--- name: vmwaresolutions-vmware-add-ons title: VMware add-ons for VMware Cloud Foundation description: As of 17 July 2025, new automated installations of Red Hat® OpenShift® for VMware® are no longer available for new or existing deployments of VMware Cloud Foundation for Classic - Automated instances. You can still use or delete your existing Red Hat OpenShift for VMware automated installations until 16 July 2026. The service will no longer be available from 17 July 2026. last-updated: 2026-05-18 --- > ## Documentation Index > The table of contents for this documentation set is at https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vmwaresolutions?format=markdown > The index for all IBM Cloud docs is at: https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/llms.txt > Use these files to discover more information as needed. # VMware add-ons for VMware Cloud Foundation {: #vmware-add-ons} As of 17 July 2025, new automated installations of Red Hat® OpenShift® for VMware® are no longer available for new or existing deployments of VMware Cloud Foundation for Classic - Automated instances. You can still use or delete your existing Red Hat OpenShift for VMware automated installations until 16 July 2026. The service will no longer be available from 17 July 2026. {: deprecated} You must order separately a number of VMware® add-ons for your VMware Cloud Foundation™ bundle. ## VMware Avi Load Balancer add-on {: #vmware-add-ons-nsx-avi} The Avi Load Balancer (formerly VMware NSX Advanced Load Balancer) is available as a VMware add-on. If you need load balancing for your environment, you can purchase the Avi Load Balancer license from the IBM Cloud® console. You are then responsible for installing the Avi Load Balancer yourself. ## VMware vDefend Firewall add-on {: #vmware-add-ons-nsx-firewall} VMware vDefend™ Distributed Firewall (formerly VMware NSX Distributed Firewall) and VMware vDefend™ Gateway Firewall (formerly VMware NSX Gateway Firewall) are extracted from NSX and are available as an add-on to the VMware Cloud Foundation bundle. Add-on licenses are available for purchase in the IBM Cloud console. You must purchase licenses for the number of cores that are required for your environment separately. You must order the appropriate number of firewall cores for your environment. * If you are ordering a new VMware Cloud Foundation for Classic - Automated instance, the minimum gateway firewall cores are calculated for your order. IBM recognizes that you might resize or reconfigure these gateways, so the ongoing management of these keys, including their deletion, is your responsibility. These keys are not removed automatically when you delete your instance. * If you are an existing customer or if you are changing your environment to configure an extra Gateway Firewall or to configure a Distributed Firewall, you must purchase vDefend Firewall licenses separately for the number of cores that are required for your environment. * To calculate the number of firewall cores that you need for your environment and to confirm the cost (depending on whether you use distributed, gateway, or no firewall), based on your procurement vehicle, contact your IBM Business Partner representative or IBM Sales representative. If you are running NSX 4.1 or later, see [Counting Cores for VMware vDefend Firewall and vDefend Firewall with Advanced Threat Prevention](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article?articleNumber=395111){: external} to calculate the number of cores that you need. Discounts are available depending on your contract commitment. * **Distributed Firewall**: For this option, all host cores that are running NSX must be licensed for the vDefend Distributed Firewall add-on. This is done because virtual network segments span the entire environment and a virtual machine (VM) can run on any host. The applicable license key that you must order is named **VMware vDefend Firewall - Distributed** and is available in multiple sizes. * **Gateway Firewall**: For this option, the vCPUs that are running on the edge VMs provide the gateway firewall service, therefore they are counted. To get the edge VMs properly configured, the VMs are sized and 4 cores per vCPU in the edge VMs are calculated. The applicable license key that you must order is named **VMware vDefend Firewall - Gateway** and is available in multiple sizes. For example, by using the sizing guidance at [NSX Edge Installation Requirements](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/nsx/vmware-nsx/4-2/installation-guide/installing-nsx-edge/nsx-edge-installation-requirements.html){: external} if you choose a large edge, then each edge requires 8 vCPU, therefore 32 cores to be licensed: `8 vCPUs in the VM * 4 cores per vCPU = 32 cores` As many environments use multiple edges for redundancy, 2 large edges (8 vCPUs each) require 64 cores worth of licensing: `2 edge VMs * 8 vCPUs per edge * 4 cores per vCPU = 64 cores` For more information about how to enter these license keys into NSX Manager, see [Add a License Key and Generate a License Usage