Share your experience using Scale Computing S-Series

I was a customer of NetApp FAS Series, providing support for customers rather than direct support. I have worked on a couple of projects with NetApp FAS Series, including one for Disney worldwide services and another for a confidential medical-related project whose name I cannot disclose. As a NetApp admin, I worked with customers accessing Disney products and medical products, resolving issues such as disk issues, latency issues, performance issues, and shares not being accessible.

I also assisted internal customers who have internal shares like NFS share and CIFS share, and resolved any issues in those configurations as well as implementing new configurations when needed. My work mainly revolves around admin work, managing all hardware, software, and configuration issues in NetApp.

In my experience with NetApp FAS Series, I found the CLI commands to be very valuable and easy to understand, unlike other storage products. I can use just the show command to see something, and it helps me narrow down issues quickly, which makes CLI easy for me.

I use snapshot technology in NetApp FAS Series. The snapshot technology has helped me in data protection. For example, during an upgrade of our ONTAP version at my workplace, it did not reflect properly despite the upgrade being completed. I had a VMware snapshot from another team, and that was helpful for me to retrieve the data right after the failed upgrade. I use snapshots frequently, maintaining a snapshot policy of 28 days which allows me to help users retrieve files they are unable to access.

In maintaining data integrity in my operations with RAID DP, I see that it helps me significantly. If two or more disks fail, it gives me time to work on replacements. If only one disk fails without RAID DP, I would lose data and connection, but with RAID DP, I have that time to act without losing or making data unavailable to users.

The data management features of Data ONTAP are highly valuable for my organization in terms of data security and compliance. I have not experienced data loss or unavailability as I have SnapMirror, Snapshot, and SnapVault in place. This helped prevent escalations. While I faced some access issues or slowness, severe data loss has not been an issue, and I resolve issues within one to two hours with the data integrity these tools provide.

Regarding improvements for NetApp FAS Series, I think everything is generally good. If there is a need to improve something, they can extend their support. Previously, in my company, I only saw NetApp storage in limited projects, and my colleague worked on a project without any NetApp storage, which felt strange since NetApp is a leading provider in storage. They should extend their support to more projects as it is cost-efficient and beneficial for others.

I have been using NetApp FAS Series for two and a half years.

I assess the level of scalability of NetApp FAS Series to be six to seven.

The scalability of NetApp FAS Series involves both HDD and SSD. However, I cannot definitively say both work together well, particularly as HDDs are being phased out. The noise from spinning disks contributes to reduced scalability.

Based on my experience with the support for NetApp FAS Series, I would rate them eight out of ten.

I did not participate in the initial setup of NetApp FAS Series as that was managed by another team.

Regarding its pricing, I believe it is high. I utilize both HDD and SSD, where SSDs are more cost-friendly, yet HDDs are higher in cost, making it not very affordable but still useful. For general purposes, it can be beneficial.

NetApp FAS Series is deployed on-premises for me.

For NetApp FAS Series unified storage architecture, it is generally used for capacity-focused needs in my environment. When I need more space but not much performance, I use NetApp FAS Series, while for critical applications I switch to another series called AFF, which focuses more on performance.

I have worked with cloud integration for the last six months, which mirrors the C-Mode integration with 9-Mode. The CLI commands and GUI are the same, but a key advantage is the elimination of physical integration issues, saving me time and money. Every time a disk fails, it directly retrieves data from other disks, which saves physical space and costs.

The pricing of NetApp FAS Series seems to be approaching an end, as many versions are phasing out soon. I am using one that will also end in a few years. However, for general usage where storage is not critical, I can still use NetApp FAS Series, especially in disaster recovery sites where it remains helpful.

I would rate this product eight out of ten overall.

At present, we are using hardware from HP, including servers and desktops. Currently, we are using Blade servers and HPE 3PAR StoreServ. This storage solution is used for our critical data.

The main reason behind procuring HP products is that the suppliers are located nearby. We don't have access to other OEMs, so we preferred HP. It is not about technical issues, but rather about support access. HPE 3PAR StoreServ and the services from our retailer or supplier are within reach of our location. We are expecting on-site support, which is the main benefit we are getting with HP. That's why we preferred HP solutions.

I have no specific ideas for improvement at present. We just need to verify whether our current virtual server setup is acceptable to the RBI, as they had raised questions about the VSO, ISO configurations we had implemented. We only need a convenience window of fifteen or twenty minutes for any maintenance activities.

I have been working with HPE 3PAR StoreServ for almost five years.

The stability is quite high, so I mark it as a nine.

Since I have been using it for more than five years, I have not come across any situation where I needed to scale it up. I cannot comment on the scalability at this time.

Tech support is eight.

Positive

At present, we are using the basic functionality and we are quite satisfied.

The return on investment is satisfactory.

As a customer, I always prefer to have a lower price. Any customer will always ask for the cheaper price.

We are dealing directly with HP. My overall review rating for HPE 3PAR StoreServ is nine.