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Since Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware in November 2023, many Canadian organizations have been facing a new and challenging reality: sharp cost increases, more rigid licensing models, and continued dependence on a U.S. vendor making unilateral decisions.
For SMBs, this significantly complicates long-term budget planning and IT governance.
Developed in France, Vates VMS is a credible alternative to VMware. This open-source virtualization and management solution directly addresses these challenges.
At ited, we have chosen to integrate Vates VMS into our portfolio of solutions. This allows us to help your teams modernize and secure your IT infrastructure without compromising your IT budgets.
Since November 2023, VMware has undergone a profound transformation under Broadcom’s leadership. The impact on your organization is undeniable.
VMware vSphere pricing has increased by 800% to 1,500% since the acquisition by Broadcom. According to the European Cloud Competition Observatory (ECCO) report, an initiative of CISPE (Cloud Infrastructure Service Providers in Europe), some customers are facing cost increases of 10× or more at contract renewal.
For an SMB, this can represent tens of thousands of dollars in additional annual costs.
Broadcom eliminated the perpetual license model in December 2023, just one month after the acquisition.
Your previous investments in VMware licenses are no longer sufficient. Organizations must now move to a subscription-based model with a minimum three-year commitment.
Some organizations have even received cease-and-desist letters, requiring them to stop using updates and security patches once their contracts expire.
Starting in April 2025, VMware introduced a minimum requirement of 72 cores for certain vSphere licenses, compared to 16 previously. Broadcom later partially reversed this decision for the EMEA region, but this reversal highlights the instability of the pricing strategy.
For SMBs, this change forces hardware upgrades and introduces unexpected capital expenses.
Taken together, these changes make VMware significantly less accessible for SMBs.
They force a difficult decision: continue absorbing ongoing cost increases—or begin evaluating viable alternatives available on the market.
Learn how ited helps you secure your IT environment without compromising your IT budgets.
VMS stands for Virtualization & Management Stack.
Vates VMS is a complete virtualization platform built on globally recognized open-source technologies. Founded in 2012 in Grenoble, France, Vates initially operated as an open-source integrator before evolving into a full-fledged virtualization software vendor.
XCP-ng (Xen Cloud Platform – New Generation) is a type-1 hypervisor developed by Vates, based on the original XenServer technology from Citrix. It delivers the same robust virtualization capabilities as proprietary solutions, while offering the flexibility and transparency of open-source code.
Xen Orchestra is the unified management interface for Vates VMS. It communicates with XCP-ng hosts through the XAPI API, allowing administrators to manage the entire virtualized environment from a single console.
Unlike VMware environments—where administration is often fragmented—Xen Orchestra can manage multiple pools and multiple hosts simultaneously, simplifying day-to-day operations.
Vates VMS includes native monitoring and alerting capabilities.
There is no need to purchase costly add-on modules, as is often required with VMware. You gain continuous visibility into the health of your virtual machines at no additional licensing cost.
Olivier Lambert, CEO of Vates, clearly expresses the vision:
“We claim full end-to-end technological control and a clear ambition: to become a European champion of virtualized infrastructure.”
With Vates VMS, you eliminate rising proprietary licensing costs.
The open-source model means you pay
only for the support and professional services you actually use.
Vates offers a straightforward pricing model: a single annual fee per physical server, including all components, with no per-core or per-socket licensing complexity.
Compared to VMware, migrations typically result in significant cost savings by removing unpredictable annual price increases.
Vates VMS is developed in Europe, outside the control of U.S. governments.
For Québec organizations concerned with data sovereignty and compliance with Canadian federal regulations, this represents a strategic advantage.
With Vates VMS, you retain control over hosting decisions, making it easier to localize data and align with Canadian and Québec legal frameworks.
Vates VMS integrates naturally with ited's cybersecurity solutions.
You benefit from:
➔ 24/7 monitoring of your virtualized infrastructure
➔ Compliance with Canadian and Quebec security standards
➔ Full visibility into data flows and access
➔ Seamless integration with your existing threat detection and response tools
You are no longer subject to unilateral decisions from a U.S. software vendor. Vates VMS source code is open, auditable, and adaptable.
This gives your IT teams greater autonomy in their technology choices.
Vates VMS is not an experimental platform. It is already used by organizations operating under strict operational requirements.
The solution has also received formal validation from Eviden—a European leader in advanced computing—which officially recognized Vates VMS as a production-grade alternative to VMware Broadcom, particularly when deployed on advanced x86 servers.
| Criteria | VMware (Broadcom) | Vates VMS with ited |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Cost Structure | 800—1,500% since 2023, mandatory subscription with a minimum 3-year committment, unpredictable costs in the medium term | Open-source model, simple annual fee per physical server, scalable according to infrastructure growth |
| Ownership Model | Proprietary code, single vendor | Open code, auditable and adaptable |
| Adaptation Flexibility | Configuration limited to VMware-defined parameters | Unlimited adaptation to specific business needs |
| Included Monitoring | Paid add-on modules required | Native monitoring included in the platform |
| Vendor Independence | Strong dependency on Broadcom, unilateral decisions | Full control of your infrastructure, open governance |
| Regulatory Compliance | Subject to U.S. laws (CFAA and export control) | European infrastructure, control over hosting, compliant with Canadian requirements |
| Deployment | Complex migration, potential service disruption | Migration orchestrated by ited with no service interruption |
| Commercial Support | Traditional software vendor model | Structured support, with French and European expertise, relayed by ited in Canada |
| Backup Cost | Separate license and support fees | Included in the platform |
At ited, migration is never improvised. We rely on a clear, secure, and predictable process designed to reduce operational risk and ensure business continuity.
Benefit from comprehensive support based on proven expertise in managing and securing IT fleets in Canada.
No, when it is properly planned and executed. Our migrations include parallelization and cutover strategies that eliminate the risk of data loss. Over the past 10 years, ited has carried out hundreds of migrations without a critical incident.
The duration depends on the size and complexity of your infrastructure. An average SMB completes its migration in 2 to 4 weeks. A larger organization may take 2 to 3 months. We work in sprints to minimize disruptions.
Absolutely. Vates VMS is scalable and operates efficiently with just a few servers or several hundred. SMBs particularly value the cost reduction and simplified management.
ited offers ongoing support agreements that cover technical assistance, security updates, and infrastructure optimization. You don’t migrate alone—you have a partner.
VMware virtual machines migrate directly to Vates VMS without requiring any software changes.
ited integrates Vates VMS into a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy. This includes 24/7 monitoring, threat detection, and compliance with Canadian standards. It’s a holistic approach—not just a virtualization platform.
Migrating to Vates VMS is not only about saving on licensing costs. It is a strategic decision to:
With ited, this transition is not an intimidating project. It is a guided journey, built on our expertise in managing Canadian IT environments.
Get a Free Assessment of Your IT Infrastructure
We will analyze your specific situation and show you exactly how much you could save—and how much performance you could gain—with Vates VMS.
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