IBM PowerVM and Proxmox VE compete in the virtualization solutions category. IBM PowerVM appears to have the upper hand in performance and stability, whereas Proxmox VE is more cost-effective and flexible due to its open-source model.
Features: IBM PowerVM is noted for its performance, stability, and efficient resource management, including dynamic resource allocation. It offers high availability and security. Proxmox VE values cost-effectiveness, easy installation, and flexibility with its open-source nature. It supports both virtualization and containerization, integrates well with various systems, and provides an intuitive web-managed interface.
Room for Improvement: IBM PowerVM could enhance its hardware licensing model, reduce costs, and improve OS compatibility. Users desire more flexibility and robust GUI tools. Proxmox VE's documentation, user interface, and backup capabilities could be better. Additionally, it requires enhanced cloud integration, improved IO management, and more advanced monitoring tools.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM PowerVM requires complex on-premises setup but offers strong, responsive technical support. Proxmox VE, with straightforward deployment, works well in hybrid and private clouds. While IBM's support is highly rated, Proxmox relies on a community-driven model with paid options for comprehensive assistance.
Pricing and ROI: IBM PowerVM is generally expensive, with a high ROI, especially for systems utilizing Oracle due to unique licensing per VM core. It includes all features but costs are significant. Proxmox VE offers substantial cost savings with its open-source model, making it attractive for budget-conscious users while providing excellent value in terms of price-to-benefit ratio.
The return on investment is substantial, though other platforms may offer a better ROI, primarily due to lower costs involved in setup and maintenance.
If calculated over a five-year period, IBM PowerVM is 30 to 40% more cost-effective than physical servers despite initial costs seeming high.
IBM offers excellent customer support.
IBM's technical support is outstanding, with seamless global coordination and prompt resolutions.
IBM provides strong support.
An IBM server can handle up to sixty-four terabytes of RAM.
The product is scalable due to PowerVM's virtualization features, such as shared processor functionality and partition mobility.
I think IBM PowerVM uses a 'pay as you grow' model, allowing customers to scale their resources as needed.
The stability of IBM PowerVM is exceptional, as industry reports have named IBM Power and Z as the most stable platforms globally for 15 consecutive years.
Our clients in India using Power Servers have been running their servers for the last four to five years without any reboot.
The product operates reliably, and following IBM’s best practices ensures robust stability.
We have a strong relationship with IBM, which aids decision-making in transitioning clients from mainframe to other platforms.
From a product perspective, I would like to see faster certification of open-source products on IBM Power Systems.
PowerVM should integrate some capabilities of VMware vCenter to improve its management features.
PowerVM itself is free with the purchase of an IBM server.
They have introduced a subscription-based model for some systems, creating a more cost-effective solution for customers.
While initially costly, the ROI over five years proves IBM PowerVM is cost-effective, resulting in a 30 to 40% reduction in costs compared to a physical setup.
Features like partition mobility enhance the machine's capabilities, making it an ideal tool for virtual environments with reliability, availability, and serviceability.
It supports specific workloads, like Oracle and SAP HANA, much better due to its shared processor pool feature which reduces licensing costs.
IBM PowerVM supports multiple operating systems such as IBM i, AIX, and Linux, allowing users to run various applications seamlessly in a cloud environment.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Proxmox VE | 16.7% |
| IBM PowerVM | 1.3% |
| Other | 82.0% |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 13 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 5 |
| Large Enterprise | 20 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 44 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 11 |
| Large Enterprise | 10 |
Proxmox VE is a complete virtualization management solution for servers. It is a powerful open-source platform and supports two virtualization technologies - KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) for virtual machines and LXC for containers. Proxmox VE has a central user interface that allows you to manage not only VMs and containers, but also storage resources, network configuration, and high availability for clusters. It is enterprise-ready and is valued for its scalability and maximum flexibility, enabling you to virtualize very demanding workloads. Proxmox VE makes it possible for you to easily install, manage, and monitor hyper-converged (HCI) data centers.
Proxmox VE Key Features
The Proxmox VE platform has many powerful features, including:
pen-source software, high-available clusters, command line, fencing, a web-based management interface, flexible storage options, REST API, live/online migration, storage replication stack, software defined storage, virtualized networking, backup and restore, two-factor authentication, role-based administration, and VM templates and clones.
Proxmox VE Benefits
Some of the biggest benefits of Proxmox VE are:
Reviews From Real Users
Here is some feedback from some of our users who are currently using the solution:
A PeerSpot user who is a director at a tech services company says, “The most valuable features of Proxmox VE are the ease of containerization. Overall the solution is generic, feature-rich, and has compatibility.”
Another PeerSpot user who is a head of IT operations at a tech services company mentions that "In addition to the virtualization, the firewall and the routing functions that it provides are valuable."
Deepen D., director and CTO at TechnoInfotech, expresses that "The feature that I have found most valuable is that its storage container, LVM, and everything else work out of the box."
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