VMware vSphere® is VMware's virtualization platform, which transforms data centers into aggregated computing infrastructures that include CPU, storage, and networking resources. vSphere manages these infrastructures as a unified operating environment, and provides you with the tools to administer the data centers that participate in that environment. VMware offers a number of powerful APIs and SDKs to help you manage your virtualization infrastructure.
VMware provides APIs for managing different aspects of VMware vCenter Server® and the data center. This publication describes APIs in vSphere release 8.0 and later.
API |
function |
SOAP |
JSON |
Java |
Python |
Golang |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
vSphere Automation API | datacenter management advanced features | Yes | SDK | SDK | govmomi (partial) | |
VIM API | datacenter management basic features | Yes | Yes | SDK | pyvmomi | govmomi |
vCenter Server Management API | vCenter Server Appliance admin | Yes | SDK | SDK | govmomi | |
Storage Policy API | storage affinity profiles |
Yes |
SDK | pyvmomi | govmomi | |
Storage Monitoring | manage storage arrays | Yes | SDK | pyvmomi | govmomi | |
vSAN API | pooling ESXi attached storage | Yes | SDK | SDK + pyvmomi | SDK | |
Virtual Storage Lifecycle Management | manage standalone virtual disks | Yes | SDK | build from WSDL | ||
ESX Agent Manager (EAM) | vSphere extensions & services | Yes | SDK | pyvmomi | govmomi | |
Virtual Disk Development Kit (VDDK) | operate on virtual disks, C language and Java | local | local | VADP |
![](images/GUID-F8BD0B08-D24B-4F0B-82D1-DDA8A61260FE-high.png)
Intended Audience
This information is intended for anyone who wants to automate different workflows by using the different vSphere APIs.