Quick jump to table of contents:
- Telecom Provider Switches to Proxmox VE
- Telecommunications Provider VMware Bottlenecks and Challenges
- Telecommunications carrier evaluation criteria for Proxmox VE
- VMware to Proxmox VE Conversion Process
- I have an IT person.Does the employee still need to find a Proxmox vendor for the transfer? How do telecom operators choose a Proxmox agent?
For companies in the modern telecommunications industry, virtual infrastructure is like the company's nervous system; once it glitches, the entire service is affected. Customers expect seamless internet connections and uninterrupted calls because even the smallest issue can disappoint enterprise clients or cause them to switch to competitors.
Telecom Provider Switches to Proxmox VE
For Dutch telecom provider X2com, this kind ofThe pressure to ensure infrastructure stability and uninterrupted service.Especially evident. Since its establishment in 2008, the company has been operating across the Netherlands and Belgium, dedicated to providing stable and reliable network, telephone, and ICT services to businesses. However, with rapid business growth, increasing customer demands, and escalating competition in the telecommunications market, X2com found that its once-advanced VMware virtualization platform was becoming expensive, rigid, and even hindering the deployment of new services and innovation.
Against this backdrop, X2com realized thatTo maintain the competitiveness of telecom operators, VMware alone is not enough.the company must find a more flexible and reliable infrastructure solution to support future growth and innovation.
Telecommunications Provider VMware Bottlenecks and Challenges
Previously, X2com's virtualization platform was VMware, utilizing an stretched cluster architecture with vSphere HA and vSAN. In theory, this should provide high availability, flexibility, and scalability, but in actual operation, it frequently became a source of trouble.
Key Issues of Performance and Stability
The biggest challenge for telecommunication companies in virtual environments is vSAN. Once the system is interrupted, it triggers a lengthy resynchronization process, severely impacting performance. For SaaS applications that rely on real-time replication and quorum mechanisms, applications slow down and storage efficiency decreases, forcing engineering teams to constantly firefight instead of focusing on innovation. Each resynchronization is like a company's heartbeat becoming irregular, forcing the entire business process to slow down.
Dual pressure from technology and finance
In addition to technical issues, financial pressure is also mounting. Escalating licensing fees have locked X2com into a rigid architecture, lacking flexibility. Expanding the VMware virtual environment requires further investment in licenses and hardware, making the entire VMware system expensive and hindering innovation. For telecommunications companies that need to provide stable network and telephony services, such limitations make it difficult to respond flexibly to market changes and restrict overall business development.
Telecommunications carrier evaluation criteria for Proxmox VE
The evaluation criteria for X2com's IT leadership team's decision on whether to switch from VMware to Proxmox VE are quite clear:
Scalability
Support for VLAN and Bonding
3. Enhanced backups with deduplication
4. Stable Redundant Architecture
5. Avoid proprietary "black box" technologies.
After the virtual environment migration condition research above, the team selected Proxmox VE because Proxmox VE can meet all requirements and provides an integrated solution.
Michel Weeren, IT Manager at Dutch telecom provider X2com
"What impressed us most was how Proxmox integrated virtualization, clustering, and backup into a cohesive IT ecosystem, going far beyond mere management interfaces for these technologies."
Through the words of the X2com IT manager, it can be understood that they believe Proxmox offers more than just virtual machines, cluster management, or backup toolsbut rather integrate these three into a complete, synergistic system (ecosystem)Proxmox is a complete solution for managing your entire infrastructure.
VMware to Proxmox transition
In 2022, X2com began preparations to migrate to Proxmox VE, conducting a detailed analysis of its hardware and network infrastructure. The proof-of-concept phase compared Ceph and ZFS, ultimately choosing ZFS due to its stability and reliable redundancy (Note: the system can continue to operate normally without data loss or service interruption when a hard drive or node experiences issues).
Deploying a new Proxmox VE cluster parallel to the existing VMware production system allows for a phased migration without impacting services. Key milestones include:
- Infrastructure Deployment: Install new hardware and configure Proxmox VE to take over workloads.
- Network Settings: Implement Open vSwitch, correctly tag VLANs, and ensure seamless connectivity and compatibility.
- Transition preparation: Plan detailed steps and maintenance windows to minimize impact on users.
- Execution and Decommissioning Approximately 300 virtual machines were migrated, with testing and validation performed at each stage, and the VMware environment was finally shut down.
- Backup architecture: Deploy dedicated Proxmox Backup Server hardware to establish a robust, integrated backup system.
Challenges in Proxmox conversion
With all large migration projects, X2com also encountered some technical challenges. Early Proxmox Backup Server performance issues were traced to SMR hard drives in the ZFS pool. Replacing them with appropriate hard drives and adding cache disks resolved the problem.
