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Rackspace announced general availability of Rackspace Private Cloud powered by VMware on 21 August 2017. Built on VMware Cloud Foundation, it was a hosted, single-tenant VMware software-defined data center (SDDC) for customers looking to migrate or extend on-premises VMware workloads. Rackspace’s customer handbook also documents deployments in a Rackspace, customer-owned or third-party data center.
What did general availability mean?
Rackspace’s 21 August 2017 announcement said the service was generally available, meaning it was being offered as a service rather than described only as a future plan. The announcement is a dated launch statement; it does not establish current availability, current service terms or present-day pricing.
The service was based on VMware Cloud Foundation, which Rackspace described as an integrated foundation for software-defined compute, storage, networking and security. Rackspace said its architecture followed VMware Validated Designs and included ongoing updates and lifecycle management.
What was the VMware private cloud built on?
Rackspace’s current customer handbook describes RPC-VMware as a single-tenant VMware SDDC with these standard technologies:
- VMware vSphere for virtualization and compute.
- VMware NSX for networking and security capabilities.
- VMware vSAN for software-defined storage.
- The VMware vRealize Suite for cloud management.
The 2017 launch announcement specifically names VMware Cloud Foundation as the platform foundation. The handbook’s component list describes the standard VMware stack, but neither source provides a version number for each component.
Could customers move or extend on-premises VMware workloads?
Yes. The handbook frames RPC-VMware as a service for transitioning existing on-premises VMware workloads into a hosted VMware environment or extending them into that environment. Rackspace also said the service reused familiar VMware tools and skills, with Rackspace handling physical and virtual infrastructure operations. The cited material does not specify a migration tool, compatibility matrix, migration timeline or workload limits, so those details would need to be confirmed for a particular deployment.
Was the service single-tenant, and where could it run?
RPC-VMware is defined in Rackspace’s customer handbook as single-tenant: the VMware SDDC is dedicated to one customer rather than shared as a multi-tenant VMware environment. The handbook lists three possible deployment locations:
- A Rackspace data center.
- The customer’s own data center.
- A third-party data center.
The 2017 announcement emphasizes a hosted model. The handbook’s broader location choices do not, by themselves, establish that every deployment had identical hosting, operational responsibilities or commercial terms.
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What did Rackspace manage and support?
Rackspace said it provided Fanatical Support 24x7x365, delivered by more than 150 VMware Certified Professionals, for migration, architecture, security and operations. It also described continuous updates and lifecycle management as part of the Cloud Foundation-based delivery model, and said the hosted approach offloaded physical and virtual infrastructure operations from customers.
Rackspace’s announcement presented the service as a way to scale without major up-front data-center and hardware capital expenditure. That is a positioning claim, not a published cost comparison: the cited sources do not provide prices, service-level agreement values, benchmark results or customer outcome statistics.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the announcement establishes—and what it does not
The original announcement is useful for understanding the 2017 launch and Rackspace’s stated service model. It does not establish current availability or terms. Rackspace’s customer handbook supplies the more concrete description of tenancy, components and deployment locations, but the cited materials do not publish enough detail to compare cost, performance or contractual service levels.
Quick Recap
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- Rackspace’s 21 August 2017 general-availability announcement
- Rackspace Private Cloud powered by VMware customer handbook
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