If you're administering a NETLAB+ system that was built around VMware vSphere, the Broadcom closure of the VMware IT Academy and Academic Software License programs changed your planning horizon. This post is a practical walkthrough: what still works, what ends when, and how to plan the transition without disrupting active classes.
The official transition notice covers the dates and terms. What follows is the operational side: what to actually do as an administrator.
What still works right now
If you hold a valid VMware vSphere license (either commercial or from a current D2L IT Academy subscription), your NETLAB+ system continues to function as it always has. NETLAB+ will continue supporting vSphere as a backend until a future VMware release breaks NETLAB+ compatibility. That gives most programs at least one full academic year to plan the switch, often more.
What doesn't work anymore:
- New VMware IT Academy content: the Academy program is closed; no new IT Academy course releases for vSphere ICM or OSS.
- VMware vSphere ICM and OSS labs on NDG Online: these ended on August 15, 2025. Access codes have expired and learners can't re-enroll.
- Getting new VMware academic licenses through NDG: NDG is no longer a VMware partner, so there's no NDG-brokered path to academic vSphere licensing.
Your three options
Option 1: Keep running VMware with your own license
If your organization already holds a commercial vSphere license, or if you maintain a D2L IT Academy subscription that hosts the IT Academy content, you can keep running your existing NETLAB+ labs on vSphere. This is the lowest-disruption option for programs mid-term, with no curriculum changes and no system rework.
The catch: you're committing to a virtualization vendor that's restructuring its licensing. The next major VMware release could break compatibility with NETLAB+, and if your D2L subscription lapses, the IT Academy content becomes inaccessible.
Option 2: Transition to Proxmox
NDG built Proxmox support into NETLAB+ as the Broadcom-free path forward. Proxmox is open-source (AGPLv3), runs production workloads at serious scale, and covers the core virtualization concepts that VMware vSphere ICM and OSS taught.
Three replacement lab libraries are available now:
- Proxmox VE 9: Setup and Management replaces VMware vSphere ICM on current Proxmox
- Proxmox VE 8: Setup and Management for programs standardized on VE 8
- Proxmox VE 8: Advanced Administration and Optimization replaces VMware vSphere OSS
If you deployed on VE 8 and are weighing the move to VE 9, the upgrade path to Proxmox VE 9 covers what changes. For a deeper look at the Proxmox decision itself, see Proxmox as a VMware replacement for IT training.
Option 3: Move hands-on virtualization to NDG Online
If your program can't absorb the infrastructure rework right now (maybe the system administrator has moved on, or the capital budget isn't there), NDG Online's Proxmox courses run in the browser with zero infrastructure setup. You pay per learner and NDG operates the platform. Proxmox VE 9: Setup and Management is available there now.
Some programs combine options, keeping NETLAB+ for non-virtualization courses (CCNA, Security+, Linux+) and moving virtualization to NDG Online.
A practical transition plan
If you're going with Option 2, here's the sequence:
- Confirm your NETLAB+ version supports Proxmox pod designs. Proxmox support requires a recent NETLAB+ release. Check the Admin Guide under the NETLAB+ documentation.
- Download the Proxmox pod OVAs from the NDG support portal. The install guides for both Proxmox courses are linked from the Proxmox content page.
- Stand up a Proxmox host. This is the physical step: a server running Proxmox VE, integrated with NETLAB+ per the install guide. Some existing virtualization servers can be repurposed; check the hardware compatibility list.
- Install one Proxmox pod and run it end-to-end yourself. Don't deploy to learners until you've completed the lab path as an administrator. It'll surface gaps in your infrastructure and curriculum.
- Update your syllabus and course materials. Swap vSphere screenshots for Proxmox screenshots; update CLI references (esxcli → pct/qm); rewrite instructions that call out vCenter UI paths.
- Pilot with one class. Run a single class on Proxmox for a term. Keep other classes on vSphere until the pilot validates.
- Schedule the full cutover. Typically at a term or academic-year boundary, once the pilot confirms the curriculum maps cleanly.
What to tell your learners
Learners asking "did I waste my time learning VMware?" No. The concepts transfer. A learner who can install and configure vSphere can install and configure Proxmox; what they re-learn is UI navigation and CLI syntax. Knowing multiple hypervisors is an advantage in the job market, not a handicap.
Where to go for help
- Proxmox content on NETLAB+, the lab catalog
- NETLAB+ documentation, the administrator guide
- Transition notice, dates and official terms
- Contact NDG if you want to talk through your specific situation