VM Workload Migration Time Estimator

A full-stack tool for estimating VM migration times when using OpenShift Migration Toolkit for Virtualization (MTV/Forklift) to migrate workloads from VMware vSphere. Compares two transfer methods side-by-side and recommends the optimal approach based on your infrastructure.

Transfer Methods

Network Copy (VDDK)

The standard Forklift migration method. VM disks are transferred over the network using VMware's Virtual Disk Development Kit (VDDK). Transfer speed depends on available network bandwidth, compression ratio, number of concurrent transfers, and VDDK protocol overhead.

Formula:

effective_size = total_disk_size * (1 - compression_ratio)
effective_bandwidth = network_Gbps * utilization * (1 - vddk_overhead) * 0.95
time = effective_size / effective_bandwidth / concurrent_transfers

Supports warm migration calculations with incremental sync based on daily change rate.

XCopy (VAAI)

VMware vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) primitive that offloads copy operations directly to the storage array. Bypasses the network entirely when source and target storage are on the same or VAAI-connected arrays. Typically 2-10x faster than network copy.

Formula:

array_speed = network_bandwidth * xcopy_multiplier / 8
time = total_disk_size / array_speed + (vm_count * 2s metadata)

Requires VAAI-capable datastores (typically VMFS-backed).

Features

Dashboard

Real-time overview of migration estimates with:

Summary cards showing total VMs, storage, fastest method, and recommended approach
Side-by-side method comparison bar chart
Migration timeline visualization
Platform connection status for all three infrastructure endpoints
Automatic demo data when no calculations have been run

Manual Calculator

Estimate migration times without connecting to any infrastructure:

Input VM count, total disk size, and network bandwidth
Three preset profiles: Conservative (minimal production impact), Balanced (recommended), and Aggressive (maximum speed)
Advanced tuning for concurrent transfers, bandwidth utilization, compression ratio, VDDK overhead, XCopy speed multiplier, and storage IOPS
Warm migration toggle with daily change rate and cutover day settings
Full formula breakdown showing every calculation step with substituted values
Bottleneck detection and optimization recommendations

Auto-Discovery

Connect to live infrastructure to automatically pull VM inventories and calculate estimates:

VMware vCenter: Discovers VMs, disk sizes, guest OS, power state, datastores, and resource pools via the vSphere REST API
OpenShift: Discovers cluster capacity (nodes, CPU, memory), storage classes, and MTV installation status via the Kubernetes API
Pure FlashArray: Discovers volumes, data reduction ratios, and real-time performance metrics (IOPS, bandwidth, latency) via the Pure Storage REST API v2
Automatic compatibility detection for each method per VM based on datastore capabilities and storage class provisioners

Configuration

Platform connection forms with test and connect buttons for each infrastructure endpoint
Credential management: vCenter (username/password), OpenShift (bearer token), FlashArray (API token)
Global tuning parameters with range sliders and real-time value display
Reset to defaults

PDF Export

Generate professional migration assessment reports including:

Executive summary with method comparison table
Per-VM detail tables with individual time estimates
Formula breakdown for each calculation method
Bottleneck warnings and optimization recommendations
Customizable project and company name

