Key Takeaways

  • VMware migration to AWS has become a priority for Malaysian enterprises since Broadcom’s 2024 licensing overhaul eliminated perpetual licences and collapsed 168 products into four subscription bundles.
  • Amazon Elastic VMware Service (Amazon EVS) lets businesses run VMware Cloud Foundation directly on AWS bare-metal infrastructure, without refactoring existing applications.
  • Amazon EVS reached the AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) Region in December 2025, meaning data can stay within Malaysian borders throughout the migration.
  • The migration path involves an assessment phase, a pilot, and a structured cutover. Teams that skip assessment typically run into capacity and compatibility surprises mid-migration.
  • Cloud migration via Amazon EVS is not the only path. AWS also supports re-platforming to native services for workloads that benefit from a lighter footprint.

 

Introduction

For the vast majority of Malaysian enterprises, the decision on VMware was once a relatively simple one: renew your licenses, keep vSphere running, and keep your business running. That changed when Broadcom took over VMware in November 2023.

In January 2024, Broadcom discontinued VMware’s perpetual licenses. Organisations accustomed to lengthy perpetuities and stable maintenance costs will have no choice but to switch to mandatory, subscription-based renewals, priced on a per-core basis. Following the acquisition, industry analysis by SoftwareSeni showed that VMware renewals would jump between 150%-1,000% in some cases, as well as mandating a minimum of 72 cores. 

That same analysis also found that Broadcom scaled back VMware’s massive product list of 168 offerings down to four subscription bundles. This forces many organisations to purchase packages that exceed their needs, when compared to the breadth of options previously offered by VMware.

For many enterprises in Malaysia, VMware migration is now not a future possibility they hope to plan for, but rather an active and urgent project they need to implement now due to the expiration dates on their licenses. In this blog, we’ll examine what the actual process of VMware migration entails, what exactly the AWS Elastic VMware Service will deliver, and what needs to be right prior to you commencing.

 

VMware Migration to AWS

A VMware migration to AWS is the migration of VMware-based virtual machines, workloads and infrastructure from on-premises data centers to AWS cloud infrastructure. Instead of having to re-architect or re-engineer applications, typical VMware migrations keep the existing VMware stack running as is on AWS. 

Amazon Elastic VMware Service (Amazon EVS) supports this by placing VMware Cloud Foundation fully across EC2 bare metal instances within an Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC). The applications keep running exactly as is, minimising disruption to the migration.

The VMware environment running on AWS still uses the same tools operations teams already work with daily, including:

  • vSphere
  • vCenter
  • NSX
  • vSAN

The difference is that these services now run on AWS infrastructure rather than physical hardware inside a local data centre.

A key benefit of moving from VMware to AWS using Amazon EVS is that there is no need to re-platform or re-code any applications prior to migrating. Applications remain running on the VMware Cloud Foundation stack they were running on before the migration and therefore the risk stays at infrastructure level, rather than application level.

 

What Amazon Elastic VMware Service Actually Does?

Amazon Elastic VMware Service (Amazon EVS) is a native AWS service that runs VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) within your Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC). This platform provisions an entire VMware environment on AWS Nitro-based i4i.metal EC2 bare metal instances.

One of the main advantages of Amazon EVS is the speed of deployment. Using a guided configuration workflow, businesses can deploy a production-grade VMware cluster within hours instead of waiting weeks for traditional hardware procurement and setup.

Amazon EVS allows organisations to continue using the same VMware operational tools they already manage on-premises, including:

  • vCenter management
  • NSX networking configuration
  • vSAN storage operations
  • VMware Cloud Foundation environments
  • Existing VMware administrative workflows

The underlying infrastructure, however, now runs on AWS hardware rather than physical servers inside a private data centre. This gives businesses several operational advantages:

  • On-demand infrastructure scalability
  • Elimination of physical hardware refresh cycles
  • Direct integration with more than 200 AWS services
  • Easier expansion into cloud-native workloads over time

Amazon EVS reached general availability in August 2025 and expanded into the AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) Region in December 2025 following strong enterprise demand across Southeast Asia.

