VMware vCenter Server 6

What is VMware vCenter Server 6?

VMware vCenter Server 6 is an enterprise-grade datacenter management platform developed by VMware (now owned by Broadcom). It serves as the central management hub for VMware vSphere environments, giving administrators a single console to provision, monitor, and control virtual machines and ESXi hosts across an organisation's infrastructure. Version 6 refers to the 6.x release family (notably 6.0), which launched in 2015. This is a legacy version — VMware vCenter Server 6.0 reached end of general support on 12 March 2020, meaning no new security patches, bug fixes, or hardware support updates have been released for several years.

What's included

vCenter Server 6 is available in two main editions:

• **Foundation** — capped at managing up to 3 ESXi hosts per instance; aimed at small environments.
• **Standard** — the full-featured tier, supporting up to 1,000 hosts and 10,000 powered-on virtual machines per vCenter instance, with up to 64 hosts per cluster.

Core capabilities enabled across editions include:

• Centralised VM and host management from a web-based console
• VMware vMotion (live migration of running VMs between hosts)
• Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) for automated load balancing
• High Availability (HA) for automatic VM restart on host failure
• Fault Tolerance for zero-downtime protection of critical workloads
• Deployment in either Embedded mode (Platform Services Controller co-located) or External mode (separate PSC, recommended for larger or multi-site setups)

The listing on this page will specify whether the key covers Foundation or Standard — confirm the edition before purchasing, as they are not interchangeable.

Licence and activation

vCenter Server 6 is licensed on a per-instance basis, not per host or per VM. A licence takes the form of a 25-character alphanumeric key divided into five-character blocks. Activation is performed inside the vSphere Web Client after software installation: navigate to Administration > Licenses, enter the key, and assign it to your vCenter Server instance. There is no hardware binding in the traditional sense (it is not an OEM key tied to a specific machine), but the key is consumed by the instance and is not freely reassignable without VMware's licence management portal. Delivery via authorised resellers is typically instant digital delivery — the key is sent by email. You are responsible for downloading the actual vCenter Server installer separately through VMware/Broadcom's portal using a valid My VMware account.

Is it worth it?

For the vast majority of buyers, vCenter Server 6 is not the right choice in 2026. Version 6.0 has been end-of-life since 2020, which means no security patches and no vendor support — a significant risk in any production or internet-connected environment. Broadcom has substantially changed VMware's licensing model post-acquisition, and newer vSphere versions (7.x, 8.x) are recommended for any active deployment.

The narrow use cases where version 6 might still be relevant are isolated lab environments, legacy compatibility testing, or regulated industries running certified hardware/software stacks that have not yet been cleared for upgrade. If you fall into one of those categories, ensure your hardware and guest OS versions are within the supported compatibility matrix for vSphere 6.

If you are setting up a new or production virtualisation environment, invest in a currently supported release instead.