Architecture

vm-migration-estimator/
├── shared/              # Domain types, constants, formula definitions
│   └── src/
│       ├── types.ts     # VM, Platform, Calculation, Export types
│       ├── constants.ts # Method labels, colors, default tuning values
│       └── formulas.ts  # Human-readable formula descriptions
│
├── server/              # Node.js + Express + TypeScript backend
│   └── src/
│       ├── routes/      # REST API endpoints
│       ├── controllers/ # Request handling and business logic
│       ├── services/
│       │   ├── vmware/       # vSphere REST API client
│       │   ├── openshift/    # Kubernetes API client
│       │   ├── flasharray/   # Pure Storage REST API v2 client
│       │   ├── calculation/  # Migration time formulas and engine
│       │   ├── compatibility/# Method compatibility detection
│       │   └── pdf/          # Report generation with pdfmake
│       ├── config/      # Default parameters and preset profiles
│       └── middleware/   # Error handling and Zod validation
│
├── client/              # React + TypeScript + Vite frontend
│   └── src/
│       ├── components/
│       │   ├── dashboard/   # Overview cards, charts, timeline
│       │   ├── calculator/  # Input forms, presets, results, formulas
│       │   ├── discovery/   # VMware/OpenShift/FlashArray panels
│       │   ├── config/      # Platform connections, tuning params
│       │   ├── export/      # PDF report generation
│       │   ├── layout/      # App shell, sidebar, top bar
│       │   └── shared/      # Reusable Card, StatusDot, etc.
│       ├── store/       # Zustand state management
│       ├── api/         # Axios API client layer
│       ├── hooks/       # Auto-refresh, platform status, calculation
│       ├── types/       # Frontend type definitions
│       └── utils/       # Formatters and constants

Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Frontend	React 19, TypeScript, Vite, Tailwind CSS v4, Recharts, Zustand
Backend	Node.js, Express, TypeScript, tsx (dev runner)
PDF	pdfmake with Roboto fonts
Validation	Zod schemas
Monorepo	npm workspaces

API Endpoints

Method	Endpoint	Description
GET	`/api/platforms/status`	Connection status for all platforms
POST	`/api/platforms/connect`	Connect to vCenter, OpenShift, or FlashArray
POST	`/api/platforms/disconnect`	Disconnect a platform
POST	`/api/platforms/test`	Test connection without saving
GET	`/api/discovery/vmware/vms`	Discover VMs from vCenter
GET	`/api/discovery/openshift/cluster`	Get OpenShift cluster info
GET	`/api/discovery/flasharray/volumes`	Get FlashArray volumes and performance
GET	`/api/discovery/compatibility`	Check method compatibility per VM
POST	`/api/calculate/manual`	Calculate from manual inputs
POST	`/api/calculate/auto`	Calculate from discovered VMs
POST	`/api/export/pdf`	Generate PDF report

Preset Profiles

Profile	Concurrent	Bandwidth Util.	Compression	VDDK Overhead
Conservative	2	50%	20%	15%
Balanced	4	70%	35%	12%
Aggressive	8	85%	50%	10%

Helm Deployment

Deploy to any Kubernetes cluster or OpenShift with Helm 3.

Prerequisites

Helm 3.8+ (helm version)
Access to a Kubernetes cluster or OpenShift 4.x
kubectl / oc configured against your target cluster

Install from OCI Registry (Recommended)

helm install vm-migration \
  oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator

Install from Helm Repository

helm repo add vm-migration https://mchenetz.github.io/VM-Workload-Migration/
helm repo update
helm install vm-migration vm-migration/vm-migration-estimator

Install from Release Tarball

Download the .tgz from the GitHub Releases page:

helm install vm-migration vm-migration-estimator-1.0.0.tgz

Verify the Installation

# Wait for pod to be ready
kubectl rollout status deployment/vm-migration-vm-migration-estimator

# Check the service
kubectl get svc vm-migration-vm-migration-estimator

# Port-forward for local access
kubectl port-forward svc/vm-migration-vm-migration-estimator 3001:3001
# Visit http://localhost:3001

Expose the Application

Standard Kubernetes Ingress

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set ingress.enabled=true \
  --set ingress.className=nginx \
  --set ingress.host=vm-migration.example.com

With TLS via cert-manager:

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set ingress.enabled=true \
  --set ingress.className=nginx \
  --set ingress.host=vm-migration.example.com \
  --set ingress.annotations."cert-manager\.io/cluster-issuer"=letsencrypt \
  --set "ingress.tls[0].secretName=vm-migration-tls" \
  --set "ingress.tls[0].hosts[0]=vm-migration.example.com"

OpenShift Route

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set route.enabled=true

Custom hostname with re-encrypt termination:

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set route.enabled=true \
  --set route.host=vm-migration.apps.cluster.example.com \
  --set route.termination=reencrypt

OpenShift SCC note: The chart defaults omit runAsUser and fsGroup so that OpenShift's restricted-v2 SCC automatically injects the namespace-allocated UID/GID. Do not set podSecurityContext.runAsUser or podSecurityContext.fsGroup when deploying on OpenShift unless you have bound an anyuid SCC to the service account.

