vCenter Converter removed from available downloads on VMware – Use Veeam instead

vCenter Converter enables the conversion of virtual machines for the VMware vSphere platform (ie ESXi hosts, ESXi hosts managed by a vCenter Server, or a standalone VMware virtual machine) physical machines, VMware Server virtual machines or Workstation, Hyper-V virtual machines, and system images. Kindly refer to these related guides: How to extend a VM’s Hard Disk on VMware Workstation, how To Deploy Azure VMware Solution Private Cloud, how to install Windows Server 2022 on VMware Workstation, how to solve VMware workstation .lck error, how to create a static pod in Kubernetes, and how to install, register and start GitLab Runner on Windows..

VMware vCenter Converter Standalone provides an easy-to-use solution that automates the process of creating VMware virtual machines from physical machines (running Windows and Linux) and other virtual machine formats. Through an intuitive wizard-driven interface and a centralized management console, Converter Standalone can quickly and reliably convert multiple local and remote physical machines without any disruptions or downtime.

Benefits of using vCenter Converter

• Convert physical machines running Windows or Linux operating systems to VMware virtual machines quickly and without any disruption or downtime.
• Enable centralized management of remote conversions of multiple physical servers or virtual machines simultaneously.
• Ensure conversion reliability through quiesced snapshots of the guest operating system on the source machine before data migration.
• Enable non-disruptive conversions through hot cloning, with no source server downtime or reboot.

February 2nd, VMware published a blog post that they will be removing vCenter Converter from the list of VMware product downloads. They also re-emphasized that it is only a precautionary measure to protect customers from using legacy technology that does not comply with VMware’s high standards for security and stability. They since apologized for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Offering unsupported products based on legacy technology presents potential security and reliability risks to our customers. The last release of vCenter Converter occurred in May 2018, and its support officially ended in December 2019. While we understand the tool’s appeal, yet escalating risks compelled its removal. I encourage using Veeam Backup and Replication Tool, an all-inclusive solution. This tool can efficiently convert Hyper-V VMs to VMware and perform P2V conversions for physical computers using the Disk2VHD converter. Kindly refer to these guides on how to install and configure Veeam Backup and Replication 11 Community Edition with its default SQL Server Express Edition, and Azure Backup and Recovery: How to setup Veeam Backup for Microsoft Azure [Part 1]. Kindly refer to this tweet by Rick Vanover. It should give you a brief overview of what Veeam is capable of doing.

One of VMware’s top goals is to maintain the safety and stability of our customers’ workloads. As part of a technology’s evolution, we must consider the technical standards the customers must comply with. When a straightforward update cannot meet compliance requirements, the product needs to undergo a thorough rebuild. This is the case with vCenter Converter, whose functionality will be migrated to a modern platform based on a reliable technology stack.

Work on a renewed version of vCenter Converter is already in progress as stated by VMware. Although we cannot commit to any specific timelines for its release, the updated tool will meet our high standards for security and stability, providing enhanced functionality and supporting the latest technologies available in vSphere virtual machines.