Infrastructure Modernization: One Platform for Every Initiative
Build an architecture that absorbs new initiatives without new infrastructure
Summary
Most IT teams are not working on one project. They face a VMware exit, a cloud repatriation decision and an AI buildout, often all at once, and every one of them seems to call for new infrastructure. VergeOS consolidates virtualization, storage, networking, data protection and AI into one software-defined platform that runs on the servers the organization chooses. Customers including NETdepot, Saratoga Casino Holdings, InterBel Telephone and Topgolf used it to cut costs, reuse hardware and take on new initiatives without adding another stack.
Modernize once, then absorb every initiative that follows on the same platform.
Are These IT Challenges Holding You Back?
VMware exit. Cloud repatriation. AI buildout. For many organizations the honest answer is all of the above. Each initiative arrives with its own budget request, its own vendor and its own learning curve, and the data center gets more fragmented with every project.
Fragmented infrastructure is expensive to run. Separate products for the hypervisor, storage, networking and backup each need licenses, maintenance contracts, patching and a specialist who knows them. IT teams end up understaffed, overburdened and reactive in place of proactive.
VergeOS takes a different approach. It consolidates virtualization, storage, networking, AI and data protection into one unified, software-defined platform with a single code base. That simplifies operations, reduces costs and gives IT room to focus on strategic work rather than daily maintenance. The sections below follow the five outcomes customers see most: leaving VMware, reusing hardware, fighting data center inflation, running many sites and the edge, and preparing for AI.
More Than a VMware Alternative
For many teams, modernization starts with VMware. Licensing changes have turned paid-for environments into repeat purchases, and swapping one hypervisor for another leaves the rest of the stack, and most of the cost, in place. VergeOS replaces the whole stack with predictable licensing, responsive support and a clear product roadmap. Its unified architecture simplifies both the migration and the years of management that follow.
NETdepot, a managed and cloud services provider, replaced VMware, Cloud Director, NSX, external storage arrays and external network appliances with VergeOS. The migration was smooth and mostly unnoticed by its customers. Per-server licensing lets NETdepot run dense servers, and the company estimates at least 80% savings on infrastructure costs.
BEAR Technologies faced a licensing change that would push its annual commitment from five figures to seven within 45 days. The team tested five alternatives, chose VergeOS, converted its existing servers in place one at a time, and finished in less than 45 days.
See the full VergeIO approach to leaving VMware.
Run on the Hardware You Choose
Appliance-based platforms sell their own hardware or a narrow compatibility list, so every expansion becomes a new purchase from one vendor. VergeOS separates the software from the hardware. It runs on existing x86 servers, on refurbished nodes and on new servers from the vendor of the customer’s choice, and it grows one node at a time. Extending the life of servers already in the rack lowers recurring costs and keeps capital for the projects that matter.
Saratoga Casino Holdings left VMware and a mandated Cisco and Pure Storage stack. Working with CXTEC, the team sized a four-node cluster to real capacity using the CXTEC equal2new program. VergeOS came in at almost half the appliance quote, with more compute, RAM and storage, and the nodes arrived in about two weeks.
“It is no different other than my checkbook has a little more money in it.”
Scott Bartgis, Corporate Director of IT, Saratoga Casino Holdings
InterBel Telephone ran VergeOS on the hardware it picked, built a lab in under two hours and added each new node in about fifteen minutes. The company finished its refresh more than 28% under budget.
Controlling Costs as Prices Climb
Licensing increases, maintenance contracts and rising hardware prices all push the cost of running a data center higher every year. Legacy stacks make it worse. Per-CPU and per-core licensing penalizes dense servers, and the overhead of the virtualization layer itself consumes resources the business already paid for.
CenterGrid found that its legacy infrastructure software consumed up to 20% of CPU before the first customer VM ran, restricted its hardware choices and charged per CPU and per core. VergeOS outperformed every alternative CenterGrid tested and projects six figures in licensing savings over the next few years.
“One of the things that shocked us was how responsive the interface was even in a large environment with dozens of virtual machines. Screen refreshes that can take minutes in our legacy hypervisor happen instantly in VergeOS.”
