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Ask Google AIMoving workloads from VMware to another platform requires more than choosing a destination. Migration tools also need a reliable way to read data from the existing VMware environment. For some tools, that depends on VDDK (Virtual Disk Development Kit)—VMware’s software development kit for accessing virtual disk data.
For years, this dependency attracted little attention. Broadcom’s change to public VDDK access in August 2026 brought it into focus.
Broadcom removed VDDK from its previous public download channels and later confirmed that it remains available through selected Technology Alliance Program partners for its licensed use case.
It also states that VDDK is not a customer entitlement and has historically been intended for backup and recovery workflows.
Existing VDDK-based migration tools do not suddenly stop working. The real concern is availability:
If a migration workflow depends on VDDK, can organizations still obtain the version they need when a migration project begins?
That question matters because VDDK has long served as the VMware data-access layer for backup, recovery, conversion, and migration tools . Broadcom's VDDK materials describe the SDK as a set of libraries and utilities for accessing and manipulating VMware virtual disks, including APIs used for backup and recovery.
For organizations evaluating a VMware Alternative, the lesson is straightforward: migration flexibility depends not only on the destination platform, but also on how independently the migration workflow can access the source environment.
Sangfor has also explored other technical considerations in VMware migration. In VMware Migration: Evaluate ROW Snapshots Before You Migrate, Francis Tsang, Senior Cloud Strategist at Sangfor Technologies, discusses how ROW snapshots affect migration performance and recovery. This article examines another important consideration: VDDK dependency and its impact on migration tools.
What Changed with VMware VDDK?
On or around August 25, 2026, the public VDDK download pages on Broadcom's developer portal stopped being available. Red Hat subsequently confirmed that previously published public VDDK download links were no longer active and that customers needing the VDDK image should contact Broadcom directly.
The change was significant because VDDK had previously been available through a self-service public download model.
Broadcom's subsequent position clarified the intended licensing model: VDDK is a separately licensed development kit, is not included as a customer entitlement with Broadcom software purchases, and remains available through selected technology alliance partners for its licensed backup and recovery use case.
This creates an important distinction. The public download path has changed. VDDK itself has not simply disappeared from the technology ecosystem.
Existing copies of a compatible VDDK package do not automatically become unusable simply because the public download page is gone. The immediate issue is access, entitlement, licensing, and future availability.
That distinction is important for customers planning migration projects today.
Why VDDK Matters to VMware Migration
VDDK is not itself a migration product.
It is a software development kit that enables third-party software to access VMware virtual disks. As a result, it has become a foundational component for many solutions that need to interact with VMware data from outside the hypervisor.
These solutions include backup and recovery workflows, as well as migration technologies that need to read VMware virtual disk data without installing an agent inside the guest operating system. Broadcom's technical materials describe VDDK's role in virtual disk access and backup/recovery operations, while industry migration platforms have also incorporated VDDK into their VMware workflows.
This creates a dependency chain that many customers never had to think about:
VMware workload → migration or backup software → VMware-specific data access layer
When VDDK was freely downloadable, this dependency was largely transparent. Changes to its distribution model make it a visible part of the migration architecture that must be assessed during planning and validation.
What Does the VDDK Change Mean for VMware Customers?
The impact is not the same for every VMware environment.
Existing Migration Environments
If a migration platform has already been deployed with a compatible VDDK version, the removal of the public download page does not by itself invalidate the package already being used.
The migration process may continue to work as long as the software versions remain compatible and the existing environment remains intact.
The new concern is what happens when that environment needs to be rebuilt, upgraded, expanded, or validated against another VMware version.
A dependency that was once easy to obtain is no longer something customers can simply assume will be available through the same public path.
New Migration Projects
For a new migration project, VDDK availability now needs to be treated as an explicit prerequisite.
