End of support of vCloud Usage Meter 3.6.1 and 4.2
With vCloud Usage Meter 4.4 release just around the corner, we want to announce that the following versions will go end of support soon:
- vCloud Usage Meter 4.2 – End of Support Date: 05-30-2021
- vCloud Usage Meter 3.6.1- End of Support Date: 07-31-2021
Usage Meter 4.0 and 4.1 are already End-of-Support, and partners should upgrade those appliances immediately.
If you aren’t familiar with where to find out more about product lifecycle events, take a look at VMware’s official site here: https://lifecycle.vmware.com/#/.
What to do?
If you are running any of the above versions, you can do the following:
- Migrate from Usage Meter 3.6.1 to 4.3.
Instructions on how to do this are provided in the following video and in the vCloud Usage Meter documentation.
Note: You need to switch to Flex Pricing Model before upgrading to Usage Meter 4.3. Legacy bundles will go end of support on 7/31/2021. Check the following video or information to learn how to switch to Flex.
Note: Migrating from 3.X to 4.X does not migrate historical data, like older versions used to. This is because there is no database in the Usage Meter 4.X appliances. Make sure to still archive your old appliances as required by the VMware Cloud Provider Program.
- Upgrade from Usage Meter 4.X to 4.3.
Check the following video to learn how perform an in-place upgrade or read the in-place upgrade product documentation.
Note: You can check for metering changes before migrating/upgrading to vCloud Usage Meter 4.3. Read the following KB article if you wish to compare the metering of your vCloud Usage Meter with vCloud Usage Meter 4.3.
What does vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 offer?
vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 meters more VCPP products and features than any of its predecessors. It is FIPS-compliant, and its OS is updated with the latest security updates. What’s more, it has improved notifications which are sent every time there is an issue with your usage meter with information on how to solve it. In vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 usage data is collected and send to vCloud Usage Insight service, which aggregates the collected data and sends it to VMware Commerce Portal.
Look at the following tables to compare vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 with 3.6.1 and 4.2.
UM 3.6.1 w/ HP5 VS UM 4.3
UM 4.2 VS UM 4.3
Important considerations
While there are a lot of benefits of using vCloud Usage Meter 4.3, you must take into account the following information:
- LDAP is not yet available and will come in the 4.4 release.
- Customer monthly reports are also not available and will also be included in the 4.4 release.
- Partners running vCenter Server 5.5 should remain on UM 4.2 until UM 4.4 is released.
- You can register a Usage Meter 4.3 appliance in test mode without switching to the Flex Pricing Model, but to move to Production Mode, you need to signup for Flex.
When is the right time to upgrade?
If you are using vCloud Usage Meter 3.6.1, you can either migrate now to vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 or wait until vCloud Usage Meter 4.4 arrives with LDAP support and Customer Monthly Usage Reports.
If you are using vCloud Usage Meter 4.2 you can either migrate to vCloud Usage Meter 4.3 now or wait until vCloud Usage Meter 4.4 arrives.
