VMware Continues Its Reign as the Lowest Cost Per Application Leader with VMware vSphere™ 4

New Benchmarks Released by Taneja Group Reports VMware vSphere™ 4 Holds Estimated 80 Percent VM Density Advantage over Competitors

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – August 31, 2009 – Today at VMworld 2009, VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW), the global leader in virtualization solutions from the desktop through the datacenter and to the cloud, announced that VMware vSphere™ 4 offers customers the highest consolidation ratios in the industry which could translate into hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings for some customers—according to a new report released by industry analyst firm, Taneja Group.

The unique features and architectural design of VMware vSphere™ 4 allow customers to run more applications per server than other competitors in the industry.  Recent benchmark tests validated by the Taneja Group, confirmed that VMware vSphere™ 4 is capable of running twice as many virtual machines per server as commodity solutions using the same hardware.  Because VM density has a considerable impact on virtual infrastructure total cost of ownership, a VM density advantage can translate to up to hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings for some customers.

“VMware’s technological superiority with its release of VMware vSphere 4 continues to be very clear,” said Jeff Boles, senior analyst and director of technology validation services at Taneja Group.  “We’ve validated in a number of tests that VMware vSphere 4 virtualized servers can not only run twice as many applications than other hypervisors at equal or even greater performance levels, but also deliver much more predictable performance. Just as we’ve validated in the past, this VM Density metric has a tremendous impact on cost of acquisition, and can make VMware as much as 30 percent less expensive on a per application basis than other solutions.  Based on our most recent testing, VMware vSphere 4 clearly represents a better choice even for the most heavily tasked infrastructure facing unpredictable loads, while offering a lower total upfront solution cost even when compared to so-called “free” offerings.

“You can’t determine the cost of deploying a virtualization solution simply by looking at the upfront price of licenses,” explains Tim Harper, senior systems analyst, Kadlec Medical Center.  “The number of applications you can run on one physical server determines how much you will ultimately spend on servers, storage, networking, electricity, cooling, and datacenter space. At Kadlec Medical Center, we currently run 305 virtual machines on 16 physical hosts. We expect to run as many as 400 virtual machines on the same hardware infrastructure – a VM density of 25 virtual machines per host. Thanks to unique VMware features like memory overcommit, we can maximize utilization without giving up on the performance of our production systems. We’ll spend $400,000 versus $2.4 million to run 400 virtual machines. That’s more than $2 million we can leverage to continue improving our patient care.”

“Our ability to run a large number of applications per host benefits us far beyond simple hardware and software savings,” said Andrea Friio, technical marketing manager at Genesys Telecommunications Lab.   “While cost savings from consolidation are great, we reap the greatest value from the improved flexibility that enables us to shorten time to market and increase revenue. VMware features like DRS and memory overcommit let us spin out new virtual machines in minutes without any anxiety around actual physical resource availability. At our current business pace, without VMware we would have been forced to purchase three new servers a month. We could not have sustained such growth given power, cooling, and datacenter space implications. With VMware technology, we take advantage of the full power of our hardware without compromising performance and reliability. We’re also extremely excited about the many innovations in VMware vSphere 4 and plan to upgrade to it by year’s end.”

“We are extremely pleased that our customers recognize so much value in VMware vSphere™ 4,” said Raghu Raghuram, vice president and general manager, Server Business Unit, VMware. “With more than 140 new features, VMware vSphere™ 4 provides capabilities that dramatically improve operational efficiency, enhance service levels, and further empower IT departments to be agile internal service providers while also reducing costs.”

Companies can estimate overall cost savings from the higher consolidation enabled by VMware vSphere 4 by using the newly updated VMware Cost-Per-Application Calculator. VMware vSphere 4 further extends financial savings to storage and network.  VMware vStorage Thin Provisioning can reduce storage costs by up to 50 percent while the VMware vNetwork Distributed Switch simplifies management of virtual networks.

To view the Taneja Group report, please visit: http://www.vmware.com/go/esx4-vm-density-advantage

About VMworld 2009

Now in its sixth year, VMworld 2009, with more than 10,000 attendees and over 200 sponsors and exhibitors, is the must-attend event for IT professionals looking for actionable ideas, innovative products and best practices for virtualizing their business – from the desktop to the datacenter to the cloud.  Under the theme "Hello Freedom", VMware and virtualization are changing the world of IT – no longer is IT tethered to complicated, expensive and inefficient systems. Say goodbye to the limitations of the traditional ways of computing and hello to the power to innovate. See how virtualization frees the lives of those that embrace it. Super Sessions are being given by Platinum Sponsors Cisco, Dell, EMC, HP, IBM, Intel, NetApp, Symantec, Wyse and VMware.  VMworld features more than 300 breakout sessions and hands-on labs, led by VMware and industry professionals, and is being held August 31- September 3 at Moscone Center in San Francisco.

About VMware

VMware delivers solutions for business infrastructure virtualization that enable IT organizations to energize businesses of all sizes.  With the industry leading virtualization platform – VMware vSphere™ – customers rely on VMware to reduce capital and operating expenses, improve agility, ensure business continuity, strengthen security and go green. With 2008 revenues of $1.9 billion, more than 150,000 customers and 22,000 partners, VMware is the leader in virtualization which consistently ranks as a top priority among CIOs. VMware is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the world and can be found online at www.vmware.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements

Statements made in this press release which are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements and are subject to the safe harbor provisions created by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements relate, but are not limited, to, customer benefits from deployment of virtualization products and architecture, including our products.  Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of certain risk factors, including but not limited to: (i) the duration and deepening of negative economic or market conditions; (ii) delays or reductions in consumer or information technology spending; (iii) competitive factors, including but not limited to pricing pressures, industry consolidation, entry of new competitors into the virtualization market, and new product and marketing initiatives by our competitors; (iv) our customers’ ability to develop, and to transition to, new products, (v) the uncertainty of customer acceptance of emerging technology initiatives; (vi) rapid technological and market changes in virtualization software; (vii) changes to product development timelines; and (viii) our ability  to attract and retain highly qualified employees.  These forward looking statements are based on current expectations and are subject to uncertainties and changes in condition, significance, value and effect as well as other risks detailed in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2009, which could cause actual results to vary from expectations. VMware disclaims any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release.