to run VMware workloads in its cloud infrastructure. The arrangement will make it easier for businesses to adopt Google Cloud, as well as provide an alternative to similar deals between VMware and Microsoft and AWS.
The Lowdown: The partnership hinges on technology and support provided by CloudSimple, which provides the tools for migrating and administering workloads from on-premises to cloud-based and hybrid environments. The intent is to make Google Cloud easy to use for businesses that want to move all or parts of their applications and computing infrastructure into public or hybrid services.
The Details: The three-way arrangement will support the full stack of VMware offerings, including vCenter for service management, vSAN for cloud-based storage management, and NSX-T for networking and security administration. Google will provide support for customers using VMware and CloudSimple on its platform. CloudSimple, which is integral to facilitating the workload transfer and administration, will become available in the Google Cloud Marketplace later this year.
The Impact: Landing VMware as a cloud facilitation partner was likely inevitable as Google is investing heavily in growing its cloud capabilities. While Google has its own migration and administration tools, VMware is popular in the market and among mutual customers. Having VMware support means customers will have more reasons to give Google serious consideration when evaluating cloud service providers and could make the difference in closing deals against rivals Microsoft Azure and AWS.
Background: In the race to win the cloud wars, VMware is proving the essential weapon in vendors’ arsenals. Since 2016, VMware has had a strong collaborative relationship with AWS through which it offers public, private, and hybrid cloud workload management on VMware’s technology stack. Earlier this year, Microsoft and VMware announced a partnership that would enable customers to build and support VMware-based workloads in the Azure cloud. VMware’s ability to win cloud service providers and customers is proving potent as it continues to move beyond its virtualization legacy and, simultaneously, marginalize would-be competitors.
Since the appointment of Thomas Kurian as cloud CEO, Google has made clear its intent to acquire the assets necessary to grow its cloud business and compete against its peers and larger rivals. In June, Google Cloud bought cloud analytics company Looker for $2.6 billion. Earlier this month, Google acquired cloud storage vendor Elastifile for an undisclosed amount. In its quarterly earnings call last week, Google said its cloud business is now generating $8 billion annually – a solid figure but still far behind Microsoft and AWS.
The Buzz: “Our partnership with Google Cloud has always been about addressing customers’ needs, and we’re excited to extend the partnership to enable our mutual customers to run VMware workloads on VMware Cloud Foundation in the Google Cloud Platform,” said Sanjay Poonen, COO of customer operations at VMware. “With VMware on Google Cloud Platform, customers will be able to leverage all of the familiarity and investment protection of VMware tools and training as they execute on their cloud strategies, and rapidly bring new services to market and operate them seamlessly and more securely across a hybrid cloud environment.”
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