VMware to Proxmox migration: import paths, VirtIO and a cutover plan

To migrate from VMware to Proxmox VE, install Proxmox VE on the new host, connect it to your ESXi server with the built in import wizard, and pull each VM across. Before cutover, install VirtIO drivers in Windows guests, replace VMware Tools with the QEMU guest agent, and check network names and firmware.

This guide walks through the import paths, the changes inside each guest, how to size a dedicated server as the new host, and a cutover checklist you can work through one VM at a time.

How do you migrate from VMware to Proxmox VE?

A migration has four stages: prepare the new host, move the virtual machines, fix what changes inside each guest, and switch traffic over. Proxmox VE runs KVM, the virtualisation built into the Linux kernel, so a VM moved from ESXi keeps its operating system, data and applications. What changes is the virtual hardware underneath: disk controller, network card and, if you choose, firmware.

On our dedicated servers, Proxmox VE 8.4 is one of the images at checkout, so the host is ready to configure at handover. VMware ESXi is not offered as an image, which suits a migration that is leaving it anyway. If you are still deciding whether you need a host of your own at all, our post on when you need a virtualisation host covers that question first.

Why are companies moving from VMware to Proxmox?

Since Broadcom completed its acquisition of VMware in late 2023, VMware products have been sold as subscriptions rather than perpetual licences, packaged into larger bundles. Many companies are reviewing what they pay at renewal. We have no figures for your contract, so the honest comparison is your own renewal quote against the cost of moving.

Proxmox VE is free, open source software under the AGPL. Proxmox sells optional subscriptions for its enterprise package repository and support, counted per CPU socket, and the software works fully without one. That makes the socket count of the new host part of the licensing sum, which favours a single socket server where it fits the workload.

Licensing is rarely the only reason. Teams also want one host they control, backups without a separate product, and a platform where a VM is a standard KVM guest they can move again later.

Which import path should you use?

There are three ways to move a VM. The wizard is the right default, and the other two cover the cases it does not.

Path	How it works	Best for
ESXi import wizard	Proxmox VE connects to the ESXi host and copies the VM's configuration and disks	Most VMs, when the new host can reach ESXi
OVF or OVA export	Export from ESXi, copy the files, then qm importovf	When the hosts cannot talk to each other directly
VMDK disk import	Create an empty VM, then qm disk import each disk	Single disks, or VMs whose export fails

The ESXi import wizard

Proxmox VE 8.2 added an import wizard for VMs running on ESXi. You add the ESXi host as a storage of type ESXi in the Proxmox VE interface, browse its VMs, and import each one with a dialogue that maps disks to your storage and network cards to your bridges. It reads the VMware configuration, so CPU count, memory and disk layout carry over.

Connecting to the ESXi host directly is usually faster than going through vCenter. Delete or consolidate VMware snapshots first, and shut the VM down for a clean, consistent copy. The wizard can also start a VM while its disks are still copying, which shortens downtime, but test that on a VM that does not matter before relying on it.

OVF export and VMDK import

When the ESXi host sits on an office network the new server cannot reach, export the VM as OVF, copy the folder to the Proxmox host with rsync over SSH, and import it:

qm importovf 120 /var/tmp/export/app01/app01.ovf local-zfs
qm disk import 121 /var/tmp/export/app02/app02.vmdk local-zfs
qm set 121 --scsihw virtio-scsi-single --scsi0 local-zfs:vm-121-disk-0

The first command creates VM 120 from the OVF manifest. The second imports a single disk into an existing VM 121, where it appears as an unused disk until the third command attaches it.

How long the copy takes

Plan the transfer from the slowest link. At the full line rate of a 1 Gbps port, 2 TB of disks takes 16,000 seconds, about 4 hours 27 minutes, and real copies run slower. If the ESXi host is in your office, its upload speed is usually the limit, so move large, quiet VMs early and leave the busy ones for a short final window.

What changes inside the guest? VirtIO and drivers

A VM that boots on ESXi expects VMware's virtual hardware: a PVSCSI or LSI disk controller and a vmxnet3 network card. On Proxmox VE the fast choices are VirtIO SCSI for disks and VirtIO for the network card. Each guest needs drivers for those before it can use them.

Linux guests

• Drivers: mainstream kernels include VirtIO. On RHEL family systems built by dracut for the old hardware only, rebuild the initramfs with the drivers before moving: dracut --force --add-drivers "virtio_scsi virtio_blk virtio_pci".
• Network names: a new card means a new interface name, for example ens192 under VMware becoming ens18. Update netplan, NetworkManager or ifcfg files, or the VM boots without a network.
• Tools: remove open-vm-tools and install qemu-guest-agent, then enable the agent in the VM's options so Proxmox VE can shut it down cleanly and freeze file systems for backups.

Windows guests

Windows does not ship VirtIO drivers. Install the virtio-win driver package inside the VM while it still runs on ESXi, which also installs the QEMU guest agent. If a Windows VM arrives without them, boot it once with the disk on SATA, add a small temporary VirtIO disk so Windows loads the storage driver, then switch the boot disk to VirtIO SCSI. Uninstall VMware Tools as the last step before you shut the VM down on ESXi, because its uninstaller can refuse to run once the VM is no longer on VMware.

