Dell vows not to rock the boat with VCE

Partners can be 'confident' in future of VCE, Dell and EMC insist

Michael Dell has vowed to keep pouring cash into VCE once the EMC acquisition closes, claiming to be "extremely enthusiastic" about its future.

VCE was set up in 2009 as a joint virtualisation and cloud project between VMware, Cisco and EMC. The company is part of the EMC Federation model and claims to help customers accelerate their move to the cloud with its converged infrastructure.

Last November, less than a month after Dell announced plans to acquire EMC, NetApp partner ANS Group claimed that the uncertainty around VCE's future in light of the planned takeover meant customers were flocking towards FlexPod technology instead.

EMC and Dell made moves last night to allay any concerns customers and partners might have about how VCE will fit into the new-look EMC.

In an open letter, VCE president Chad Sakac said: "VCE customers and partners can have confidence that we will continue to invest in the Vblock Systems, VxRack Systems, and Vscale road map, all of which have Cisco playing a central role."

Michael Dell also sent a note to customers and partners outlining his expectations of how VCE will look in the future.

"After joining with Dell, VCE's close working relationship with Cisco will continue," he said. "Vblock will continue to follow Cisco's compute and networking road maps and EMC's storage road maps to bring the latest technologies to VCE customers.

"VCE, which is now the Converged Platforms Division, is a top strategic priority for EMC, and we share a desire to accelerate VCE's growth and maximise the value that VCE brings to you. We know that VCE is a centrepiece of EMC's 2016 plans, and we are extremely enthusiastic about VCE's future and our continued partnership with Cisco."