What It's Really Like to Jump from VMware to Nutanix: Lessons from the Field

So, you're thinking of ditching VMware. Maybe it's the licensing costs, maybe it's the recent Broadcom acquisition jitters, or maybe you're just done with the whole ESXi song and dance. Either way, Nutanix is suddenly on the table, and management's looking your way for answers. You're not alone. We scoured real-world experiences from IT pros who've made the leap from VMware to Nutanix — some migrating thousands of VMs, others just getting their hands dirty with a few mission-critical apps. The takeaway? Nutanix AHV is a capable replacement, but like any infrastructure shift, there's nuance hiding between the bullet points. Here's what you need to know, minus the marketing fluff. ## Nutanix Move: Surprisingly Solid Let's start with the tool everyone talks about — Nutanix Move, Nutanix's native migration tool. Multiple users who've gone through this journey describe Move as "fantastic," "really easy," and "straightforward." That's not something you hear often in enterprise IT, especially around migration utilities. According to one engineer who's migrated "close to 3,000 VMs," Move does its job with minimal fuss — syncing VMware VMs to AHV and keeping them updated for up to a week before you hit the cutover switch. That's a game-changer when you're trying to minimize downtime. Another user summed it up this way: "If the move itself is your biggest concern, I wouldn't sweat it." But it's not all autopilot. Gotchas exist, especially when it comes to: - Domain controllers - Network appliances (Netscaler was a common troublemaker) - Failover cluster IPs - OVA-based virtual appliances with restricted access If you're running black-box VMs that don't let you tweak NICs or install drivers, you'll likely hit a wall — or at least a speed bump. ## Performance: Better (But Not Always) Performance talk is where things get spicy. One user noted they "saw performance improvement when running AHV instead of ESXi on the same tin." That's a bold claim — but not unheard of. AHV is tightly integrated with Nutanix's own HCI layer, so there's less overhead in certain setups. On the flip side, there are horror stories too. A team with 48-core hosts reportedly had to throw 24 cores and 64GB of RAM just at each Nutanix CVM (Controller VM) to make things tolerable. That wasn't a happy customer. They bailed for Hyper-V and said the experience was far smoother. To be fair, others pushed back, saying that 24-core CVMs are overkill and "for NVMe nodes, 16 cores is standard." So what gives? Like anything in IT, performance is about tuning — and expectation management. Some environments run lean and fast. Others will need support tickets and tuning marathons. Plan accordingly. ## Licensing and Cost: It's Complicated If you thought VMware's licensing was confusing, Nutanix may not exactly feel like a clean breath of fresh air. One user bluntly said: "Licensing isn't straightforward depending on features you want to use." Others pointed out Nutanix's strong push toward bundling hardware and software together under their HCI umbrella. That can make cost comparisons a bit of a nightmare. One person broke it down like this: "30K server + 30K Nutanix licensing = 60K investment." Ouch. That doesn't mean it's not worth it — Nutanix's support and ease-of-use often justify the spend — but it's definitely not the budget option. **Pro tip:** do a deep dive into what features are must-haves versus nice-to-haves. And don't skip the cost comparison. Nutanix licensing tends to scale with capacity, not just feature sets. ## Support: A Bright Spot The shining star in most people's Nutanix stories? Support. Almost everyone who mentioned Nutanix support had good things to say — which is rare in tech forums. From fast ticket responses to smooth handoffs between time zones, Nutanix seems to have cracked the code that Microsoft and VMware often fumble. One user put it this way: "It was really refreshing after fighting with the likes of MS support." Another said support was quick to escalate, and even "handed off cases cleanly outside normal hours." In a high-stakes migration, knowing there's actual human help on the other end of the line is a big deal. ## Management and Daily Use: Mostly Good, Some Quirks Once you're in the Nutanix ecosystem, life is generally easier. Updates are largely "one-click", according to multiple users, assuming your environment is set up right. The interface is modern and cohesive compared to vCenter's aging UI — although if you're doing advanced scripting or automation, PowerShell cmdlets aren't as robust as VMware's PowerCLI. Other nitpicks? - Migrating VMs between Prism Centrals isn't as seamless as with linked vCenters - If you're using GPUs, expect extra manual work during updates - Some users still pine for the split-stack approach — SANs + servers — especially in large-scale or custom environments That said, for most mid-size to enterprise use cases, Nutanix strikes a sweet balance between simplicity and control. ## Not a 1:1 Swap — And That's OK Multiple users echoed the same piece of advice: "Don't expect VMware and Nutanix to be 100% alike." You'll run into different workflows, different terminology, and a different mindset. That's not a bad thing — just something to be aware of. If you've been living in the VMware ecosystem for a decade, this is like switching from iPhone to Android. There's a learning curve, but also new tricks waiting on the other side. ## Final Thought: Is Nutanix Worth It? Here's the TL;DR from people who've done the migration: - **The Move tool works** — really well. - **Performance can be great**, but test thoroughly. - **Costs are real.** Do the math. - **Support is excellent** — possibly the best part. - **Be ready to unlearn** a few VMware habits. In the end, Nutanix might not be perfect — but it's not pretending to be VMware. And that might just be the point. Thinking of switching? Test. Pilot. Benchmark. And talk to the folks who've already made the leap. Because in this game, the best lessons aren't in the datasheets — they're in the trenches.