CIO at a energy/utilities company with 201-500 employees
Real User
The initial setup was straightforward. Using partners and a consultancy, we didn't have any problems with the installation and parametrization.
Pros and Cons
  • "The initial setup was straightforward. With our partners and the consultancy that we had, we knew what we wanted to do. Therefore, we didn't have any problems with the installation and parametrization."

    What is our primary use case?

    We have been using this product for a while. We wanted to use our current equipment and have been very excited with the results of our projects. 

    How has it helped my organization?

    It provides good security.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    One to three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    We did not have stability issues until now.

    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series
    April 2024
    Learn what your peers think about Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2024.
    769,334 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    We are trying to determine the product's scalability now as we are doing a new proof of concept with new equipment/products.

    How are customer service and support?

    We haven't had any issues with the technical support. We have had good cooperation with our Cisco partners.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    Two or three years ago, it was something that my colleagues proposed to me as a very good program in order to provide an overall solution. All of our equipment was based in Cisco technology, so we didn't have to make any changes.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was straightforward. With our partners and the consultancy that we had, we knew what we wanted to do. Therefore, we didn't have any problems with the installation and parametrization.

    What about the implementation team?

    We used Space Hellas S.A., which is a company from Greece and a Cisco partner, for the implementation. We have a very good relationship with them.

    What was our ROI?

    We have seen ROI from this product.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    I would like the pricing to be cheaper.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We did not consider any other vendors beside Cisco because all our equipment is Cisco. The compatibility of staying with Cisco is relevant.

    What other advice do I have?

    It is a very good solution. Find a good consultant and vendor to implement it before purchasing the software and equipment.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Data Center Supervisor at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    It has been great for the deduplication and compression of data, allowing us to save a lot of space
    Pros and Cons
    • "The compression and deduplication are very high. Therefore, we can use the size of the product more efficiently than other storage solutions."
    • "I would like to see them expand onto the cloud."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are using this product right now for our virtual environment.  

    As the product develops, we are looking forward to utilizing the product on the cloud.

    How has it helped my organization?

    It has been great for the deduplication and compression of data, allowing us to save a lot of space.

    If we wanted to deploy a virtual or new application, it used to take months to buy the product or hardware. Now, we can do it within fraction of seconds. That is time.

    What is most valuable?

    The compression and deduplication are very high. Therefore, we can use the size of the product more efficiently than other storage solutions.

    What needs improvement?

    I would like to see them expand onto the cloud.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    One to three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    HyperFlex has been very stable. It was implemented at our bank a year ago and has had no downtime.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It is scalable. We recently added three more nodes, which went very smoothly.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    The technical support is very good, especially from the Cisco side.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We were not previously using another solution.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was straightforward when implementing the hardware and deploying the software.

    What about the implementation team?

    We used a reseller called Data Consult from Lebanon for our deployment. Our experience with them was good.

    What was our ROI?

    We have saved a lot of money with this solution, especially with implementation because time is money. Implementing the solution on the same box saves a lot of space.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The price is a bit high. It could be better, but the product is worth the cost.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    What other advice do I have?

    Try it. The HyperFlex solution is perfect.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series
    April 2024
    Learn what your peers think about Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2024.
    769,334 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Account Manager at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
    Real User
    Top 20
    A highly stable and exceptionally scalable solution that offers a great technical support team
    Pros and Cons
    • "It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
    • "The product does not have a cloud version...The product should be made more flexible in terms of integration capabilities."

    What needs improvement?

    The product does not have a cloud version. I would like Cisco to introduce a cloud version of the solution in the future. The product should be made more flexible in terms of integration capabilities.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series for two years. I use a high-end version of the solution. My company has a partnership with Cisco.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It is a stable solution.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It is a scalable solution.

    How are customer service and support?

    I am satisfied with the solution's technical support. I rate the technical support a ten out of ten.

    How would you rate customer service and support?

    Positive

    How was the initial setup?

    The technical people are the ones who can answer whether the product is easy to deploy or not.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is a bit pricier compared to other brands in the market. Yearly payments are to be made toward the licensing cost of the solution. The approximate licensing cost of the product depends on the model a person chooses. There is a need to make additional payments towards the maintenance and support of the solution.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    My company is not considering the other available options in the market.

    What other advice do I have?

    I am satisfied with the overall product.

    Cisco has already made a name for itself in the industry as a good brand.

    I rate the overall product a ten out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
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    PeerSpot user
    IT Infrastructure Engineer at a government with 5,001-10,000 employees
    Real User
    Top 20
    Usable, scalable, and easy to set up
    Pros and Cons
    • "I find the usability very valuable."
    • "You have to get the same servers with the same storage; they need to be identical. However, in vSAN or in VMware we don't have to do that. We can just add storage and manage it in the same server."

