VMware Cloud Foundation Edge
Private cloud infrastructure
for every edge site.
VCF Edge brings the full power of VMware Cloud Foundation to remote locations — retail stores, factory floors, branch offices, and remote clinics — starting from a single host, with centralized management across thousands of sites.
Platform Overview
The industry's first private cloud IaaS solution for edge sites
VMware Cloud Foundation Edge is an optimized configuration of VCF specifically licensed for edge locations — banking branches, retail stores, manufacturing floors, healthcare facilities, power substations, and government remote sites where compute must run locally.
Unlike standard VCF which requires 4+ hosts, VCF Edge supports single-node deployments. VCF 9.0 Edge introduces single-node vSphere Supervisor — enabling VMs and Kubernetes containers on one ESXi host, dramatically reducing hardware footprint and cost at resource-constrained sites.
Minimum purchase is 10 sites. Centralized management from a core data center VCF instance eliminates the need for on-site IT staff at remote locations. VCF 9.x adds GitOps with Argo CD for consistent deployments across thousands of sites from a single Git repository.
Deployment Models
Industry Use Cases
How 27 Virtual Helps You
Your edge estate,
modernized without sprawl.
Modernizing distributed edge sites means hundreds of variables — connectivity, hardware, operational models, change windows. We have planned and executed multi-site rollouts across retail, manufacturing, healthcare, and energy. Here is the playbook.
Phase 01
- Site inventory & classification
- Connectivity & latency mapping
- Existing hardware audit
- Workload-per-site profiling
Phase 02
- Single-host vs. multi-node tier design
- Hardware selection & ruggedization specs
- WAN optimization & SD-WAN integration
- Air-gapped / OT isolation patterns
Phase 03
- Pilot site deployment & validation
- Zero-touch provisioning configuration
- Phased rollout across site categories
- Parallel cutover with rollback plans
Phase 04
- Single-pane multi-site management
- Monitoring & alerting integration
- Patch & lifecycle automation
- Local-resilience runbook library
Phase 05
- Site expansion & hardware refresh
- AI / GPU edge expansion planning
- Compliance & DR validation cycles
- Continuous optimization reviews
The 27 Virtual Difference
Why teams choose us
over anyone else.
Edge is not core data center thinking made smaller — it is a different problem with different rules. We have solved it across hundreds of distributed sites.
Engagement Models
We meet you
where you are.
Whether you are modernizing 5 sites or 500, running a pilot, or auditing an existing estate — there is an engagement that fits.
- Full site survey and tier classification
- Hardware specs and procurement guidance
- Pilot site deployment and validation
- Phased multi-site rollout
- Centralized operations setup
- Single-site pilot deployment
- Connectivity and resilience testing
- Performance baseline & failure simulation
- Production rollout plan
- Vendor and hardware recommendations
- Multi-site health and consistency review
- Patch and lifecycle automation gaps
- Monitoring and alerting coverage
- Site-by-site DR and resilience scoring
- Prioritized remediation roadmap
"The organization and project management are top notch. One of the top, if not the top, long term technical engagement that I have ever been involved with. 27 Virtual brought VMware expertise we simply did not have in-house — and left our team better for it."
Are You Ready for VCF Edge?
Our free Edge Readiness Assessment covers six dimensions in under an hour — across your distributed estate.
VMware Cloud Foundation Edge FAQ
Common VCF Edge questions,
answered straight.
What VCF Edge is, the minimum deployment, how it differs from standard VCF, how sites are managed, and how 27 Virtual rolls it out.
What is VMware Cloud Foundation Edge?
VMware Cloud Foundation Edge is an optimized configuration of VCF licensed for edge locations such as retail stores, factory floors, branch offices, and remote clinics. It brings full private cloud capabilities to remote sites starting from a single host, with centralized management across thousands of sites.
What is the minimum VCF Edge deployment?
VCF Edge supports single-node deployments. VCF 9.0 Edge introduces single-node vSphere Supervisor, enabling both VMs and Kubernetes containers on one ESXi host to minimize hardware footprint at resource-constrained sites. The minimum purchase is 10 sites.
How is VCF Edge different from standard VMware Cloud Foundation?
Standard VCF typically requires four or more hosts, whereas VCF Edge supports a single node and uses edge-optimized licensing with an 8-core-per-CPU minimum (versus 16 for VCF) and up to 256 cores per site. It is purpose-built for distributed, remote, and disconnected environments.
How are edge sites managed without on-site IT?
Edge workload domains are managed centrally from a core data center VCF instance, so lifecycle operations run remotely and no on-site IT staff is required. VCF 9.x adds GitOps with Argo CD for consistent, repeatable deployments across thousands of sites from a single Git repository.
What deployment models does VCF Edge support?
VCF Edge supports single-host edge sites, multi-node edge clusters of 2 to 4 vSAN nodes for high availability, centrally managed remote edge workload domains, and standalone or air-gapped deployments for environments without persistent WAN connectivity.
How does 27 Virtual help with a VCF Edge rollout?
27 Virtual assesses your edge estate, designs the right deployment model for each site category, and plans a phased rollout that reduces cost and eliminates management sprawl — backed by centralized lifecycle operations and knowledge transfer.
Ready to modernize your edge infrastructure?
We'll assess your edge estate, design the right deployment model per site category, and plan a phased rollout that reduces costs and eliminates management sprawl.