VMware's Cloud Foundation gets integrated cloud management capabilities

VMware is updating Cloud Foundation, its software defined data center (SDDC) platform for running clouds, to offer integrated cloud management services via the vRealize Suite of tools.

The new integration will allow for the intelligent operations of applications that sit on Cloud Foundation's infrastructure, and it brings in cloud automation -- "two key capabilities expected of any cloud provider," Matt Herreras, a director of product marketing for VMware, told ZDNet.

VMware has been focused on establishing the company as the go-to hybrid cloud facilitator, and Cloud Foundation -- introduced about a year ago -- is "really the key to all of that," Herreras said.

By unifying the existing elements of Cloud Foundation with the cloud management capabilities of the vRealize suite, "that allows us to broadly address both the private cloud... and the public cloud context," Herreras said. "It's dramatically simplified -- not just deployment but also [customers'] consumption and ongoing operations in the day-to-day environment."

Previously, customers could deploy vRealize tools or other cloud automation products on top of Cloud Foundation, leaving ongoing cloud configuration and maintenance as something that had to be managed separately. With version 2.3 of Cloud Foundation, customers will be able to use the platform to deploy a variety of applications and services, including on-premise legacy applications and cloud-native applications, to serve their lines of business.

Specifically, version 2.3 of Cloud Foundation is delivering automated IaaS via vRealize Automation, as well as insight into infrastructure health and capacity via vRealize Operations. Customers can also leverage unstructured data for deeper analysis via vRealize Log Insight.

With version 2.3, VMware is also expanding the partner ecosystem with which customers can build a Cloud Foundation environment.

From a public cloud standpoint, IBM was one of the first providers to deliver services based on Cloud Foundation. VMware has since added services from CenturyLink, Rackspace, Fujitsu and OVH. Customers can also use VMware Cloud on AWS.

In terms of private cloud environments, customers can consume Cloud Foundation through an integrated systems option, through which OEMs offer effectively a turnkey experience. Alternatively, customers can choose a software deployment option if they're interested in tailoring the requirements from a hardware standpoint more granularly.

While just a little over a year old, VMware is also touting the customer base the platform has so far and the variety of use cases for which it's deployed. Customers include the city of San Diego, Centene, DXC, Medtronic and OmegaFi.