For AWS Malaysia deployments, this means:

  • VMware workloads can run inside the ap-southeast-5 region
  • Data can remain within Malaysian borders
  • Organisations can support Bank Negara Malaysia data residency obligations
  • Sector-specific compliance requirements become easier to manage

The platform currently supports VMware Cloud Foundation version 5.2.1 and operates on i4i.metal instances.

Amazon EVS also provides multiple licensing models, including:

  • On-demand pricing
  • One-year commitments
  • Three-year commitments
  • Existing VCF licence portability options

Licence portability is particularly important for organisations that already paid upfront for Broadcom VMware subscription licences and want to continue using those entitlements inside AWS.

Amazon Elastic VMware Service became available in the AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) Region (ap-southeast-5) in December 2025. This allows Malaysian businesses to run VMware Cloud Foundation workloads on AWS infrastructure located within Malaysia itself, supporting both low-latency application access and national data residency requirements.

 

The Pre-Migration Assessment: What Most Teams Skip?

VMware migrations to AWS very seldomly fail due to technology incompatibility. Most failures occur due to the migration preparation stage of the migration being rushed, compressed or not fully appreciated.

This assessment stage where a business identifies their infrastructure interdependencies, workload behavior, licensing risks and migration risks prior to moving workloads into the AWS cloud, causes significant time delays during deployment and/or cutover when avoided.

A proper pre-migration assessment normally focuses on four key areas.

  • Workload Inventory

Not every workload inside an on-premises VMware environment should automatically move into Amazon EVS.

Some workloads are better suited for:

  • Amazon EVS
  • Native Amazon EC2 deployments
  • Managed services such as Amazon RDS
  • Re-platforming into cloud-native architectures

Tools such as AWS Migration Evaluator help organisations identify which workloads belong in each category.

One of the most common planning mistakes is treating every virtual machine as an identical migration candidate. In practice, workloads have different performance requirements, dependencies, and operational characteristics.

  • Network and Connectivity

Applications that rely on low-latency internal communication require careful placement inside the AWS environment.

During this phase, teams need to review:

  • VPC architecture
  • NSX networking configuration
  • Internal communication dependencies
  • Routing requirements
  • Connectivity between migrated workloads

The logical topology inside Amazon EVS should closely match the on-premises VMware environment wherever possible.

Teams that only discover hidden connectivity dependencies during migration usually face deployment delays that could have been avoided earlier in planning.

  • Storage Sizing

Amazon EVS uses vSAN storage inside the cluster environment.

The available storage capacity depends on:

  • The selected vSAN configuration
  • The storage available on i4i.metal instances
  • Planned workload growth
  • Replication and redundancy requirements

Underestimating storage requirements during assessment creates problems later in the migration process. Organisations may then need to:

  • Expand the cluster mid-deployment
  • Re-stage workloads unexpectedly
  • Adjust migration timelines
  • Recalculate infrastructure costs

Proper storage sizing early in the project reduces operational disruption later.

  • Licence Position

Broadcom subscription renewals have become a major factor in VMware migration planning.

Before selecting a migration model, organisations need a clear understanding of:

  • Existing VMware licence entitlements
  • Broadcom subscription renewal timelines
  • Licence portability eligibility
  • AWS consumption pricing options
  • Long-term licensing costs

This affects both migration timing and overall infrastructure cost planning. Businesses approaching an upcoming Broadcom renewal deadline often need to decide quickly between bringing existing VMware Cloud Foundation licences into Amazon EVS or shifting fully into AWS-based consumption pricing.

 

Three Migration Paths: Choosing the Right One

Not every workload should follow the same migration route during a VMware cloud migration project. AWS Malaysia customers generally evaluate three primary migration paths depending on workload complexity, operational priorities, licensing pressure, and long-term infrastructure goals.

  • Lift and Shift via Amazon EVS

This is usually the fastest migration option for organisations that need to move away from on-premises infrastructure quickly.