Customers should confirm:
- Which VMware versions are in scope
- Which VDDK version the migration tool requires
- Whether that VDDK package is already available
- Whether the migration workflow is compatible with the current VMware environment
- Whether the workflow has an independent migration path if VDDK is unavailable
Red Hat's response illustrates the practical consequence. After the public VDDK download became unavailable, Red Hat stated that it could not redistribute the proprietary VDDK itself and advised affected customers to obtain the required image from Broadcom while it investigated longer-term alternatives.
This is not merely a tooling inconvenience.
It means a migration project can now inherit a dependency that sits outside the customer's own virtualization environment.
The Larger Issue Is Not VDDK. It Is Migration Dependency.
The VDDK change exposes a broader architectural question:
How many independent ways do you have to move your workloads out of VMware?
A migration strategy based entirely on one VMware-specific mechanism may work perfectly well while that mechanism remains accessible and supported.
The problem appears when that mechanism becomes harder to obtain, changes licensing conditions, or stops matching a future version of the source environment.
This is particularly relevant for organizations that are already under pressure to modernize their virtualization platforms.
A migration plan should therefore not be evaluated solely by asking:
“Does the migration tool support VMware?”
A more useful question is:
“What does the migration tool depend on to access VMware, and what happens if that dependency changes?”
That is the question customers should be asking now.
Four VMware Migration Paths for Different VDDK Scenarios
Sangfor provides multiple VMware migration paths rather than relying on a single mechanism. That matters more than ever when the availability of a VMware-specific SDK has changed.
1. SCMT Agent-Based Migration: Independent of VDDK
Sangfor Cloud Migration Tool (SCMT) provides an agent-based migration method that installs a migration agent on the source VM and transfers workload data to the destination environment.
Sangfor uses this method for source environments or workload configurations where agentless migration is not the appropriate option. The agent-based approach does not depend on the VDDK-based agentless workflow.
For customers concerned about continued dependence on VDDK, this provides a fundamentally different migration path. It is especially relevant when:
- The required VDDK is not available
- The source workload has a configuration that is not suitable for agentless migration
- The customer wants a migration method that is independent of VMware's VDDK distribution model
The important point is not that agentless migration has suddenly become obsolete. It is that customers have an alternative that does not depend on VDDK.
2. SCMT Agentless Migration Remains Available Where the Existing VDDK Path Is Valid
The VDDK change does not mean that every existing agentless migration workflow has stopped working.
Sangfor SCMT continues to provide VMware agentless migration, utilizing the appropriate VMware and VDDK components for the applicable environment.
For customers that already have a validated VDDK package and a supported VMware environment, the agentless method remains a practical option. The difference is that VDDK should now be treated as an explicit dependency rather than an assumed dependency.
This means validating the VDDK version, VMware version, SCMT version, and migration workflow before the production migration window rather than assuming that the required SDK will always be available later.
Importantly, changes to VDDK distribution do not invalidate existing, validated agentless migration workflows. Customers can continue using them where the required VDDK is already available.
At the same time, Sangfor can provide a VDDK-independent option when that path is no longer practical.
3. aHM Provides VMware API-Based Migration
In addition to the SCMT-based migration approach, Sangfor provides aHM (VMware Integrated Migration) as an alternative migration option.
aHM integrates directly with VMware through vCenter and VMware APIs,, allowing VMs to be migrated to Sangfor platform without deploying a migration agent on the source VM. aHM creates the destination VM and synchronizes data from the source VMware VM while it remains powered on, followed by a final cutover.
This provides another migration model:
- No migration agent on the source VM
- VMware environment managed through vCenter integration
- Online data synchronization
- Short final cutover
aHM therefore adds another option to the migration architecture, particularly for customers that want to manage VMware integration directly from the Sangfor platform.bMost importantly for the current VDDK discussion, aHM is based on VMware API integration rather than the VDDK-based SCMT agentless workflow.
4. Existing Veeam Backups Can Become a Migration Asset
Not every migration has to begin by copying data directly from a running VMware VM. Many enterprises already operate a mature backup environment, and those existing backups can provide another route to the target platform.
Sangfor provides Veeam integration, and current Veeam Backup & Replication capabilities support restoring workloads to Sangfor aSV. That means an organization with existing VMware backups can use its backup repository as part of the migration strategy.
