Andrea Mauro of the vInfrastructure Blog comments:
VMware vSphere Storage Appliance was a software-based shared storage solution that enables high availability and automation in vSphere without shared storage hardware (for more information see this post). VMware has announced the End of Availability of all vSphere Storage Appliance versions, effective April 1, 2014. After this date you will no longer be able to purchase this product.
All support and maintenance for vSphere Storage Appliance 5.5 will be unaffected and will continue to follow the Enterprise Infrastructure Support Policy. The End of General Support life date for customers with vSphere Storage Appliance 5.5 remains September 19, 2018.
According to the related FAQ, there isn’t a direct replacement for vSphere Storage Appliance, customers who meet the hardware requirements can choose to upgrade to VMware Virtual VSAN. A vSphere Storage Appliance to Virtual SAN upgrade SKU will be available.
But could really VSAN be a replacement for VSA?
A great take on VSAN from Andrea. Given the lack of installation of VSA in my former customer environments, maybe VSAN will have better luck.
Read more at: Could VSAN replace VSA?
