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What the worksheet gets you
What the worksheet gets you
A renewal quote is only as good as the core count and entitlement record behind it, and this worksheet gathers both in about an hour. You record physical cores per CPU for every host you will keep, apply Broadcom's 16-core minimum per CPU and 72-core minimum per order, then fill in the entitlement, edition drivers, dates and approval chain. With it complete, a partner can quote without a round of questions. AceMQ replies within 1 hour and returns a renewal quote within 24 business hours.
This page is the internal sheet. To send the request to a partner use the VMware renewal RFQ template; to estimate the figure first use the VMware renewal cost calculator.
The VMware renewal checklist: twelve items, where each comes from
Twelve items are enough for a partner to quote a Broadcom subscription renewal, and the third column says where each one lives so you are not hunting for it on the day. Copy the table into a spreadsheet, fill the last column and hand it to whoever owns the renewal. Items 1 to 5 describe the estate, 6 to 8 prove what you hold, and 9 to 12 set the dates and decisions. The same facts, phrased as a request to a partner, are in the RFQ template; this sheet is what you fill in first.
| Item | What to record | Where it comes from | Your answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Hosts you will keep | Every host in scope for the new term, one row each | A vCenter inventory; an RVTools export lists every host | |
| 2. Hosts you will retire | Hosts leaving during the term, with the date | Your hardware refresh plan | |
| 3. CPUs per host, cores per CPU | Populated sockets and physical cores per socket, not vCPUs | The host sheet of the RVTools export, or the server specification | |
| 4. vSAN raw capacity | Raw TiB across all clusters, not usable TiB | vSAN capacity views, or your storage team | |
| 5. Components in use | NSX, Aria suite or VCF Operations, vSAN: yes or no for each | The people who run each product | |
| 6. Legal entity and Broadcom reference | Registered name, trading name, site ID or prior contract number | Your last invoice or order; the previous partner can supply it | |
| 7. Current entitlement | Product and edition, quantity, start and end dates, support level; or the perpetual key and version | The last quote, order or invoice | |
| 8. Account status | Whether Broadcom manages your account directly, and who the previous partner was | Your previous partner, or the Broadcom account contact | |
| 9. Expiry and need-by dates | Expiry date; the date you need the quote; the date you need the order | Your contract; your procurement calendar | |
| 10. Terms to price | One-year and three-year on the same cores; five-year if you would commit | Finance and the budget owner | |
| 11. Hardware direction | Cores at term start and at the end of the term: growing, flat or shrinking | Capacity plan or refresh schedule | |
| 12. Approval chain | Who signs off technically and financially, whether a purchase order is needed, how long approval takes | Procurement |
Turning items 1 to 3 into a billed core count
Billed cores are your physical cores with every CPU raised to 16 and the whole order raised to 72. The 16-core rule per CPU is in Broadcom's KB 313548, and the 72-core order minimum is Broadcom's current rule. Do the sum per CPU, then per host, then for the estate: the minimum applies to the CPU, not the host, so a host with two small CPUs is billed for two floors.
The example is 2 hosts with 2 CPUs each and 12 physical cores per CPU, which is 48 physical cores and 72 billed cores. Replace the numbers with your own.
| Step | Arithmetic | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Physical cores | 2 hosts x 2 CPUs x 12 cores | 48 |
| Apply the per-CPU minimum | Each 12-core CPU is counted as 16 | 32 cores per host |
| Total after the per-CPU minimum | 2 hosts x 32 | 64 |
| Apply the order minimum | 64 is below 72 | 72 billed cores |
Item 11: plan the core count you will have, not today's
Record the core count you expect at the start of the term, because every core removed is removed for the whole term. AceMQ's renewal guidance cites one engagement where a customer took a planned term from 712 cores down to roughly 630 by reconciling the count against a hardware refresh that had already happened. Sort items 1 and 2 into three groups: hosts that stay, hosts that are already retired, and hosts that exist only to hold licenses. The first group is the count; the others are the conversation to have before the quote, not after it. If you plan to consolidate clusters or retire hosts, do it before the term starts and record the post-consolidation count against this item.
The reverse also applies: if the estate will grow during the term, say so now, so the term and edition are chosen with the growth in view. The order minimum does not move however small the estate is.
Item 7 in detail: perpetual license or subscription
Broadcom's licensing model replaced VMware's after its acquisition of VMware: the software is sold as a per-core subscription, and Broadcom stopped selling perpetual licenses on 13 December 2023. A VMware license renewal is therefore a continuation for existing subscription holders and a new subscription for existing perpetual license holders, so what you write against item 7 depends on which you hold today.
