SamArun
Contributor
Contributor

Which vSphere version is more stable , 5.1 or 5.5?

Hi All,

We plan to upgrade our VMWare ESXi 5.0 to 5.1/5.5 version, where i would like to assess the stability of either of these versions.

This current Virtualization environment runs mostly Windows Guest OS & negligible no.of VM with linux OS which are mid-sized servers(4CPU, 8GB RAM).

If anyone could provide me with your observation in the Enterprise/Corporate Environment and their appetite for upgrading to ESXi 5.1/5.5.

Thanks

Arun S

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a_p_
Leadership
Leadership

I've been running all of the 5.x version in production environments and from my experience each of them works as expected. So it's actually just a matter of hardware support for your ESXi hosts, which version to use. I'd recommend to use the latest one.

André

corvettefisher
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Generally I will skip GA releases and wait for U1, however 5.5 and 5.1 are as stable as can be. I use 5.5 in most of my environments, and upgrading all 5.1 environments to 5.5 here shortly.

You may also want to check to see if your vendor has a customized ISO for your hardware, often these iso's can provided increased performance and advanced drivers over the standard iso

vNEX
Expert
Expert

Hi,

as corvettefisher says we also always skip GA releases and waiting for the first maintenance/update release which is Update1.

Because there is actually 5.5U1c release available I would not hesitate to go for it.

Additionally you may want to look at Release Notes and check known issues and compatibility information:

vCenter Server 5.5 Update 1c Release Notes

Also have a look at Support Insider for TOP 20 articles if there is something important which applies to 5.5 release:

Top 20 Articles for July 2014 | VMware Support Insider - VMware Blogs

Same for Security Advisory:

VMware Security Advisories (VMSAs) | United States

Otherwise its about a.p. says "matter of hardware support for your ESXi hosts"

_________________________________________________________________________________________ If you found this or any other answer helpful, please consider to award points. (use Correct or Helpful buttons) Regards, P.
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Cyberfed27
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

I've run every flavor of ESX and ESXi from 3.5 up to 5.5 and have never had any stability issues. As long as the hardware is on the HCL things usually go well. Maybe I've been lucky. I also agree with others saying check to see if your hardware vendor provides a customized ISO. That's your best bet to ensure compatibility.

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