Vates, the developer behind Xen Server fork XCP-NG, has thanked Broadcom for increasing interest in its work, and criticized Citrix for presenting challenges to its efforts.
In a post announcing version 8.3 of the platform, CEO and co-founder of Vates, Olivier Lambert, wrote that the success of the 8.x series “has been a game changer for our growth – thanks in part to Broadcom.”
He also revealed that work has commenced on version 9.0 of XCP-NG, which he described as “a platform that will be built differently from XenServer, reflecting our own vision and the lessons we’ve learned.”
“This next major release will target markets that XenServer has never truly focused on, such as server virtualization replacements for organizations impacted by the Broadcom/VMware exodus,” he wrote.
Lambert hinted that building the new version has been harder than necessary thanks to XenServer – the spinoff of Citrix by Cloud Software Group.
In his remarks about XCP-NG, 8.3 Lambert described the release as “an important evolution for us” as Vates is “increasingly standing on our own while continuing to work closely with key upstream projects like Xen and XAPI.”
“Although we’ve encountered challenges with Citrix (now Cloud Software Group) XenServer’s decision-makers, particularly when it comes to platform-related development, our direct collaboration with these upstream projects has allowed us to make significant progress,” he wrote.
He later noted “Our success in migrating even very large customers from VMware to our virtualization stack” and suggested such wins “may also prompt XenServer decision-makers to reconsider their stance. Collaboration, after all, would be far more efficient in driving progress than wasting resources competing, especially as XenServer loses ground as the leader of its own original platform.”
Ouch!
The Register has made numerous interview requests to Citrix and XenServer over the last year, without ever receiving a response that would indicate interest in outlining strategy or technology direction. We’ll keep asking!
Lamber billed version 8.3 of XCP as one for those who can tolerate change – as version 8.2 has Long-Term Release status and is “the benchmark for stability.”
Inclusions in version 8.3 that may make it worth the move include support for Windows 11 guests and virtual trusted platform modules. IPv6 support is another addition. The project’s release notes explain all the new bits in detail. ®