It is commonly chosen by businesses facing:

  • VMware licence renewal pressure
  • Hardware end-of-life deadlines
  • Data centre lease expiry
  • Infrastructure refresh costs

Under this model:

  • Existing workloads move into Amazon EVS without modification.
  • VMware operational workflows remain unchanged.
  • vSphere, vCenter, NSX, and vSAN continue operating normally.
  • Internal IT teams continue using familiar management tools from day one.

As the VMware stack remains intact, operational continuity is preserved throughout the migration process.

  • Re-Platforming to Native AWS Services

Some VMware workloads run more cost-effectively on native AWS services instead of inside a VMware environment.

Common candidates include:

  • Databases
  • Web application tiers
  • Stateless application servers
  • Lightweight application workloads

Examples include:

  • Moving a database workload from VMware into Amazon RDS or Amazon Aurora
  • Moving web application servers from VMware VMs into Amazon EC2

This migration approach removes the VMware layer entirely for selected workloads.

Compared to Amazon EVS migration, re-platforming usually involves:

  • More planning
  • Additional testing
  • Application-level changes
  • Longer migration timelines

However, businesses often gain lower long-term infrastructure costs and reduced VMware dependency afterward.

  • Hybrid Migration

Many Malaysian enterprises adopt a hybrid migration strategy instead of choosing only one path.

Under this approach:

  • Mission-critical applications with complex dependencies move into Amazon EVS first
  • Simpler workloads migrate into native AWS services separately
  • Different workload groups migrate in phases rather than all at once

This gives businesses greater flexibility while reducing operational disruption.

VSTECS KU demonstrated this migration model during a workshop hosted at the AWS Malaysia Office in April 2025. The session included:

For many organisations, the hybrid model provides a practical balance between operational continuity and long-term infrastructure optimisation.

 

What to Get Right Before You Cut Over?

The cutover stage is where poorly prepared migrations usually begin exposing operational problems. Even when the migration itself appears technically successful, issues involving networking, application access, or rollback procedures often surface during the final transition into production.

Three areas matter most before cutover begins.

  • Testing in a Pilot Environment

Before production workloads are migrated, organisations should first run a pilot migration using a representative non-production environment.

A pilot migration helps teams:

  • Validate migration workflows
  • Test operational procedures
  • Measure AWS infrastructure performance
  • Identify hidden configuration issues
  • Confirm workload behaviour after migration

Amazon EVS simplifies pilot testing because the same VMware tools and operational processes used during testing also apply directly to production environments.

The pilot phase also establishes realistic performance baselines, which helps teams make more accurate capacity and infrastructure decisions before the full migration begins.

  • DNS and IP Planning

Virtual machines migrated into Amazon EVS generally retain their internal IP addresses inside the VPC environment.

However, several external dependencies may still require updates during cutover, including:

  • External DNS records
  • Application connection strings
  • Load balancer configurations
  • Routing rules
  • Firewall policies

These updates should not be handled manually during production cutover.

Instead, organisations should:

  • Script the required changes
  • Test them during the pilot phase
  • Validate failover behaviour beforehand
  • Document rollback procedures clearly

Teams that leave DNS and routing decisions until the day of migration often create unnecessary downtime during production cutover.

  • Rollback Planning

Even well-prepared migrations require a documented rollback strategy.

During the cutover window:

  • The original source environment should remain operational
  • Source workloads should remain accessible
  • Rollback triggers should already be defined
  • Recovery procedures should be documented in advance

Rollback conditions should be agreed upon before migration starts, not during a live incident.

Examples of rollback triggers may include:

  • Application instability
  • Unexpected latency
  • Failed workload validation
  • Database synchronisation issues
  • Connectivity failures

A rollback strategy gives teams a controlled recovery path if production behaviour does not match expectations after migration.

For organisations running VMware migration to AWS internally for the first time, VSTECS KU provides:

  • Migration planning services
  • Amazon EVS deployment support
  • AWS Malaysia migration assistance
  • Post-migration operational support
  • Infrastructure transition guidance

 

Is VMware Migration to AWS Right for Your Business?

The migration of VMware to AWS is most appropriate for organisations that are coming up for a Broadcom renewal, have a plan to consolidate data centers, or are driven by an instruction to reduce their on-premises footprints. Technically, the path is eased by using Amazon EVS, retaining the VMware stack. 

