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VMware Aria Automation vs VMware Aria Operations vs vCenter Orchestrator comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.0
Medium to large enterprises gain ROI from virtualization, but quantifying returns is challenging; vCenter Orchestrator suits specific needs.
Sentiment score
7.2
VMware Aria Automation improved ROI through cost savings, enhanced productivity, and faster provisioning, reducing manual processes and boosting efficiency.
Sentiment score
7.2
VMware Aria Operations enhances VM efficiency, reduces costs, optimizes performance, and improves infrastructure with initial investment and substantial returns.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.2
VMware support is praised for communication and resolution but needs faster response and deeper expertise in some cases.
Sentiment score
6.6
VMware Aria Automation support is generally responsive and knowledgeable, but some delays occur with escalated issues and case handling.
Sentiment score
6.6
VMware Aria Operations is praised for customer service but faces mixed reviews on technical support efficiency and responsiveness.
When you open a ticket, in very, very few cases, they solve it. This is around a particular solution, Tanzu.
Senior IT at ITSolutions
We never had major issues to report or request support.
IT Infrastructure Manager at a insurance company with 501-1,000 employees
They remain in the top 25% of vendors.
IT Solution Architect at DCS
I would rate technical support around eight or nine.
Owner at Micronet Systems
I rate the customer service and support for VMware very highly, at nine out of ten.
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
vCenter Orchestrator effectively scales from small to large environments, adapting well despite some hardware-specific challenges.
Sentiment score
7.5
VMware Aria Automation is highly scalable, adaptable to various setups, and appreciated for integration and ease of expansion.
Sentiment score
7.4
VMware Aria Operations is praised for its scalability, efficient resource management, and seamless integration with various VMware solutions.
I consider VMware Aria Operations to be very scalable, earning a high rating of nine out of ten.
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
I find VMware Aria Operations to be quite scalable for my needs.
IT Solution Architect at DCS
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
vCenter Orchestrator is highly stable, reliable, and efficient, with occasional issues, praised for trustworthy performance by users.
Sentiment score
6.8
VMware Aria Automation is generally stable, with improvements noted; issues mainly occur during upgrades or complex deployments.
Sentiment score
7.8
VMware Aria Operations is reliable and stable, with minor issues occasionally arising, often linked to improper setup.
Until version eight, it was perfect because it was very proven and stable, and it was doing very well what it was promising.
Senior IT at ITSolutions
I have never experienced any downtime or lost connectivity.
Senior System Network Analyst at Net spa
The solution is not very stable.
IT Solution Architect at DCS
It is a stable solution, which is one of the reasons people prefer it since everyone knows how to use it.
Founder and CEO at Zed
 

Room For Improvement

vCenter Orchestrator requires affordability, interface improvements, better integration, automation features, simpler workflows, and accessible support and resources.
VMware Aria Automation needs improved documentation, integration, UI, and cost-effectiveness, along with enhanced orchestration, training, and error management.
VMware Aria Operations faces user interface complexity, integration issues, high costs, steep learning curve, and needs better documentation.
VCF 9 will bring VCF Automation and VCF Operations, the new product line of VMware.
Senior IT at ITSolutions
It operates for both of my products, however, as a product, it is complicated to integrate and automate with other products.
Cloud Engineer at BIDV - Ngân hàng TMCP Đầu tư & Phát triển Việt Nam
Stability is a significant area that needs improvement as I experience frequent disconnections and interruptions in data collection.
IT Solution Architect at DCS
The primary issue is the pricing, which is very expensive for my company's budget.
Senior System Network Analyst at Net spa
Customers have commented on the pricing issues, noting that doubling the price is not normal.
Founder and CEO at Zed
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise users have mixed opinions on vCenter Orchestrator pricing, with some finding it expensive due to complex licensing.
Enterprise users find VMware Aria Automation costly yet appreciate its integration and savings, comparing it to free alternatives like SaltStack.
Enterprise reviewers find VMware Aria Operations costly, exceeding budgets, prompting some to consider alternatives for better value.
The pricing is very expensive for my company's budget.
Senior System Network Analyst at Net spa
This makes the cost complex to determine individually.
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
VMware Aria Operations is considered overpriced.
Founder and CEO at Zed
 

Valuable Features

vCenter Orchestrator offers seamless automation, easy integration, scalability, user-friendly interface, and cost-effective virtual machine management.
VMware Aria Automation streamlines tasks through extensive integration, scalability, and user-friendly interfaces, enhancing operational agility and hybrid cloud support.
VMware Aria Operations offers comprehensive monitoring, management, and scalability with predictive analytics, real-time visibility, and vCenter integration.
We leverage VRO when the going gets tough. When something is not doable with the tools we have with VMware Aria Automation, we use the capabilities of VRO because it has many plugins for many things.
Senior IT at ITSolutions
It helps us automate the workflow of creating many VMs and the TensorFlow key method.
Cloud Engineer at BIDV - Ngân hàng TMCP Đầu tư & Phát triển Việt Nam
We have strong regulations for maintaining compliance and mitigating risks with this product.
IT Infrastructure Manager at a insurance company with 501-1,000 employees
It allows me to perform deep monitoring and logging of the entire environment, providing a quick alarm and warning system through email.
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
The most valuable features of VMware Aria Operations are its stability, ease of use, and extensive range of features.
Founder and CEO at Zed
The valuable features of VMware Aria Operations include the single pane of glass for all my environments, which allows a deep dive into the metrics.
IT Solution Architect at DCS
 

