What is the best vSphere 6.5 edition for a single server.

[pbalderos]

Hello Community Friends!

I need help understanding licensing for an upcoming deployment.

I have 3 locations that I am migrating from physical to virtual. Each location will have 1 physical Dell Power Edge R730XD servers with 2 CPU.

This project has a very small budget and that why I am only deploying one vSphere host at each site. However next year we will deploy an additional server and a SAN at each of the 3 sites.

but at the moment this will be one server using local storage for the Datastores. I am aware of the benefits we are missing out on such as vMotion and the like but again this is B movie level budget.

On to my questions:

1) Is vSphere 6.5 Standard edition appropriate for this single server setup? Keep in mind, next year with the new budget we are adding an additional server and a SAN?

2) If I go with 6.5 Standard edition and add the new server next year will my vSphere 6.5 SE support 2 host and 4 CPU (2 CPU per server)?   

Thanks in Advance

[virtualg_uk]

If you are only deploying a single ESXi host then the free version is probably enough. This is especially true if there will be no vCenter server - Just be aware that some backup products require a paid version of ESXi and sometimes vCenter server to operate.

Do you have a requirement for vCenter server at each site?

[pbalderos]

Thanks Graham,

I have never used the free ESXi version. So that brings me to a couple dumb questions:

1) With the free version can I still use the vSphere client? Or is it scaled down or command line only?

2) No, at this time there is no need for vCenter BUT next year I am adding a second host at each of the 3 sites and a vCenter.

3) So you think I can get away with the free version for now and upgrade to say vSphere 6.5 standard?     

[HassanAlKak88 · Accepted solution]

vSphere 6.5 has been released and as known from previous versions, VMware provides a free version of their Hypervisor ESXi for everyone again. The license key can be created for free at VMwares website. It has no expiration date. The binaries you will receive as "Free Hypervisor" are 100% identical to the paid version.

Limitations

• No support
• Free ESXi cannot be added to a vCenter Server
• 2 physical CPUs
• Unlimited cores per CPU
• Unlimited physical Memory
• max. 8 vCPU per VM

To download it:

• Go to VMware vSphere Hypervisor (ESXi) 6.5 Download Page​
• Login or create an account
• Register for ESXi: After registration, you will receive a unique license key and access to the binaries
• Download VMware vSphere Hypervisor 6.5 - Binaries

And regarding the vSphere client, yes you can use the Web vSphere Client (because it is 6.5)

Concerning upgrade, no need to upgrade, it is just an activation with a paid license.

Don't forget to mention my answer as Correct or Helpful if it is !!! 

[pbalderos]

@HassanAlKak88

Thank you for the info. I would have to go with a version that has support. So the next option would probably be vSphere 6.5 Standard. My thinking is since these hosts will have less than 15 VMs I should go with servers with a single CPU to save money on hardware and also licensing such as vSphere, Windows OS, etc...

[HassanAlKak88]

I agree with this decision