The business case is clearest when licensing costs are driving the decision, the hardware is approaching the end of its useful life, or the organisation requires the elasticity and resiliency of a cloud environment without application re-work.

For organisations not facing renewal pressure and that have recently renewed hardware, the immediate business case may be less clear, although long-term on-premises VMware costs will undoubtedly continue to fuel cloud adoption planning.

 

FAQs

  • Do we need to re-code our applications for VMware migration to AWS?

No. As the AWS EVS retains the VMware Cloud foundation stack, the VMs are migrated without changes. Applications will be running in the same exact way as it is running on premise. This is also the reason for customers who are having complex legacy applications in their current environments, to prefer EVS as a migration tool. Re-platforming is often more expensive and high risk in comparison to migrating the existing VMs.

  • Is Amazon Elastic VMware Service available in Malaysia?

Yes. Amazon Elastic VMware Service has officially arrived in the AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) Region in December 2025. Malaysian enterprises can now run their VMware workloads in AWS Elastic VMware Service within ap-southeast-5 region without the need to migrate their data outside Malaysia borders and fulfilling data residency needs. The information is detailed on the Amazon EVS product page.

  • Which VMware licences are required for Amazon EVS?

VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2.1 is supported in EVS. You can either pay AWS a consumption-based fee, or bring your current VCF licences to EVS with Broadcom’s licence portability entitlement. It is possible that, if you have paid for your Broadcom subscription licence, you can now use this with EVS, without double paying.

  • What are typical timeframes for a VMware migration into AWS?

The time taken depends a lot on the quantity and nature of your workloads, how well the pre-migration assessment has been done, and if there are re-platformed workloads along with your EVS migration. Eight to sixteen weeks for a “focused” migration of defined workloads into EVS, with a thorough assessment and pilot phase is reasonable. Complex migrations involving different types of workloads along with re-platforming activities will take longer.

  • How is Amazon EVS different from the older VMware Cloud on AWS?

VMware Cloud on AWS was a co-managed offering by VMware while Amazon EVS is a native AWS offering and is managed entirely by AWS directly for the infrastructure layer. Amazon EVS offers organisations complete administrative control of their VCF infrastructure, is tightly integrated with AWS networking (VPC, Direct Connect) and storage (FSx for NetApp ONTAP), removing any management burden from a shared SDDC and is available on flexible consumption pricing.

 

Conclusion

The Broadcom licensing changes have accelerated the decision that many Malaysian businesses had anticipated would occur over time. AWS’s migration offering for VMware (via Amazon Elastic VMware Service), reduces the risk associated with migrating existing workloads while keeping them functional along with existing operations and migrating the environment to the AWS cloud.

Now, that there is an AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) Region (opened in December 2022), a significant concern around data residency for highly regulated industries concerned with storing VMware workloads in the cloud has been alleviated. Organisations that tend to have the easiest migrations are those that take the time to perform an assessment of their existing environment prior to undertaking migration.

Comprehensive inventorying of workloads and assessing storage, networking, and licensing generally leads to higher success in the later stages of migration. The first assessment most businesses can take is reviewing Broadcom renewal timelines, and determining what workload runs best in Amazon EVS vs. native AWS services.

As the first AWS distributor in Malaysia, VSTECS KU is assisting organisations through migration planning, Amazon EVS implementation, infrastructure assessments and post-migration operations, the latter bolstered by a total of over 35 years in the ICT business. VSTECS KU works with its network of 45,000 downstream channel partners and relationships with more than 40 global technology vendors across all banking, health, government, education, and enterprise infrastructure.

We support cloud, database migration, backup and disaster recovery planning, networking and other AWS services for organisations making the transition away from on-premise hardware. VSTECS KU has more than 395 employees and a national reach through locations in Penang, Johor Bahru, Kuantan, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, and Kuala Lumpur, working on the largest enterprise infrastructure modernisation and planned cloud adoption projects. 

Learn more about how a VMware to AWS migration could look for your business, including an infrastructure assessment and migration plan from the VSTECS KU team regarding your VMware environment.