--- title: Global Professional Services Firm Proves VMware Exit Is Viable with Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization description: A global law firm successfully migrated from VMware to Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization, achieving cost reduction and operational independence without hardware refresh. image: https://shadow-soft.com/hubfs/Logo%20-%20Shadow-Soft/shadow-soft-logo-featured-image-1.png --- [Skip to content](https://shadow-soft.com/content/global-professional-services-firm-proves-vmware-exit-is-viable-with-red-hat-openshift-virtualization#main-content) This is a search field with an auto-suggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 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Shadow-Soft deployed a production-representative OpenShift Virtualization environment on their existing hardware, migrated five live workloads, and gave their team the skills to run it.* ## The Challenge Broadcom's acquisition of VMware created a clear problem: rising licensing costs with no strategic upside and growing vendor lock-in. Staying put meant accepting escalating spend on a platform the firm no longer controlled. Moving meant proving an alternative could actually work — on their existing Cisco blade hardware, with their existing NetApp storage, running their actual workloads. The firm wasn't looking for a proof of concept on paper. They needed a live environment that could run Windows and Linux VMs with feature parity to VMware, validate enterprise storage integration with HA/DR support, and give their core IT team the skills to run it independently. ## Our Solution Shadow-Soft deployed a mixed-node Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization cluster on the firm's existing Cisco blade infrastructure, integrated NetApp storage via the Trident CSI driver, and migrated five production-representative workloads from VMware using Red Hat's Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV). The engagement ran for 8 weeks across planning, deployment, migration, enablement, and stakeholder sign-off. The goal wasn't to build everything — it was to prove enough to make the decision easy. ## Our Process The firm couldn't afford a slow evaluation cycle, and the scope had to stay tight enough to deliver a clear answer without building a full production environment. We ran the engagement as a structured sprint with a defined exit: either OVE works on their stack, or it doesn't. 1. Opened with a joint architecture and stakeholder alignment session to lock in hardware specs, network topology, and storage configuration before any deployment work began. 2. Validated NetApp firmware compatibility with the Trident CSI driver during the preparation phase — not mid-deployment. 3. Deployed Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization across a mixed-node Cisco blade cluster with Day 2 infrastructure services — networking, storage classes, HA/DR policies, and monitoring — built in from the start. 4. Deployed and configured the NetApp Trident CSI driver, enabling dynamic storage provisioning for VMs and validating multi-site storage topology for HA/DR scenarios. 5. Configured the Migration Toolkit for Virtualization and executed live migration of five production-representative workloads from VMware to OVE, validating each for full functionality post-migration. 6. Conducted hands-on enablement sessions with the firm's IT staff covering OVE platform management, Day 2 operations, and expansion procedures. 7. Delivered a stakeholder demonstration and findings report documenting deployment architecture, test results, migration outcomes, and recommendations for the path to full production. ## The Roadblocks Two risks were identified before the engagement started and managed proactively rather than reactively. The first was stakeholder availability. A key client contact held dual responsibilities across the engagement, creating scheduling risk. We locked in working sessions and async decision-making protocols at the outset so the project never stalled waiting for approvals. The second was NetApp Trident compatibility. The existing NetApp storage version had a potential conflict with the latest Trident CSI driver. We completed firmware compatibility validation during the preparation phase and identified alternative CSI options — including an NFS provisioner and OpenShift Data Foundation — as fallbacks. We didn't need them, but having them ready meant storage was never a blocker. ## The Toolstack **Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization (OVE):** Core platform for running Windows and Linux VMs on the firm's existing Cisco blade infrastructure. Validated as a functionally equivalent replacement for VMware. **Red Hat Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV):** Executed live migration of five production-representative workloads from VMware to OVE. Provided the firm with a repeatable migration process for their broader VMware estate. **NetApp Trident CSI Driver:** Enabled dynamic storage provisioning for VMs within OVE and validated multi-site HA/DR storage topology against the firm's production requirements. **Cisco UCS Blade Infrastructure:** Existing hardware. No refresh required. **OpenShift Day 2 Infrastructure Services:** Networking, storage classes, HA/DR policies, and monitoring configured as part of the initial build. ## The Results The firm now has a validated answer: Red Hat OpenShift Virtualization runs their workloads on their hardware, meets their storage and HA/DR requirements, and gives their team a clear, documented path away from VMware. The engagement delivered a production-representative environment, a live migration of five workloads, and an enabled internal team. ### Key Results: - VMware feature parity confirmed on existing Cisco blade hardware — no hardware refresh required - 5 production workloads migrated from VMware to OVE via MTV, each validated post-migration - NetApp Trident storage integration validated with multi-site HA/DR topology - Core IT team enabled to manage, operate, and expand OVE independently - Documented migration playbook established for the firm's broader VMware estate ## What's Next? The firm is moving from validation to expanded OVE operations, with a documented roadmap for migrating additional workloads off VMware. Leadership has the evidence they need to act on cost reduction. The internal team has the skills to execute without outside support. ## Client Overview A global professional services firm serving clients across technology, life sciences, and private equity. Their infrastructure team manages a VMware-based virtualization stack supporting critical workloads across multiple offices in a highly availability-dependent environment. - **Industry:** Legal - **Size:** Enterprise - **Location:** Global Share: [linkedin-in icon](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://shadow-soft.com/content/global-professional-services-firm-proves-vmware-exit-is-viable-with-red-hat-openshift-virtualization) [twitter icon](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https://shadow-soft.com/content/global-professional-services-firm-proves-vmware-exit-is-viable-with-red-hat-openshift-virtualization) [envelope icon](mailto:?body=https://shadow-soft.com/content/global-professional-services-firm-proves-vmware-exit-is-viable-with-red-hat-openshift-virtualization) ## Is Your Platform Ready for What's Next? Get unfiltered perspectives on modern platforms, automation, and observability. 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