Why you should upgrade to VCF 9.1: Key Benefits & Features

What are the key features introduced in the VCF9.1 upgrade?

Since acquiring VMware, there has been a clear direction from Broadcom to transition it from a mature virtualisation platform to a Private Cloud and AI infrastructure platform. The release of VCF 9.1 is fundamentally about further enhancing capabilities, and delivering on the promise of:

• automation
• AI-ready infrastructure
• operational simplification 
• cyber resilience
• intelligent infrastructure management

In this product update series we will cover the latest enhancements to VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) and related architectural considerations across the below topics.

vSAN ESA Auto-RAID

One of the biggest operational enhancements in VCF 9.1 is Auto-RAID for vSAN ESA which dynamically adjusts resilience policies based on cluster topology.

Key highlights:

• single storage policy model
• automatic resiliency optimisation 
• automatic restriping
• simplified operations
• better effective capacity modelling

This is arguably the largest simplification to vSAN storage policy management since vSAN launched.

Memory Tiering

VCF 9.1 delivers enhancements to NVMe-backed Memory Tiering capability which allows enterprise NVMe devices to act as an extension of DRAM.

Key capabilities:

• no reboot required to enable
• cluster-wide configuration
• mirrored and non-mirrored tiers
• up to 4TB tier capacity
• integrated monitoring
• NUMA-aware scheduling improvements

This holds significant potential as a cost saving solution for a large range of workloads such as general server workloads, AI, VDI, Kubernetes, and memory-dense environments such as testing/development and UAT. 

Hardware Considerations for VCF 9.1 Deployment

As VCF continues to expand its capabilities with vSAN, Memory Tiering and lifecycle management, the considerations for the underlying hardware have never been more critical.

Key topics we will cover include:

• form factor
• sizing
• networking
• performance
• resiliency

Private AI Services (PAIS)

VCF 9.1 Private AI Services (PAIS) is Broadcom/VMware’s integrated platform for running enterprise AI workloads securely inside a private cloud using VMware Cloud Foundation.

VCF 9.1 introduces the following as core capabilities for private cloud deployments:

• private AI services
• enterprise AI infrastructure integration 
• GPU-enabled architectures 
• secure AI operational models 
• AI-ready Kubernetes infrastructure 

These updates allow VCF 9.1 customers to respond to increasing demand/requirements for Sovereign AI & Enterprise AI governance within their private cloud. 

VMware Intelligent Assist (VIA)

VMware Intelligent Assist (VIA) is Broadcom’s strategic direction toward AI-assisted infrastructure operations.

VIA is designed to:

• reduce operational complexity 
• speed up troubleshooting 
• improve administrator productivity 
• lower operational risk 
• provide AI-assisted infrastructure management 

VIA is part of VCF’s strategic direction toward Autonomous private cloud operations, AI-assisted infrastructure administration & Intelligent lifecycle management.

Model Context Protocol (MCP)

Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard designed to let AI models securely connect to external tools, data sources, APIs and enterprise systems in a consistent way. This is strategically important medium to long term because MCP is rapidly becoming foundational for agentic AI and enterprise AI architectures. 

MCP helps enable:

• contextual AI integration
• enterprise AI workflows
• secure AI data interaction models 

This positions VCF for future integration with AI agents, automation frameworks and intelligent operational tooling.

Disaggregated vSAN Storage

VCF 9.1 introduces expanded and enhanced capabilities for Disaggregated vSAN Storage building on capabilities introduced since vSphere 8.

Disaggregated vSAN storage allows:

• compute-only clusters 
• storage-only clusters
• independent scaling of compute and storage

These capabilities provide flexibility beyond some of the traditional HCI limitations which required linear scaling of compute and storage together. This added flexibility can be valuable in a wide range of scenarios including for storage-heavy workloads and large-scale enterprise cloud architectures. 

Enhanced Cyber Resilience

VCF 9.1 significantly expands cyber recovery and ransomware resilience including:

• immutable replication
• advanced retention models
• cyber recovery workflows
• multi-source replication
• compliance automation

These ongoing innovations align with ever increasing enterprise cyber recovery priorities and regulatory requirements.

vSAN ESA Data Efficiency Improvements

VCF 9.1 expands ESA efficiency capabilities with improved compression, global deduplication, improved effective capacity reporting and optimised erasure coding. 

Combined with vSAN ESA’s existing improvements in RAID-5/6 performance, storage performance and capacity efficiency dramatically improved compared to traditional OSA implementations and places vSAN ESA in the same ballpark as external enterprise grade storage solutions (e.g.: SAN/NAS).

Stretched Cluster Operational Improvements

VCF 9.1 adds important operational improvements for vSAN stretched cluster including:

• site-wide maintenance mode
• simplified failover 
• enhanced prechecks
• improved operational workflows

This is particularly valuable as it reduces the risks associated with stretched cluster deployments and makes these a more attractive option for VCF based private clouds. 

Modernised Lifecycle & Desired State Management

VCF 9.1 continues Broadcom’s push toward a self-optimising private cloud infrastructure.

Key enhancements include:

• improved Configuration Manager
• host profile integration 
• desired-state operations 
• cluster-wide configuration consistency 
• automation-first operational models 

This theme underpins nearly every major VCF 9.1 feature including:

• Auto-RAID
• Memory Tiering
• AI operations and lifecycle automation

By outlining the benefits and features of the latest enhancements to VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), Zaleo Consulting's aim is to assist our readers with architectural considerations to support their analysis in upgrading to VCF 9.1. If you would like to understand the impact and benefits of VCF9.1 specifically for your business, contact the Zaleo team for an expert-led Current State Assessment.