VMware vSphere 6.5 became generally available (GA) on November 15, 2016, several years after the initial release of version 6.0 (GA was on March 12, 2012), bringing several new features and improvements to the vSphere platform.

At a high level, the new version focuses on the following four main areas of innovation:

• Simplified customer experience: There are several improvements in vCenter Server Appliance (vCSA) features and capabilities, with a new modern and truly multi-platform client (finally HTML5-based) and a simple REST based API for automation and integration
• Comprehensive built-in security: It uses the well-known policy-driven approach also used for security aspects at scale to secure data, infrastructure, and access
• Universal app platform: Following the VMware vision, vSphere 6.5 could be a single platform to support any application on any cloud as discussed previously
• Proactive data center management: It has become predictive in order to address potential issues before they can become serious issues

At a technical level, the different improvements are as follows:

• Scale enhancements: There are new configuration maximums to support even the largest application environments (see the next paragraph for the different numbers).
• VMware vCSA: This is now the preferred type of vCenter and the core building block for vSphere. Not only does it now have the same features as the Windows version, but it has new specific functions—a native vCenter Server high availability solution, native vCenter Server backup and restore, migration tool from existing vCenter Server (also in a previous version) to vCSA.
• VMware vSphere Update Manager (VUM): In vSphere 6.5, it has been fully integrated with vCSA. This integration eliminates the additional resources required for another VM, OS license, and database dependencies of the previous architecture. Integrated VUM leverages the vPostgres installation that is part of vCSA, but the data is stored using a separate schema.
• VMware Tools: There are several improvements (such as digital signed ISO), but also some changes in supported OS and supported levels, including a bifurcation of VMware Tools for legacy and current guests.
• REST APIs: These are simple, modern developer-friendly APIs to integrate your vSphere environment in other management platforms. Also, other CLIs have been extended and improved.
• vSphere Client: This is a new HTML5-based GUI, similar to the VMware Host Client, that ensures fast performance, cross-platform and multi-OS compatibility. Note that the vCenter installer is now also supported on Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems without the need for any plugins.
• Content library: This was introduced in vCenter 6.0, but with some limitations. Now it's possible to mount an ISO directly from the content library, apply a guest OS customization specification during VM deployment, and update existing templates.
• Security at scale: This is a new policy-driven security framework that makes securing infrastructure operationally simple using the same approach as the already existing policy-driven storage.
• Encryption: VM-level encryption protects unauthorized data access both at rest and in motion.
• Audit-quality logging: There is enhanced logging that provides forensic information about user actions.
• Secure Boot: This protects both the hypervisor and guest operating system by ensuring images have not been tampered with and preventing loading of unauthorized components.
• Proactive HA: There is high availability capability that utilizes server health information and migrates VMs from degraded hosts before a problem occurs.
• Cross-Cloud vMotion: Live migrates workloads between VMware-based clouds.
• Virtual Volumes Replication: Extends Virtual Volumes (vVols) support (introduced in v6.0) with native array vVols replication.
• Virtual NVM Express (NVMe) and others new controllers: With hardware version 13, you can use NVMe, SATA, SCSI, and IDE controllers in a VM.

For more information, see the following links:

• https://www.packtpub.com/virtualization-and-cloud/mastering-vmware-vsphere-65-video
• https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/launch
• https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/introducing-vsphere-6-5.html
• https://featurewalkthrough.vmware.com/#!/vsphere-6-5
• https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/whitepaper/vsphere/vmw-white-paper-vsphr-whats-new-6-5.pdf
• https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2017/07/vsphere-6-5-update-1-hood.html
• http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/whats-new-in-vsphere-6-5-vcenter-server.html
• http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/whats-new-in-vsphere-6-5-security.html
• http://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2016/10/whats-new-in-vsphere-6-5-host-resource-management-and-operations.html