What’s the best way to replace the HPE Compute Ops Management vSphere plug-in?

We’re using the newer setup and have found it considerably easier to work with than the earlier versions. It’s the first implementation we’ve used where full-stack lifecycle management through vSphere has worked reliably end to end. I’d still plan the network permissions and firmware workflow carefully, but the newer integration has been a substantial improvement.

The terminology is a little confusing. The Compute Ops Management application is cloud-hosted, while the older plug-in appliance runs locally and translates vCenter hardware-management commands into Compute Ops Management API calls. In the newer design, that hardware-support module runs through the Secure Gateway, so the old plug-in appliance is replaced by the updated on-premises component rather than becoming entirely cloud-based.

The Secure Gateway can act as a proxy for the iLOs, which is useful when outbound access must be limited to a single approved system instead of allowing every iLO to connect directly to the cloud. It can also cache firmware packages, which helps when updating many similar servers. However, using it as a network proxy is optional: iLOs can still connect directly to the cloud while the gateway is used only for the vSphere hardware-management integration. The exact requirement depends on the version and deployment model, so I would verify the current compatibility matrix with HPE before migrating.