    What is our primary use case?

    Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is essential to our vSAN solution; it's integrated.

    What is most valuable?

    I find the usability very valuable.

    What needs improvement?

    You have to get the same servers with the same storage; they need to be identical. However, in vSAN or in VMware we don't have to do that. We can just add storage and manage it in the same server.

    In the next release, I would like to see more integration with VMware. I would also like to see more automation with other Cisco products so that we could have one dashboard for all Cisco products.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    We've been using Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series this year.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability of Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is good.

    We currently have 1,000 to, maybe, 10,000 users.

    How are customer service and support?

    I have found the technical support to be very good.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward. I think it took two to three hours maximum to set up.

    We have two engineers and one manager for deployment and maintenance.

    What about the implementation team?

    We used a system integrator consultant for the implementation.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    There is no additional licensing cost other than the cost for each part.

    What other advice do I have?

    I recommend Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series and would rate it at nine on a scale from one to ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Senior Systems Engineer at a pharma/biotech company with 501-1,000 employees
    Real User
    Helps put everything in centrally so it can be managed from one place
    Pros and Cons
    • "Cisco HyperFlex is helping us to put everything in centrally so that we can manage in one place."
    • "You cannot just apply the VSXi updates. You are dependent on Cisco HyperFlex for metric services, analytics, and everything else. I don't like that dependency."

    What is our primary use case?

    Our primary use case for the product is for the data center. We are hosting all of the servers and building infrastructure.

    How has it helped my organization?

    Cisco HyperFlex is helping us to put everything in centrally so that we can manage in one place. 

    That's the whole reason why we got the solution, so that we can have better integration with all of our product applications.

    What is most valuable?

    We are still exploring Cisco HyperFlex. We have just deployed it. It's all automation. We want to automate everything. That's the reason why we bought it. 

    What needs improvement?

    One problem is that whenever we want to do something on VMware, you are dependent on HyperFlex. With everything now, you have to look into HyperFlex. 

    You cannot just apply the VSXi updates. You are dependent on Cisco HyperFlex for metric services, analytics, and everything else. I don't like that dependency.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Stability is good so far, but there is a lot of learning. A lot of things are dependent on VMs. There are controlled VMs and you have to always make sure to keep those VMs up and running.

    There is a lot of learning involved with ACI. That's huge. The technology which goes around HyperFlex, you have to learn, i.e. ACI, HyperFlex, VMware, etc.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    One thing I like about this product is it is more scalable and fast, i.e. the disks and everything. We can extend our data center to some other places.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    Technical support is fairly good. I have been able to get through to the right person. It took me a while, but it was not something very urgent. I didn't think it was much trouble.

    What about the implementation team?

    We used a reseller called DIG. It was good. I was not part of that.

    What other advice do I have?

    On a scale of one to ten, I would rate the product an eight. It's a great data center tool. I look at the weight of the costs too.

    None of the products is 100% correct. We just deployed the Cisco HyperFlex. We have to see how it goes. We are also in the cloud. You have to keep looking for that option as it saves a lot on hardware and power consumption

    We are still migrating all our old infrastructure, which is on C7000. We are doing that right now. Once that is done, I'll be able to get some metrics. Every company is different.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Enterprise Architect at a aerospace/defense firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    It is flexible and can quickly deploy machines
    Pros and Cons
    • "The flexibility is its most valuable feature; the ability to quickly deploy a number of help machines. It is not constrained by what we want to do."
    • "I would like a lighter product; something which can be carried by a mere human. The typical size still looks like a stack of data center-sized servers, which is typically fine, but not so good if you want to carry it around."

    What is our primary use case?

    Our use case would be deployable mobile headquarters, headquarters on the move, where we can quickly deploy to our small user community and quickly create a mobile data center. This includes using business advantage communications.

    How has it helped my organization?

    We are in the architecting phase. We are looking at it being more agile in our deployed headquarters. We are in the testing and deployment phase.

    What is most valuable?

    The flexibility is its most valuable feature; the ability to quickly deploy a number of help machines. It is not constrained by what we want to do. 

    What needs improvement?

    The product's disadvantage is that it is not necessarily open as I would like it to be. The main platform has some closed features that I would rather not see. For example, I need a mechanism to orchestrate services and an infrastructure as a service model, which is how we are deploying it. We would like to orchestrate it using an open, non-Cisco tool. While there is an API, in order to deploy it, we need to indicate it with a higher layer Network Services Orchestrator. This requires a lot of work to be done. If it could support a more open model, where we have standardized blueprints, templates, or virtual machines, it would be nice. This is an industry problem, not necessarily specific to Cisco.

