As first reported by The Register , VMware has returned to the low-end server virtualization market with a product called "vSphere Express." The product will run on up to 128 processor cores and includes vMotion to allow live migration of VMs, automated restart of failed VMs, a distributed switch, rapid non-disruptive patching, and support for physical and virtual trusted platform modules. "We have been listening to the market at the low end, and they want a basic core server virtualization platform," said Prashanth Shenoy, vice president of product marketing in Broadcom’s VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF). He explained that each instance of vSphere Express will be discrete, meaning it won’t be possible to manage them centrally. "This is tested for small implementations," he told The Register . "We do not want a customer to run this on thousands of cores." Shenoy said the vSphere Foundation (VVF) enterprise virtualization product, and Cloud Foundation (VCF) private cloud suite, are appropriate for users with more complex needs. vSphere Express will, however, match the release cadence of VVF and VCF. Under Broadcom’s ownership, VMware has enormously reduced the number of resellers in its channel program , meaning it no longer has partners who are a good fit for this product. The virtualization giant will therefore sell vSphere Express through its distributors, most of which now operate cloud marketplaces at which affiliated resellers can acquire software – an arrangement channel folk call "two tier distribution." We asked VMware to tell us the price it will charge for vSphere Express. A spokesperson told us it will offer a per-core subscription license at a price "significantly lower" than VVF or VCF but declined to quote a dollar amount. "We encourage interested customers to reach out to their local reseller for information related to pricing and subscription terms," the spokesperson wrote…