VMware Extends Support for Low-End vSphere in Europe

VMware has quietly announced it will extend sales and support for low-end vSphere Standard version 8 and vSphere Enterprise Plus version 8 for customers within the European Economic Area, as The Register first reported.

The company will continue to make these products available for purchase through October 31, 2027. Furthermore, active subscriptions will include extended support until October 31, 2028, or the end of the subscription, whichever occurs first. This extension provides a window that lasts more than a year beyond the October 11, 2027, end-of-general-support date applicable to Cloud Foundation 5.x and the more capable vSphere 8 products.

Independent analyst Michael Warrilow told The Register that the move allows organizations up to an additional 12 months to migrate workloads to different platforms or transition to VCF 9. Warrilow suggested that "regulatory muscle" is likely driving the decision, noting that the European Commission has opened an antitrust investigation into VMware's channel changes following efforts by the lobby group Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE). Additionally, courts in the Netherlands recently enforced a VMware support contract that Broadcom had attempted to avoid.

While the extension offers a temporary hedge for mid-market firms, Warrilow noted that the impact may be limited, as it primarily buys more time for migration. Paul Turner, chief product officer for VMware’s Cloud Foundation Division, told The Register that previous difficulties in obtaining quotes for these specific products were due to inappropriate channel partner incentives, a situation he claims has since been resolved.