Mindshare comparison

Process Automation Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
vCenter Orchestrator0.9%
Camunda10.9%
IBM BPM5.3%
Other82.9%
Process Automation
Cloud Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Aria Automation5.5%
IBM Turbonomic4.7%
VMware Aria Operations3.9%
Other85.9%
Cloud Management
Virtualization Management Tools Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Aria Operations23.7%
IBM Turbonomic17.0%
SolarWinds Virtualization Manager9.7%
Other49.599999999999994%
Virtualization Management Tools
 

Featured Reviews

NB
Hybrid Cloud Engineer at RealPage
Boosts operational efficiency with flexible workflows and reliable cluster management
We currently use vCenter Orchestrator's pre-built workflow templates for our IT processes. The templates are flexible, allowing us to create and convert processes simply and manage patches. Regarding integration capabilities, we do not integrate any third-party tools. We exclusively use VMware products. The integration within the VMware infrastructure is limited to Single Sign-On (SSO). I have not created any workflows in vCenter Orchestrator as workflows are only used for change management. I have not encountered any drag and drop interface. The version control and logging features of vCenter Orchestrator have significantly improved the reliability of our automated processes, particularly during upgrades or patching to the cluster-wise. Previously, it would be done on a one-to-one cluster or one-to-one host basis, but now we only need to monitor it for upgrading or patching the entire cluster. I cannot comment on the pricing and licensing of vCenter Orchestrator as these aspects are managed by our onsite counterpart. Overall, I rate vCenter Orchestrator 8 out of 10. The rating reflects occasional delays in support response times and portal stability issues.
VasilisGiannitsiotis - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior IT at ITSolutions
Automation has streamlined complex financial workflows but still needs more intuitive orchestration
Something to improve in VMware Aria Automation would be related to VCF 9, as I do not know what it is trying to bring because they exposed it as the solution of everything. So VCF 9 will bring VCF Automation and VCF Operations, the new product line of VMware. I have not seen what this brings or what else it includes. Maybe in the area of vRealize Orchestrator, this would be beneficial because VRO can do everything. Perhaps a more user-friendly way to use that tool would be helpful because the possibilities there are endless. I am looking for more user-friendly navigation in VMware Aria Automation.
AldoDomini - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior System Network Analyst at Net spa
Have faced limitations due to high costs but have maintained reliability over time
The primary issue is the pricing, which is very expensive for my company's budget. We cannot afford to pay such a large fee. We are not Microsoft or BMW; we are a small company. As a small company, I have no power to negotiate directly with VMware. Perhaps larger companies have more opportunity to contract directly with VMware, but I do not have that leverage. The only path I can follow is to change solutions. Net.spA is a company working in the field of waste management. We are not a technological company, so we do not have a large margin to justify purchasing and maintaining the VMware infrastructure at current costs.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Marketing Services Firm
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
6%
Construction Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Marketing Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise20
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business33
Midsize Enterprise24
Large Enterprise131
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business66
Midsize Enterprise61
Large Enterprise281
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for vCenter Orchestrator?
We're running a low-profile budget. This is not our main focus on investment technology, so we're trying to reduce co...
What needs improvement with vCenter Orchestrator?
For our environment, I do not see any areas of vCenter Orchestrator that could be improved or enhanced. We are curren...
What is your primary use case for vCenter Orchestrator?
My usual use cases for vCenter Orchestrator involve managing all the ESXi hosts from the US, as we have almost 1200 t...
What's the difference between VMware vRA (automation) and vROps (operations)?
vROP is a virtualization management solution from VMWare. It is efficient and easy to manage. You can find anything y...
Is there any way to try VMware Aria Automation for free?
When it comes to VMware Aria Automation, you have three choices for free runs: Hands-on Lab (HOL) Advanced lab A fre...
Which sectors can benefit the most from VMware Aria Automation?
I was looking at VMware Aria Automation case studies recently and I got the impression that three main kinds of compa...
Is VMware Aria Operations a user friendly solution?
In terms of user-friendliness, VMware Aria Operations is one of the best solutions out there. It is not overly compl...
What is the most useful new feature of VMware Aria Operations?
For me, the alerts features are the most unique part of this product, no matter the current name it uses. When they i...
Which licensing model do you use for VMware Aria Operations?
My company pays for VMware Suite license because we use many products from this brand and this solution is included ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware vRealize Automation, vRA, VMware DynamicOps Cloud Suite, SaltStack
VMware vRealize Operations (vROps), vCenter Operations Manager (VCOPS)
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Beiersdorf Shared Services
Rent-a-Center, Amway, Vistra Energy, Liberty Mutual
Science Applications International Corporation, Tribune Media, Heartland Payment Systems, Telkom Indonesia, Columbia Sportswear, iGATE, CSS Corp, Angel Broking, Adira Finance, Hipskind, Beiersdorf Shared Services, Innovate Mas Indonesia, Adobe, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi , Join Experience S.A, Borusan Holdings, Department of Transport - Abu Dhabi
Find out what your peers are saying about Camunda, BMC, Temporal Technologies and others in Process Automation. Updated: May 2026.
899,645 professionals have used our research since 2012.