Connect to Infrastructure Platforms

Platform credentials are stored in a Kubernetes Secret. Pass them at install time:

VMware vCenter

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set platforms.vmware.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.vmware.endpoint=https://vcenter.example.com \
  --set secrets.vmware.username=admin@vsphere.local \
  --set secrets.vmware.password=changeme

OpenShift (for MTV status discovery)

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set platforms.openshift.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.openshift.endpoint=https://api.cluster.example.com:6443 \
  --set platforms.openshift.namespace=openshift-mtv \
  --set secrets.openshift.token=<bearer-token>

Pure Storage FlashArray

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set platforms.flasharray.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.flasharray.endpoint=https://flasharray.example.com \
  --set secrets.flasharray.apiToken=<api-token>

All Platforms

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set route.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.vmware.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.vmware.endpoint=https://vcenter.example.com \
  --set secrets.vmware.username=admin@vsphere.local \
  --set secrets.vmware.password=changeme \
  --set platforms.openshift.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.openshift.endpoint=https://api.cluster.example.com:6443 \
  --set secrets.openshift.token=<bearer-token> \
  --set platforms.flasharray.enabled=true \
  --set platforms.flasharray.endpoint=https://flasharray.example.com \
  --set secrets.flasharray.apiToken=<api-token>

Use an Existing Secret

If you manage secrets externally (Vault, SealedSecrets, ESO), create the secret yourself and reference it:

kubectl create secret generic my-migration-creds \
  --from-literal=VMWARE_USERNAME=admin@vsphere.local \
  --from-literal=VMWARE_PASSWORD=changeme \
  --from-literal=OPENSHIFT_TOKEN=<token> \
  --from-literal=FLASHARRAY_API_TOKEN=<token>

helm install vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set secrets.create=false \
  --set secrets.existingSecret=my-migration-creds

values.yaml Reference

Key	Default	Description
`replicaCount`	`1`	Number of pod replicas
`image.repository`	`vm-migration-estimator`	Container image repository
`image.tag`	`""`	Image tag (defaults to chart appVersion)
`image.pullPolicy`	`IfNotPresent`	Image pull policy
`imagePullSecrets`	`[]`	Pull secrets for private registries
`service.type`	`ClusterIP`	Service type
`service.port`	`3001`	Service port
`ingress.enabled`	`false`	Enable Ingress
`ingress.className`	`""`	Ingress class name
`ingress.host`	`vm-migration.example.com`	Ingress hostname
`ingress.tls`	`[]`	TLS configuration
`route.enabled`	`false`	Enable OpenShift Route
`route.host`	`""`	Route hostname (auto-generated if empty)
`route.termination`	`edge`	TLS termination (`edge`, `passthrough`, `reencrypt`)
`route.insecureEdgeTerminationPolicy`	`Redirect`	Redirect HTTP to HTTPS
`resources.limits.cpu`	`500m`	CPU limit
`resources.limits.memory`	`512Mi`	Memory limit
`resources.requests.cpu`	`100m`	CPU request
`resources.requests.memory`	`128Mi`	Memory request
`autoscaling.enabled`	`false`	Enable HPA
`autoscaling.minReplicas`	`1`	Minimum replicas
`autoscaling.maxReplicas`	`5`	Maximum replicas
`autoscaling.targetCPUUtilization`	`80`	Target CPU % for scaling
`config.port`	`3001`	Application port
`config.nodeEnv`	`production`	Node environment
`config.logLevel`	`info`	Log level
`platforms.vmware.enabled`	`false`	Auto-connect to vCenter on startup
`platforms.vmware.endpoint`	`""`	vCenter URL
`platforms.openshift.enabled`	`false`	Auto-connect to OpenShift on startup
`platforms.openshift.endpoint`	`""`	OpenShift API URL
`platforms.openshift.namespace`	`openshift-mtv`	MTV namespace
`platforms.flasharray.enabled`	`false`	Auto-connect to FlashArray on startup
`platforms.flasharray.endpoint`	`""`	FlashArray management URL
`secrets.create`	`true`	Create credentials Secret
`secrets.existingSecret`	`""`	Use an existing Secret instead
`secrets.vmware.username`	`""`	vCenter username
`secrets.vmware.password`	`""`	vCenter password
`secrets.openshift.token`	`""`	OpenShift bearer token
`secrets.flasharray.apiToken`	`""`	FlashArray API token
`serviceAccount.create`	`true`	Create ServiceAccount
`podSecurityContext.runAsNonRoot`	`true`	Run as non-root
`nodeSelector`	`{}`	Node selector labels
`tolerations`	`[]`	Pod tolerations
`affinity`	`{}`	Pod affinity rules