Report](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/nsx/vmware-nsx/4-2/administration-guide/operations-and-management/about-nsx-licenses/add-a-license-key-and-generate-a-license-usage-report.html){: external}. ## vSAN add-on {: #vmware-add-ons-vsan} VMware vSAN is included at a rate of 1 TiB per VMware Cloud Foundation core. To calculate the amount of vSAN storage for your entire environment, see [Counting Cores for VMware Cloud Foundation and vSphere Foundation and TiBs for vSAN](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article?legacyId=95927){: external}. If you need more than 1 TiB of vSAN, order the new vSAN add-on from the IBM Cloud console. Discounts are available depending on your contract commitment. The vSAN add-on does not generate any license keys and it is used only to report your vSAN usage. For the VCF for Classic - Automated offering, the IBM automation will automatically order the vSAN add-on for any new hosts that are provisioned as needed. {: important} ## Ordering the VMware add-ons {: #vmware-add-ons-order} Order licenses for the VMware add-ons from the IBM Cloud console. 1. Click **Infrastructure > Classic Infrastructure** from the left navigation menu. 2. Click **Devices > Manage > VMware licenses**. 3. Order the VMware add-on. The following table shows the VMware add-on that you need to order (from the IBM Cloud console) depending on the license key that you need (in the VMware Solutions console): | VMware license key | VMware add-on | | :-------------------------- | :------------- | | VMware Avi Load Balancer | VMware Avi Load Balancer Enterprise 30.x | | VMware vDefend Gateway Firewall | vDefend Firewall - Gateway | | VMware vDefend Distributed Firewall | vDefend Firewall - Distributed | | VMware vSAN Add-On v7 | VMware vSAN 8.x | | VMware vSAN Add-On v8 | VMware vSAN 8.x | | VMware Live Site Recovery | VMware Site Recovery Manager 8.x | | VMware vDefend Gateway Firewall with Advanced Threat Prevention | VMware vDefend Firewall with ATP - Solution Key | | VMware vDefend Distributed Firewall with Advanced Threat Prevention | VMware vDefend Firewall with ATP - Solution Key | | vSphere v7 | VMware Cloud Foundation with vSphere 7.0 | | vSphere v8 | VMware Cloud Foundation with vSphere 8.0 | {: caption="VMware license keys and VMware add-ons mappings" caption-side="bottom"} You can also cancel the VMware add-ons from the IBM Cloud console. ## Obtaining the VMware add-on keys {: #vmware-add-ons-obtain} Download the license keys for your VMware add-ons from the VMware Solutions console. 1. Click **Licensing and metering > VMware product keys** from the left navigation panel. 2. On the **VMware product keys** page, locate the VMware add-on to retrieve the license key for. 3. Click the **Copy to clipboard** icon to copy the license key. 4. Use the license key to link to your respective VMware add-on. Verify the capacity that the obtained license key provides to ensure that you have sufficient capacity for your usage. The license key might contain more capacity than you ordered. {: note} ## What to do next {: #vmware-add-ons-next} If applicable to you, complete the following tasks: * If you purchased the Avi Load Balancer add-on license, activate the license by adding it to the Avi Load Balancer Controller. For more information, see [Using Avi Load Balancer license file](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-security-load-balancing/avi-load-balancer/avi-load-balancer/31-1/vmware-avi-load-balancer-administration-guide/licensing/nsx-advanced-load-balancer-editions/nsx-alb-license-management/using-avi-vantage-license-file.html){: external}. Then, install the Avi Load Balancer manually. * If you are planning to order VMware Cloud Foundation for VPC instances, also [configure the NSX firewalls for VCF for VPC instances](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vmwaresolutions?topic=vmwaresolutions-vpc-vcf-firewall&format=markdown) after you deployed your VCF for VPC instance. ## Related links {: #vmware-add-ons-links} * [VMware Avi Load Balancer](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-security-load-balancing/avi-load-balancer/avi-load-balancer/30-2/vmware-avi-load-balancer-configuration-guide/security/overview-of-nsx-advanced-load-balancer-security.html){: external} * [Gateway Firewall](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/nsx/nsxt-dc/3-2/administration-guide/security/gateway-firewall.html){: external} * [Distributed Firewall](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/nsx/nsxt-dc/3-2/administration-guide/security/distributed-firewall.html){: external} * [NSX Edge Installation Requirements](https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/vmware-cis/nsx/vmware-nsx/4-2/installation-guide/installing-nsx-edge/nsx-edge-installation-requirements.html){: external} * [Counting Cores for VMware Cloud Foundation and vSphere Foundation and TiBs for vSAN](https://knowledge.broadcom.com/external/article?legacyId=95927){: external} * [Getting help and support](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vmwaresolutions?topic=vmwaresolutions-trbl_support&format=markdown)