Firmware and boot

Match the firmware the VM used on ESXi. A BIOS guest stays on SeaBIOS. A UEFI guest needs OVMF and an EFI disk in Proxmox VE, or it will not find its boot loader. Windows guests that use a virtual TPM need a TPM state disk added as well.

How do you size a Proxmox host for your VMware workloads?

Start from what the VMs use today, not from the old cluster's hardware. Export CPU, memory and disk figures per VM from vCenter or the ESXi interface, then size RAM first, CPU second and disk third, as our guide on how many VMs fit on a dedicated server explains.

A worked example

As an example, take 25 VMs with 200 GB of RAM allocated, 60 vCPU and 4 TB of virtual disks in total. On a Dual EPYC 9254 with 256 GB, reserve 16 GB for the host and cap the ZFS cache at 16 GB, and 224 GB remains for guests, enough for the 200 GB with room to grow. 60 vCPU on 96 threads is well under one vCPU per thread, so no guest waits for a core. The 4 TB of disks need more than the two included 1 TB NVMe drives.

Host	Threads	RAM	Storage for the example	Usable (RAID 10)	Per month
Dual Xeon E5 2699 v4 + 6 × 2 TB SSD	88	256 GB DDR4 ECC	12 TB SSD raw	6 TB	€419
Dual EPYC 9254 + 24 × 1 TB NVMe	96	256 GB DDR5 ECC	24 TB NVMe raw	12 TB	€1,199

Prices are monthly, exclude VAT and include the 1 Gbps guaranteed unmetered port. The Dual Xeon E5 2699 v4 is the economical host and is delivered in about 45 minutes. The Dual EPYC 9254 gives faster cores, DDR5 and NVMe for databases and busy application VMs, and is built to order, with a delivery estimate of about 14 days. Both are two socket machines, so keep each large VM on one socket where you can, as our guide to NUMA on dual socket servers explains.

Networking and IP addresses

ESXi port groups become Linux bridges in Proxmox VE, usually vmbr0, and a VLAN aware bridge replaces VLAN tagged port groups. Every dedicated server includes one usable IPv4 address. If guests need public addresses of their own, order a subnet at checkout: a /29 with 5 usable addresses for €8 a month, a /28 with 13 for €26 or a /27 with 29 for €58. Guests that only talk to each other can sit on a private bridge behind the host's address instead.

A VMware to Proxmox cutover checklist

1. Inventory. List every VM with its operating system, firmware type, disks, network and the people who own it. Mark which ones can take an outage and for how long.
2. Build the host. Order the server with Proxmox VE, set up storage, bridges and the firewall, and restrict the web interface on port 8006 to your own addresses.
3. Set up backups before the first VM arrives. A Proxmox Backup Server on a second machine protects the new host from day one, as our guide to Proxmox Backup Server on a dedicated server describes.
4. Pilot one VM. Import an unimportant Linux and an unimportant Windows VM, fix drivers, names and firmware, and write down every step that was needed.
5. Prepare the rest in place. Install VirtIO drivers in Windows guests and rebuild Linux initramfs files while the VMs still run on ESXi. Uninstall VMware Tools from each Windows guest just before its shutdown.
6. Lower DNS TTLs a day or two ahead, so clients follow new addresses quickly.
7. Move in waves. Shut down, import, boot, check the application, then switch DNS or the firewall rule. Quiet VMs first, busy ones last.
8. Keep the way back. Leave the ESXi copy powered off but intact until the new VM has run through a full business cycle and a backup has been restored as a test.
9. Clean up. Remove open-vm-tools from Linux guests, enable the QEMU guest agent everywhere, and take the first scheduled backups.

Questions people ask

Can Proxmox VE import VMs straight from ESXi?

Yes. Since Proxmox VE 8.2 the import wizard connects to an ESXi host, lists its VMs and imports them with their configuration and disks. Our Proxmox VE 8.4 image includes it. OVF export and single disk import remain available for VMs the wizard cannot reach.

Do Windows VMs keep their activation after moving to Proxmox?

Not always. Windows can see the change of virtual hardware as a new machine and ask for activation again. Have your product keys or volume licensing details ready, and check your licence terms for moving between hypervisors.

Is Proxmox VE a full replacement for vSphere?

For a single host or a small cluster it covers the usual needs: KVM VMs and containers, live migration between cluster nodes, ZFS and Ceph storage, a firewall and integrated backups. Large estates that depend on specific vSphere integrations should check each one before planning the move.

Should I run one big host or several smaller ones?

Several hosts let you live migrate VMs for maintenance, which one host cannot. A Proxmox cluster needs a quorum, so plan three nodes, or two plus an external vote, if you want automatic failover. One large host with good backups is simpler and is how many small teams start.

Plan your new host

Export the VM inventory, size RAM, CPU and disk with the method above, and pick a host from our dedicated server range. Proxmox VE 8.4 is ready at checkout on every configuration, and the EPYC 9254 guide helps if you are weighing a single socket host against a dual.