The practical value is significant:
- The source VMware environment does not have to remain the only source of migration data
- Existing backup infrastructure can be reused
- Migration can be decoupled from a live VMware disk-access workflow
- The target environment can be restored and validated before the final production cutover
This turns backup data from simply a protection mechanism into another potential migration resource.
Comparing the Available Migration Paths
The practical response to the VDDK change is not to assume that one migration method has become universally invalid.
It is to ensure that the environment has more than one workable route.
This gives customers flexibility based on the actual condition of their VMware environment. A migration project can start with the simplest validated method and retain a different method as a contingency. That is a much stronger position than building the entire exit plan around a single VMware-specific dependency.
What VMware Customers Should Do Now
The VDDK change does not mean that every organization needs to abandon its current migration plan. It does mean that the migration plan should be validated at a deeper level.
1. Identify Your Actual VDDK Dependency
Do not stop at asking whether the migration product supports VMware.
Find out whether it actually requires VDDK, which version it needs, and whether that package is already available to you.
2. Validate the Migration Path Before the Project Begins
Confirm compatibility among:
- VMware version
- VDDK version, where applicable
- Migration tool version
- Guest operating system
- Storage configuration
- Network configuration
3. Maintain an Independent Fallback
A migration method that does not depend on VDDK gives the project another option when the original workflow becomes unavailable or unsuitable.
SCMT Agent-Based Migration and aHM provide two such alternatives within the Sangfor migration ecosystem.
4. Reuse Existing Backup Investments Where Appropriate
For organizations already using Veeam, the ability to restore workloads to Sangfor aSV provides another route that does not require a new VDDK download.
5. Do Not Wait Until the Cutover Window to Discover the Dependency
The most expensive migration problems are usually discovered late. The VDDK change is a good reason to validate the migration path before the production migration window—not during it.
Conclusion
VMware modernization should not be reduced to a question of which hypervisor replaces VMware. It should also be a question of how much control you retain over the migration itself.
The VDDK change is a reminder that migration tooling can depend on components outside the destination platform's control.
Rather than relying on a single migration mechanism, organizations should maintain more than one viable migration route. Sangfor supports this approach by allowing customers to choose the method that best fits their environment.
Existing validated agentless workflows can continue where appropriate. SCMT Agent-Based Migration provides a VDDK-independent option when required. aHM offers migration through VMware API integration, while existing Veeam backup repositories can be leveraged as an additional path to Sangfor aSV.
This flexibility allows migration decisions to be driven by operational requirements rather than by a single technical dependency. Ultimately, a successful VMware exit strategy should depend on the options you control, not on whether a VMware-specific SDK remains publicly available.
Explore Sangfor's VMware migration solutions and plan your transition with multiple validated paths to Sangfor aSV and HCI.
FAQs About VMware Migration and VDDK Dependency
VDDK, which refers to Virtual Disk Development Kit, is a VMware software development kit that enables access to virtual disk data.
Broadcom removed the previous public download access to VDDK around August 25, 2026. Broadcom subsequently stated that VDDK remains available through selected Technology Alliance Program partners for its licensed use case and that VDDK is not a customer entitlement.
Not necessarily. An existing migration environment that already has a compatible VDDK package may continue to operate. The key issue is whether the required VDDK remains available and compatible when the environment needs to be rebuilt, upgraded, or extended.
Yes. Sangfor SCMT supports agentless VMware migration, while the agentless workflow remains dependent on the required VMware/VDDK components.
Yes. Sangfor provides agent-based SCMT migration as a VDDK-independent migration path. Sangfor also provides aHM for VMware API-based migration.
Yes. Veeam Backup & Replication supports restoring VMs to Sangfor aSV, and Sangfor provides Veeam integration for backup and recovery workflows.
Not necessarily. Where a validated VDDK-based migration path already exists and the necessary software and licensing conditions are satisfied, it can remain a practical option. The important change is that VDDK should now be treated as an explicit dependency rather than an assumed public download.
