VMware defends ending downloads of SDK that helps VM backups – or migrations to rivals
- ID
- 23086
- Status
- summarized
- Published
- 10 Sep 2026, 10:05 AM
- Fetched
- 10 Sep 2026, 11:18 PM
- Provider
- The Register
- Category
- technology
- Original URL
- https://www.theregister.com/virtualization/2026/09/10/vmware-defends-ending-downloads-of-sdk-that-helps-vm-backups-or-migrations-to-rivals/5295421
- Source URL
- https://www.theregister.com/headlines.atom
Summary
- Score
- 6.0
- Created
- 10 Sep 2026, 11:21 PM
- Tags
- Audience
- developerssaas_startup_founders
What happened
VMware quietly removed public downloads of its Virtual Disk Development Kit (VDDK), an SDK used for VM backup and recovery that also underpins most VMware-to-rival migration tools, including Nutanix Move, Red Hat's virt-v2v, and Apache CloudStack workflows. VMware says VDDK remains available to select Technology Alliance Partners for its 'licensed use case' of backup/recovery, but smaller consultancies, open-source projects, and self-migrating customers are left with broken links and no support channel.
Why it matters
If you run VMware and are planning or mid-migration to KVM, Nutanix, or CloudStack, your toolchain may silently break because it depends on a VDDK library that is no longer publicly downloadable. Budget time to obtain VDDK through a TAP relationship or identify alternative migration transports before starting conversion work.
Discussion angle
Broadcom-era VMware is systematically walling off previously accessible tooling—what does this mean for Malaysian enterprises and MSPs still heavily invested in vSphere who may now face higher friction or cost to migrate away?