Virtual Data Platform

Overview

Virtual Data Platform (VDP) is a data virtualization service for organizations that need to query information held across enterprise systems without building a copied warehouse or lake. It suits teams that want shared access to distributed data while keeping permissions tied to each user. Its strongest case is governed, live querying; it is less suitable when users need a central replicated store or row-level security.

Key features

VDP sends queries to source systems and combines the results in an in-memory sandbox for each user. That avoids maintaining another copy of the data, but makes results dependent on live access to the underlying systems. Microsoft Entra ID sign-in and source permissions applied under the requesting user's identity help preserve existing controls across queries. VDP supports SQL and API access, but does not provide row-level security.

The low-code Modeler creates reusable Virtual Datasets from Functions, Code Files, Models, and Value Lists. Users can consume datasets through Excel, Power BI, Python, R, and MCP-capable AI assistants, giving teams several ways to put shared data to work. Creating and modeling those datasets requires a Creator license; a User license covers viewing and executing them.

Integrations include SAP, Snowflake, Salesforce, Workday, SQL Server, SharePoint, ODBC, OData, Oracle, PostgreSQL, BigQuery, and Dynamics 365. Gateways connect outbound only, so they do not require inbound firewall rules. The security description covers TLS on every connection, encrypted payloads, and results kept in memory rather than written to disk. The service is hosted in the EU on Microsoft Azure and is described as GDPR-aligned, but the maker makes no certification claims.

Pricing

Virtual Data Platform uses paid, custom pricing; a free trial is offered in an isolated tenant, with no stated duration. The standard license roles are VDP_User, for viewing and executing datasets, and VDP_Creator, an add-on that permits creation and modeling and requires a User license. That split lets organizations reserve modeling rights for a smaller group, but teams should account for both roles when planning access. A Dedicated tier adds a dedicated backend cluster and Azure Private Endpoints for private networking.

Platforms

The product is cloud-hosted rather than self-hosted. Its responsive web Portal supports desktop, tablet, and mobile use; Gateway evaluation builds are listed for Windows and macOS, while Agent documentation lists Windows and Linux. Android, iOS, Linux, web, Windows, and API are listed as platforms, giving it a broad footprint for cloud-based deployment.

Who it's for

VDP is aimed at organizations that need secure, governed access to enterprise data spread across systems and network boundaries. It is a particularly relevant fit where identity-linked source permissions and avoiding replication matter more than having a persisted central copy. Teams that require row-level security or self-hosted deployment should look elsewhere.

Pros and cons

Pro: Live queries and per-user sandboxes avoid maintaining a separate warehouse or lake copy.

Pro: Microsoft Entra ID sign-in and source permissions under each user's identity carry existing access controls into queries.

Pro: Reusable datasets can serve Excel, Power BI, Python, R, and MCP-capable AI assistants, as well as SQL and API clients.

Con: Live querying depends on source-system access at query time rather than a separate persisted dataset.

Con: There is no row-level security, which rules it out for organizations that require that control.

Con: Custom pricing and a trial of unstated duration make costs and evaluation timing harder to plan.

Con: It is cloud-only; the Dedicated tier offers private networking, not self-hosted deployment.

Alternatives

Data Federation Software and Data Virtualization Software are useful starting points for comparing products in those categories.

Choose Denodo Platform if a free Developer plan is useful: it includes a single server, four cores, 50 data products, and 2.5 TB per year, with unlimited data sources, consumers, and Data Marketplace users. Teradata VantageCloud is another freemium option with a free plan and a VantageCloud Lake Standard plan.

Enterprise Enabler is an alternative from Stone Bond Technologies, which says the product has been developed since the company's founding in 2002. Starburst Galaxy may suit teams looking for a freemium option: its free plan allows up to three clusters in standard execution mode for ad hoc queries.

Stardog offers a free plan with a renewable one-year license, up to one million stored edges, and three databases. For a free, downloadable SQL query engine, consider Apache Drill, which supports embedded or cluster deployment under Apache License 2.0. Presto is another free open-source SQL query engine that can run on-premises or in any cloud.

QoreDB is a freemium alternative with a free Core plan that includes SQL and NoSQL engines and services, a read-only MCP server, and full CRUD and SQL/Mongo editing.

Verdict

Choose VDP if your organization needs governed, cross-system access that applies each user's existing source permissions and avoids copying data into a warehouse or lake. Its in-memory, live-query model and broad client support are the reason to choose it; custom pricing, cloud-only deployment, no row-level security, and reliance on live source access are the reasons to look elsewhere.