MariaDB running in replication mode with snapshots caused a performance decrease, which was resolved by moving the database files to an independent VirtIO disk. Another best practice is to standardize all virtual machines to VirtIO SCSI Single with IOthread enabled, ensuring consistent I/O performance.
Benefits of migrating to Proxmox
The overall migration was completed smoothly with no major disruptions. The client clearly experienced improved response times in the SaaS application, and the IT team is finally free from the pressure and difficulties previously associated with the VMware system due to high costs, complex management, and performance bottlenecks.
The conversion process is strongly supported by Proxmox technology. After reporting issues with the Backup Server to the Proxmox team, they were quickly resolved, with each technical ticket being directly handled by developers or senior engineers. This convinced X2com that Proxmox is not just a technology vendor, but a trustworthy partner.
Currently, X2com operates multiple clusters across three data centers, preparing for AI workloads and microservice scaling. With Proxmox VE at its core, the company is ready for future challenges.
Do you need to find a Proxmox vendor for migration if you already have IT staff? How do telecom companies choose a Proxmox reseller?
For X2com, the transition from VMware to Proxmox VE was more than a technical conversion; it aligned their infrastructure with their corporate values of openness, efficiency, and reliability. By replacing high costs and rigid structures with open source, X2com enhanced service quality and transformed their infrastructure into a competitive advantage.
For telecommunications providers in the Taiwan market, Proxmox is definitely an excellent choice.
But the company already has IT staff, do we still need to find a Proxmox vendor to help with the migration? It usually depends on the scale, complexity, and risk of the project.
Why might you still need Proxmox vendor assistance even with IT staff?
● Follow-up supportAgents can provide upgrades, performance optimization, backup strategies, and emergency support, offering more security than relying solely on an internal team.
● Lack of project experienceThe internal team may be familiar with VMware, but has limited hands-on experience with Proxmox VE, cluster configuration, ZFS, or Proxmox Backup Server.
● Reduce riskLarge-scale migrations involve hundreds of virtual machines across multiple data center sites. Professional agents can provide mature processes to reduce the risk of interruption.
● Save time and moneyThe agent is familiar with best practices and can quickly complete deployment and testing, allowing the IT team to focus on business and innovation.
Risks caused by the transfer process or problems arising from inexperience can lead to business operational losses. This is why, even with IT staff, it is still recommended to seek assistance from professional Proxmox vendors for setup or migration. So, how should businesses choose a vendor?
How to Choose a Proxmox Vendor: 4 Key Factors!
Technical expertise
Proxmox vendors must be familiar with Proxmox VE, Proxmox Backup Server, Virtualization Clusters, and Hyperconverged Infrastructure Deployment and management, as well as understanding the compatibility of different hardware platforms, network configurations, storage system integration, and high availability design. This ensures that migration and daily operations can proceed smoothly when scaling up systems or in complex scenarios, avoiding unexpected downtime or performance bottlenecks.
2. Practical Experience and Case Studies
Agents in the pastTelecommunications industry or large enterprise environmentSuccess stories are important reference indicators. Familiarity with industry-specific needs, such as high-frequency calls, stable SaaS applications, and multi-site synchronization for data centers, is crucial for providing architectural recommendations and best practices that meet practical requirements. Practical experience also helps in quickly identifying and resolving potential issues that may arise during migration.
3. Support and Service Quality
When selecting an agent, ensure they can provideInstant, professional, and reliable technical supportIncluding troubleshooting, upgrade assistance, performance optimization, and employee training. High-quality support enables IT teams to quickly obtain solutions when facing unexpected issues or system upgrades, reducing business downtime and operational pressure.
4. Long-term Cooperation and Strategic Planning
An ideal agent not only assists with one-time migrations but also provides long-term strategic planning and technical advice. For example: future cluster expansion, AI workload deployment, microservices architecture integration, or security enhancements. Agents should become trusted long-term partners for enterprises, assisting telecom operators in planning their future IT infrastructure blueprint, ensuring sustainable and stable system operation, and supporting long-term business development.
If you are looking for a trustworthy Proxmox reseller,With over 40 years of professional experience, Huahou specializes in assisting businesses with large-scale migration projects and high-availability system implementation, ensuring system stability, performance optimization, and scalability. Additionally, electromechanical integration, multimedia network communication, software integration and development, AI/large language models and neural networks, and enterprise information security are also our areas of expertise.
Hua Hou's services span the technology, finance, and diverse corporate client sectors. We are dedicated to helping clients transform their IT infrastructure into a competitive advantage, not only enhancing operational efficiency and stability but also enabling businesses to focus on innovation and growth. Choosing Hua Hou means choosing a reliable, experienced partner capable of long-term planning and support for Proxmox.
Data reference source: Proxmox official website
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