Nutanix: An Open Challenge to VMware

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Nutanix used its well-attended NEXT on Tour roadshow in Darmstadt to demonstrate that the final gaps in its portfolio are being closed. The message to the nearly 1000 visitors: whether it's a classic VDI desktop, an AI cluster, or connecting existing SAN storage – the platform stands on solid ground. But Nutanix, the VMware challenger, is not only positioning itself technically but also in terms of personnel.

Omnissa Horizon on AHV: The Wait is Almost Over

Native support for Omnissa Horizon 8 on the Nutanix hypervisor AHV is close to general availability. The limited availability phase is expected to conclude as early as January 2026, and features like Instant Clones, App Volumes, and GPU support are now being integrated directly into AHV. Together with the new option to run Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) on premises on Nutanix, AHV is positioning itself as a universal foundation for virtual desktops.

Breaking the Taboo: External Storage Arrays Connected

The strategic shift in Nutanix's course was already hinted at with the support for Dell PowerFlex since spring 2025. Next, AHV will natively support Pure Storage, with integration also nearing GA. This development is particularly novel, as Nutanix had preached for years that SAN (Storage Area Networks) storage was dead and everything had to be stored on hyperconverged servers (HCI).

Why this step now? The reason is pragmatic: many companies want to move away from VMware but have only recently invested heavily in new storage arrays. Writing off this hardware to switch to HCI is usually economically nonsensical. Nutanix is building a bridge here: customers can switch their servers to Nutanix AHV (and save on VMware licenses) while continuing to use their expensive storage. Technically, Nutanix introduced the concept of Compute-Only Nodes for this purpose. These are servers that run AHV but do not have their data storage. However, greenfield installations should still opt for the HCI variant – it remains Nutanix's architecture of the future.

AI Factories and Sovereignty

Nutanix is also upgrading for high-performance workloads. To eliminate virtualization overhead in AI applications, Nutanix is collaborating with Nvidia to offload the network stack onto BlueField DPUs. The principle behind this is that the Software-Defined Networking layer (Flow) no longer runs on the server's CPU but directly on the network card. This leaves the CPU cores exclusively available to the AI application.

For German medium-sized businesses, Nutanix is bringing Deutsche Telekom on board. A joint offering for a sovereign hybrid cloud will guarantee data storage in Germany and GDPR compliance. Operation will be as a managed service, with customers able to seamlessly access resources from the Open Telekom Cloud during peak loads.

Furthermore, customers can now also obtain Nutanix HCI from OVHCloud – in addition to the American hyperscalers AWS, Azure, and Google, this is the first European cloud provider to support the deployment of Nutanix Cloud Cluster (NC2).

Personnel Changes as a Strategy: The "New Old" VMware?

Behind the technical scenes, an equally exciting organizational shift is taking place. It's an open secret in the conference halls: numerous senior executives from VMware Germany's upper management have joined Nutanix lately. Thomas Herrguth, General Manager at Nutanix Germany, appears to have a clear plan: professionalizing the German subsidiary. By deliberately building structures reminiscent of VMware Germany's organization before the acquisition, Herrguth is creating a familiar point of contact for enterprise customers. The brain drain at the competitor is thus being used to directly build competence and sales power within Nutanix – a declaration of war that goes beyond pure product features.

In line with this, the distributor TD SYNNEX has been appointed as a Service Provider Aggregator. This allows system houses to procure Nutanix licenses on a consumption basis – a flexible model that many partners in the new Broadcom cosmos currently lack. Fundamentally, Nutanix aims to strengthen its service provider business, which VMware is neglecting.

Conclusion

The in-house trade fair in Darmstadt showcased a mature challenger. With upcoming support for Omnissa, opening up to external storage, and the integration of DPUs, Nutanix has overcome many technical hurdles. At the same time, the restructuring of the German organization under Thomas Herrguth sends a clear signal: Nutanix is ready to take on the role of the market leader, not only technically but also structurally.

(olb)