Autoscaling

helm upgrade vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --set autoscaling.enabled=true \
  --set autoscaling.minReplicas=2 \
  --set autoscaling.maxReplicas=10 \
  --set autoscaling.targetCPUUtilization=70

Upgrade

helm upgrade vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --version 1.1.0 \
  --reuse-values

To change a specific value during upgrade:

helm upgrade vm-migration oci://ghcr.io/mchenetz/charts/vm-migration-estimator \
  --reuse-values \
  --set replicaCount=3

Uninstall

helm uninstall vm-migration

This removes all Kubernetes resources created by the chart. Persistent data is not created by this chart (stateless application).

Getting Started (Development)

Prerequisites

Node.js 18+
npm 9+

Installation

git clone https://github.com/mchenetz/VM-Workload-Migration.git
cd VM-Workload-Migration
npm install

Development

npm run dev

This starts both servers concurrently:

Frontend: http://localhost:5173
API Server: http://localhost:3001

Production Build

npm run build
npm start

Usage

Quick Estimate: Go to the Calculator page, enter VM count and total disk size, select a preset, and click "Estimate Migration Time"
Connected Estimate: Go to Configuration, connect your vCenter/OpenShift/FlashArray endpoints, then use the Discovery page to scan your environment and calculate real estimates
Export: After running a calculation, go to the Export page to generate a PDF report

The dashboard automatically updates to reflect your most recent calculation results.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 53 Commits
.claude		.claude
.github/workflows		.github/workflows
client		client
helm/vm-migration-estimator		helm/vm-migration-estimator
scripts		scripts
server		server
shared		shared
.dockerignore		.dockerignore
.env.template		.env.template
.gitignore		.gitignore
Dockerfile		Dockerfile
README.md		README.md
package-lock.json		package-lock.json
package.json		package.json
tsconfig.base.json		tsconfig.base.json

Folders and files

Latest commit

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VM Workload Migration Time Estimator

Transfer Methods

Network Copy (VDDK)

XCopy (VAAI)

Features

Dashboard

Manual Calculator

Auto-Discovery

Configuration

PDF Export

Architecture

Tech Stack

API Endpoints

Preset Profiles

Helm Deployment

Prerequisites

Install from OCI Registry (Recommended)

Install from Helm Repository

Install from Release Tarball

Verify the Installation

Expose the Application

Standard Kubernetes Ingress

OpenShift Route

Connect to Infrastructure Platforms

VMware vCenter

OpenShift (for MTV status discovery)

Pure Storage FlashArray

All Platforms

Use an Existing Secret

values.yaml Reference

Autoscaling

Upgrade

Uninstall

Getting Started (Development)

Prerequisites

Installation

Development

Production Build

Usage

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