2/4 rounds (and the overwhelming majority of the $$$ raised) were years after the EMC acquisition, and immediately before the IPO. Not really what people think of when they talk about raising VC.

The 5 million and 20 million rounds in 2000 were strategic investments from partners who were going to resell ESX, and were done for reasons other than needing working capital. IBM and Dell were the 2 partner investors, IIRC.