Chris Beard, Chief Operating Officer, CenterGrid
When InterBel Telephone requested a VMware quote for its refresh, the price came back 30% higher. VergeOS delivered the same refresh at a savings of more than 45% compared with VMware pricing. NETdepot uses per-server licensing to run dense quad-CPU servers that cut power, cooling and space.
Eliminate Cloud Chaos Across Every Site
Cloud strategies often add complexity in place of removing it. VergeOS brings cloud-like capabilities into the organization’s own data centers and remote sites, with one management interface that gives clear visibility and control. Virtual Data Centers (VDCs) isolate tenants, departments or locations inside a single system, so teams can take control of resource use and costs and keep data private and sovereign.
Topgolf standardized more than 100 venues, offices, labs and data centers on VergeOS running on Dell PowerEdge servers, moving roughly 12,000 virtual machines off VxRail. Venue clusters dropped from six nodes to three, and upgrading the entire fleet went from two to three months down to three weeks. The team segregates its deployment into tenants by time zone, which simplifies upgrades and maintenance.
“VergeOS upgrades barely drop a packet.”
Scott Forehand, Manager of Global Infrastructure, Topgolf
For service providers the same model shortens onboarding. CenterGrid deploys a new customer in minutes with Virtual Data Centers.
Private Enterprise AI, Unified
AI workloads need infrastructure that delivers performance, reliability and security. Fragmented infrastructures struggle to absorb them, which leads to performance bottlenecks, a new silo to manage, or data sent to a public service. VergeOS integrates AI into the infrastructure the organization already runs, scaling as needed without separate, specialized infrastructure.
VergeIQ, the VergeOS AI service layer, provides value on day one. Teams can chat with their infrastructure, summarize documents and create content, and analyze proprietary source code, all without the data leaving the organization.
“We started this AI project before COVID. VergeOS gives us the platform to finally finish it, without sending data to the cloud and without much additional spend.”
Jason Sova, Architect for Enterprise Infrastructure, Topgolf
Simplified Infrastructure Is Software Defined
The growing complexity of IT infrastructure demands highly specialized skills, which makes qualified staff hard and expensive to hire and keep. VergeOS reduces the specialized knowledge needed to operate the environment. A unified platform shrinks the learning curve, a single code base reduces complexity, and a flat IT stack needs fewer specialists. IT teams accomplish more with fewer resources, which matters most for the midsize enterprise with a three to five person IT staff.
At InterBel Telephone, one person runs all of IT, and one VergeOS interface covers the entire environment.
“VergeIO is where simplicity and efficiency meet. It’s the place to call.”
Tom Rasmussen, IT Manager, InterBel Telephone
Modernization Measured in Days and Weeks
Modernization projects have a reputation for dragging on. Customers on VergeOS consistently report the opposite. Farmaplus went from node arrival to a complete deployment in two weeks, supporting its expansion across Argentina. CenterGrid moved from pilot plan to its first production instance in under a week. BEAR Technologies completed a full conversion in less than 45 days.
| Initiative | Traditional approach | With VergeOS |
|---|---|---|
| VMware exit | Swap the hypervisor, keep the rest of the stack | Replace the stack with one code base |
| Hardware refresh | Buy from the appliance vendor’s list | Reuse servers or choose new and refurbished nodes |
| Cost control | Per CPU and per core licensing | Per server licensing with every feature included |
| Many sites | Separate consoles for each location | One interface with Virtual Data Centers |
| Cloud repatriation | Rebuild cloud services from separate products | Cloud-like self-service in your own data center |
| AI buildout | A separate AI stack or public AI services | VergeIQ on the same platform |
Build Once, Absorb What Comes Next
Infrastructure modernization does not have to mean a new product for every initiative. VergeOS gives IT one platform that replaces VMware, runs on the hardware the organization chooses, controls costs as prices rise, spans many sites and the edge, and runs private AI. Each new initiative becomes a workload on the same system rather than another stack to buy and staff.
Read the full stories from NETdepot, Saratoga Casino Holdings, InterBel Telephone, Topgolf, CenterGrid, BEAR Technologies and Farmaplus, or browse all customer stories.
Plan Your Modernization on One Platform
Talk with a VergeIO architect about your VMware exit, hardware refresh, multi-site and AI plans, and see how VergeOS absorbs them on the servers you already own.