    I would like a lighter product; something which can be carried by a mere human. The typical size still looks like a stack of data center-sized servers, which is typically fine, but not so good if you want to carry it around.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Trial/evaluations only.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It works as expected.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    Based on the bigger picture, scalability should be good. However, we haven't tested in on scale yet. On paper, it is perfectly fine.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    The technical support is good.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    Our other solution works perfectly fine. However, we do capability upgrades every so often. This is a trigger for me to determine if we are looking in the right direction. As our requirements to be more agile have increased over time when working with our previous system, we learned the system is too complicated. We needed something which is smarter and can be more automated, where a physical engineer use a template and let it run, then get a green light because the system works.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was somewhat complex, but this was because of our requirements. We were pushing the physical structure beyond what Cisco could deliver. This made life a bit miserable for the engineer.

    What about the implementation team?

    Cisco delivered the solution directly to us. They contributed skill, personnel, equipment, and prototypes.

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We are looking at Microsoft, VMware, Cisco, and Dell EMC. In the end, we will make our decision on price and functionality.

    What other advice do I have?

    Give it a go. Work with their engineers and support staff to see if your solution fits. Challenge them to go a bit further than than their standard product.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Network Administrator with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    A good system to run our virtual machines and services on for high performance and high availability
    Pros and Cons
    • "You can administer things easily. E.g., if you need more power, you can add a system."
    • "There is a VMware plugin for HyperFlex, which sometimes it hangs up in our environment, and doesn't function well."

    What is our primary use case?

    Our primary use case is virtualization on VMware. We have some virtual machines, which need a lot of computing power, and HyperFlex seems to be a good solution.

    How has it helped my organization?

    It is a good system to run our virtual machines and services on for high performance and high availability.

    What is most valuable?

    You can administer things easily. E.g., if you need more power, you can add a system.

    What needs improvement?

    There is a VMware plugin for HyperFlex, which sometimes it hangs up in our environment, and doesn't function well.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    One to three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    We started in an early firmware version, so the software release version was a little unstable in the beginning. Now, it is good.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    You can add a package to expand the storage space or machines if you need more machine power. If you don't look at the costs of the systems, the scalability is quite good.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    I only had one tough case that I brought to the technical support, and they dealt with it quite well.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We have a lot of IBM Systems, which were getting older. 

    Our entire network is Cisco. There was also a good bundle for the HyperFlex system at the beginning when comparing price and value, and overall, it was a good investment. We received more performance for less money at the start.

    How was the initial setup?

    A year before we set it up, relative to the software the release, there were a few things you could not know as a customer. This is why we used an integrator who knew how to use and follow command line commands that we couldn't know. However, I think this is now fixed.

    What about the implementation team?

    For the first time that we installed, we used an integrator for the day.

    What other advice do I have?

    Take a look at HyperFlex because it is a good system. Out-of-the-box, it runs quite well.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Network Analyst at a non-tech company with 1,001-5,000 employees
    Real User
    Performs well and is good at resolving issues
    Pros and Cons
    • "The most valuable feature for our company is that it works internally. We have a lot of internal projects for optimization."
    • "The scalability could use improvement."

    What is our primary use case?

    We normally use a UCS, a uniform communication service, I'm still learning how HyperFlex works. We are evaluating it for use in the intermediate to deep future.

    How has it helped my organization?

    I do troubleshooting and monitoring on Cisco HyperFlex HX for our customers. I do maintenance and monitoring for the infrastructure environment.

    We do a lot of internal projects like optimization, we also use ACI for optimizing the network. It simplifies the cost reduction.

    What is most valuable?

    The most valuable feature for our company is that it works internally. We have a lot of internal projects for optimization. 

    HyperFlex is flexible for various projects. We have a lot of vendors doing projects where HyperFlex has been good at solving issues.

    What needs improvement?

    The scalability could use improvement. 

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    HyperFlex performs very well.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability is up around 75%.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    My team works on ACI and HyperFlex. They've had great Cisco support for that.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    Our marketing team told us about the solution. They introduced every new technology that came in and gave us a demo. My managers considered the options and approved Cisco. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup for HyperFlex is straightforward. It doesn't take much time. 

    HyperFlex lowered our deployment times around one to two days based upon the environment of workers that we needed to invest.

    What other advice do I have?

    On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this product an eight. 

    I completely recommend whatever Cisco solutions you use. They provide the best option to maintain infrastructure environment. It's very useful. 

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: April 2024
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    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.