1 What is Amazon EVS?
Amazon Elastic VMware Service (Amazon EVS) is a native AWS service that deploys and runs VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) directly inside your own Amazon VPC on dedicated EC2 bare-metal instances. There is no shared infrastructure — you get the entire physical host, with full root access to every VMware component.
EVS was jointly engineered by AWS and Broadcom. AWS operates the physical infrastructure and provides L1/L2 support. Broadcom provides L3 support for VCF. You bring your own VCF subscription (BYOS) from Broadcom, and AWS bills separately for EC2 instances, Route Server endpoints, and the EVS control plane.
Core value propositions
Migration continuity
Migrate workloads without changing IP addresses, retooling staff, or rewriting runbooks. Same vSphere and NSX tools you use today.
Full architectural control
Root access to ESXi, vCenter, NSX Manager, and SDDC Manager. Supports third-party solutions and custom configurations.
200+ AWS services
Direct access to native AWS services — S3, RDS, SageMaker, EKS, Lambda, Direct Connect — without data movement.
Flexible management
Self-managed or choose an AWS Partner for fully managed VCF operations. On-demand, 1-year, or 3-year subscription terms.
2 Architecture
The VCF stack on AWS
EVS deploys the full VMware Cloud Foundation stack automatically when you call CreateEnvironment. Every layer is configured and connected by EVS — no manual installation required.
Network architecture & VLANs
EVS automatically provisions dedicated VLANs for all VMware traffic inside the VPC. The VPC Route Server exchanges BGP routes between the NSX Tier-0 Edge nodes and the VPC route table, eliminating static route management entirely.
Shared responsibility model
AWS manages
- Physical bare-metal hardware (EC2 i4i.metal)
- AWS global network and VPC infrastructure
- L1 / L2 support for EVS and EC2
- Physical data center security
- EVS control plane (
CreateEnvironmentAPI) - Hardware failure and replacement
Customer / Partner manages
- VCF lifecycle — patches, upgrades, Day 2 ops
- VM workloads, guest OS, application security
- NSX network policies and micro-segmentation
- VCF licensing (BYOS from Broadcom)
- IAM roles and VPC access controls
- Backup, DR configuration, data protection
- Regulatory and compliance requirements
3 Use Cases
EVS supports every stage of the cloud journey — from burst capacity and DR to full data center migration and modern application platforms.
Cloud Extension & Data Center Expansion
Extend on-premises VMware infrastructure to AWS without re-architecting workloads. Ideal for seasonal demand spikes, data center consolidation mandates, and capacity expansion. HCX live migration moves VMs with no downtime and no IP address changes.
Disaster Recovery
Use EVS as a secondary DR site with fast RTO/RPO. VMware Live Site Recovery (SRM/VLSR) automates failover and failback. HCX L2 extension stretches networks between on-prem and AWS. Advanced Cyber Recovery (ACC) add-on provides ransomware protection with immutable backups.
Rapid Cloud Migration & Legacy Retirement
Migrate VMware workloads to AWS in days, not months — without changing IP addresses, retraining teams, or rewriting applications. HCX bulk migration handles large VM fleets. After migration, incrementally refactor applications to consume native AWS services.
VCF as a Service (CapEx → OpEx)
Shift VMware infrastructure from capital expenditure to a consumption model. On-demand, 1-year, or 3-year terms available. Choose self-managed operations or delegate to an AWS Partner managed service provider. Ideal for organizations with a board mandate to reduce data center footprint.
AI / Analytics & Modern App Platform
Keep data gravity on EVS while reaching native AWS AI/ML services (SageMaker, Bedrock) without data movement. VMware Kubernetes Service (VKS) runs containers natively alongside VMs. Data Services Manager (DSM) provides self-service databases on VCF.
4 Regional Availability
Amazon EVS is available in 19 AWS regions today. Additional regions are added on an ad-hoc basis each quarter. AWS GovCloud support is planned for Q3 2026.
5 Features & Capabilities
Core platform
| Feature | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| VCF Version | ✓ VCF 5.2.2 | VCF 9.1 Q2 2026 |
| Bare-Metal Instance | ✓ i4i.metal | i7i / i7ie Roadmap |
| Hosts per Cluster | ✓ 4 minimum, 16 maximum | 32 hosts Q1 2026 |
| Subscription Terms | ✓ On-Demand · 1yr · 3yr | BYOS — bring your own VCF subscription |
| Customer Root Access | ✓ Full root to all components | ESXi, vCenter, NSX, SDDC Manager |
| L1/L2 Support | ✓ By AWS | L3 by Broadcom |
| AWS Transit Gateway | ✓ Supported | Connect VPCs, Direct Connect, VPN |
| HCX Migration | ✓ Included | Live migration · bulk migration · L2 extension |
| NSX Federation | ✓ Available | AWS validation required for multi-site |
| External Datastore | ✓ FSx ONTAP · Pure Storage | External storage as principal Roadmap |
| Hybrid Linked Mode | ✓ Supported | Unified vCenter view across on-prem and EVS |
| Microsoft Licensing | ✓ BYOL today | SPLA Q2 2026 |
| Stretched Cluster (multi-AZ) | Not yet | Q3 2026 |
| AWS GovCloud | Not yet | Q3 2026 |
VMware advanced services add-ons
| Add-on | Status | Description |
|---|---|---|
| VCF Automation | ✓ Included | Self-service catalog and orchestration |
| VCF Operations | ✓ Included | vROps-based monitoring and analytics |
| vDefend (Advanced Firewall) | ✓ Available | Distributed IDS/IPS and network detection & response |
| AVI (Advanced Load Balancer) | ✓ Available | Software-defined load balancing with autoscaling |
| VMware Kubernetes Service (VKS) | ✓ Available | Kubernetes natively alongside VMs on VCF |
| VLSR / SRM (Site Recovery) | ✓ Available | Automated DR failover and failback orchestration |
| Data Services Manager (DSM) | ✓ Available | Self-service database platform on VCF |
| NSX Federation | ✓ Available | Multi-site NSX policy management |
| VCF Operations for Networks | ✓ Available | Network observability and troubleshooting |
| Advanced Cyber Recovery (ACC) | Roadmap | Cyber vault with immutable backups Q2 2026 |
Getting started
Before running CreateEnvironment, AWS requires a specific set of VPC prerequisites to be in place. The vCloudOne prereq guide covers all 11 phases with step-by-step instructions, and the Terraform kit automates the AWS infrastructure deployment in under 5 minutes.
CreateEnvironment.