VMware and Google are collaborating to run four Google cloud services on VMware’s hybrid vCloud Air.

BigQuery analytics, Cloud Storage, Datastore and DNS services will be provided by through the medium of vCloud Air this year, at an as yet unspecified date.

More – as yet unconfirmed - Google services have also been promised. It is understood that work is in progress to allow Google’s services to be controlled through VMware’s vRealize management tools. If this compatibility is achieved, it could give administrators control over both vCloud Air and Google cloud resources at the same time. This would creates an alternative to similar unified management systems, which can simultaneously control both cloud resources and in-house IT, which Amazon is thought to be preparing.

The deal gives VMware custopmers access to Google’s reliability and resources (it dwarfs VMware) while it adds to Google’s hybrid story, allowing services to combine public and private cloud. For both, it’s a weapon to use against the public cloud leader, Amazon Web Services (AWS).

VMware wants to help its business customers make an easy transition to vCloud Air, according to Mathew Lodge, VP of cloud services for VMware. The cloud needs to be user-friendly for enterprise users, while still roust enough to handle mission critical workloads, he said.

Existing contracts extended

“Customers can use their Google services under their existing contract, paying for what they use,” said Lodge, “they will be integrated into vCloud Air like any other service.” The strength of the scheme lies in the simplicity of execution, he said. “They get access to complementary services to what they already get on vCloud Air,” said Lodge,

Data analysts will be able to use BigQuery through the familiar interface of vCloud Air with the additional advantage of having VMware’s support and service partner. It is this continuity that will provide the most value to enterprise customers, according to Murali Sitaram, Google’s MD for global partner strategy and alliances.

“The hybrid system gives enterprises the power and efficiencies of VMware virtualization and the hyperscale of Google Cloud Platform,” said Sitaram.

“Combining their VMware cloud environments with the security, scalability and price performance of Google’s public cloud means they can get billions of search results in milliseconds,” said Sitaram, “and it’s from the same infrastructure.”