VVF and VCF are bundles: each packages vSphere with other VMware products under one subscription, so the question for item 5 is which products your workloads depend on, such as vSAN or NSX, and which bundle covers them. Ask for the subscription models and terms on offer, one-year and three-year, to be priced on the same cores (item 10) so they can be compared.
| License model | What to record | What it means for the renewal |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription license | Bundle (VVF or VCF), core quantity, start and end dates, support level | The renewal continues the same bundle unless you change it; the core count is re-confirmed against items 1 to 3 |
| Perpetual license | License key, product and version, and whether any support term is still running | Broadcom no longer sells perpetual licenses, so renewing means moving to a subscription license; customers with perpetual licenses must switch to subscription licenses before upgrading to VCF 9 |
| Discontinued edition (Standard, Enterprise Plus, Essentials) | The edition name and quantity on the last order | A move to a different bundle, priced on the cores in items 1 to 3 |
Items 4 and 5: which Broadcom subscription bundle, VVF or VCF
The components you actually run, and your vSAN capacity, decide whether VMware Cloud Foundation is worth more than vSphere Foundation for your estate. VCF's premium pays off only for components you deploy, and the included vSAN capacity is the figure to check: VCF includes 1 TiB of vSAN per core and VVF includes 0.25 TiB per core, rounded up, counted on raw capacity (KB 313548). Capacity above that is bought as an add-on.
If you are on a discontinued edition, such as vSphere Standard, Enterprise Plus or an Essentials kit, the renewal is a move to a different product and not a like-for-like continuation. Write that against item 7. Ask for VVF and VCF to be priced on the same cores either way.
| Edition | Included per core | Included at 72 cores | Compare with your item 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) | 1 TiB | 72 TiB | Raw TiB above this is an add-on |
| VMware vSphere Foundation (VVF) | 0.25 TiB, rounded up | 18 TiB | Raw TiB above this is an add-on |
Items 9 and 10: renewal dates, and when to start
Start the request 60 to 90 days before expiry, and ask for the quote once your approvers are lined up. A VMware quote is often valid for about 30 days and internal approval commonly takes longer, so an early request loses nothing while a late one can lapse. Check the expiry date of every subscription you hold, not only the largest, because separate subscriptions often expire on different dates. The table gives the dates the worksheet should hold and what each one controls.
| Date | What it controls | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Expiry date | When the current term ends and urgency begins | Write it down now; if you cannot find it, resolving that is the first task |
| Quote needed by | When the partner must return the quote | Set it from your approval time, not from the expiry date |
| Quote validity | Often about 30 days from issue | If approval takes longer, request the quote later or tell the partner so it can time the issue |
| Order needed by | When the purchase order must be placed | Work back from expiry; a renewal raised after expiry can carry a late fee |
| Previous partner's authorization | Whether a Partner of Record transfer is needed | If the previous partner lost authorization, allow 5 to 10 business days for the transfer |
When the worksheet shows you cannot get a partner quote
If item 8 shows Broadcom manages your account directly, no partner can quote you, so find that out before you spend an hour on item 3. In AceMQ's 2026 sample of renewal requests, 1 in 4 was a Broadcom-managed account. The other early stops are an entitlement record that does not match your legal entity and a lapsed subscription; for a lapsed one, raise the request the same day, because a late fee can apply and the continuity request needs a partner to make it.
What to do with a finished worksheet
Send the completed worksheet, with the RVTools export attached, to two or three authorized partners on the same day, so the quotes can be compared on identical inputs. Request an AceMQ quote and AceMQ replies within 1 hour and returns a renewal quote within 24 business hours, or longer if the core count needs auditing. Read the quote against item 7 and your own core count from the sheet before you compare price.
Frequently asked questions
What do I need before asking for a VMware renewal quote?
Your expiry date, your licensable core count with the 16-core per CPU and 72-core per order minimums applied, your current edition or the edition you want, and the terms to price. The worksheet adds the entitlement record, vSAN capacity and the approval chain, which are what stop a quote stalling.
Do I count vCPUs or physical cores for a VMware renewal?
Physical cores on populated sockets. Each CPU is counted as at least 16 cores under Broadcom's KB 313548, and the order is raised to 72 cores. vCPUs assigned to virtual machines do not enter the sum.
Where do I find the cores per host?
In a vCenter inventory. An RVTools export has a host sheet listing the CPUs and cores on each host, which is why partners ask for it: it settles the core count and the edition in one attachment. If you cannot run it, say so and send a host list instead.
What is the difference between this worksheet and the RFQ template?
The worksheet is the internal sheet you fill in first, with where each fact comes from and how it becomes a billed core count. The RFQ template is the document you send each partner so that the quotes compare like for like. Complete the worksheet, then copy its answers into the template.
How early should I start a VMware renewal?
Sixty to ninety days before expiry. Quotes are often valid for about 30 days and approval inside most organizations is slower than that, so an early request loses nothing, and a late one can lapse or attract a late fee. Allow 5 to 10 business days more if a Partner of Record transfer is needed.
What should a VMware renewal checklist include?
Twelve items: the hosts you will keep and retire, CPUs and physical cores per host, vSAN raw capacity, the components in use, the legal entity and Broadcom reference, the current license entitlement, account status, expiry and need-by dates, the terms to price, hardware direction and the approval chain. The table at the top of this page lists where each one comes from.
Does a perpetual license change how I renew VMware?
Yes. Broadcom stopped selling perpetual licenses on 13 December 2023, so a renewal is a subscription license. Record the perpetual license key and version against item 7. Customers with perpetual licenses must switch to subscription licenses before upgrading to VCF 9.
