Azure NetApp Files vs IBM SoftLayer comparison

Why PeerSpot?

NetApp and IBM are both solutions in the Public Cloud Storage Services category. NetApp is ranked #14 with an average rating of 8.0, while IBM is ranked #19. NetApp holds a 3.4% mindshare in PCSS, compared to IBM’s 2.0% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of NetApp users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Azure NetApp Files

Read 18 Azure NetApp Files reviews

4,869 Views
2,142 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

IBM SoftLayer

Read 2 IBM SoftLayer reviews

1,055 Views
812 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Azure NetApp Files

IBM SoftLayer

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 1, 2024

IBM SoftLayer and Azure NetApp Files are two leading solutions in cloud storage and services. IBM SoftLayer appears to have an edge in pricing and support options, whereas Azure NetApp Files stands out for its advanced features and higher performance justifying its cost.

Features: IBM SoftLayer is praised for its robust infrastructure, network performance, and straightforward pricing. Azure NetApp Files is favored for its high-performance storage solutions, seamless integration with Azure services, and advanced, integrated features.

Room for Improvement: IBM SoftLayer could improve its scalability options, documentation clarity, and hybrid cloud support. Azure NetApp Files could benefit from more flexible pricing, enhanced support for hybrid environments, and more customizable options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM SoftLayer is known for its relatively simple deployment process and responsive support team. Azure NetApp Files provides quicker deployment times and more comprehensive support channels.

Pricing and ROI: IBM SoftLayer offers transparent and competitive pricing with satisfactory ROI. Azure NetApp Files, though more expensive, offers good ROI due to its superior performance and feature set.

To learn more, read our detailed Azure NetApp Files vs. IBM SoftLayer Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Azure NetApp Files vs. IBM SoftLayer

September 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Azure NetApp Files

Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services

14th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Cloud Migration (9th), Cloud Storage (13th)

IBM SoftLayer

Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services

19th

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Public Cloud Storage Services category, the mindshare of Azure NetApp Files is 3.4%, down from 7.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM SoftLayer is 2.0%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Public Cloud Storage Services Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Azure NetApp Files	3.4%
IBM SoftLayer	2.0%
Other	94.6%

Public Cloud Storage Services

Featured Reviews

Rajat Wadhwa

Cloud Architect at IBM

Cross-region replication has delivered seamless disaster recovery for enterprise storage needs

In terms of improvement, I would say cost reservation; the cost is a bit high. If we compare Azure Files and Azure NetApp Files, I know that customers are using less of Azure NetApp due to the cost. If they bring the cost a little bit closer to what Azure Files offers, it can be a great product in the market and bring a lot of business to NetApp. Backup is quite critical. As of now, Azure NetApp Files requires you to use Azure NetApp Backup solution, which is in public preview at the moment. I would definitely expect NetApp to come up with that solution so that customers can start using it because they do not have confidence in backup as it is still in preview. They are still doing some testing and research on that product, which is not officially released for use by multiple customers.

Read full review

reviewer1032702

Global Principal Cloud Architect at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees

Stable with excellent speed and agility

The most valuable aspect of the solution is simply to have the ability to host in a cloud form and out of the data center - the IBM big iron solution. It's the speed and the agility that really sell SoftLayer. The ELT versus ETL extract, transform and load versus extract, load, and then transform, the ELT method is what really sells SoftLayer. The ability to extract act from your current location, load into your future location, with limited change, and then be able to take the transfer actions slowly and methodically after you're in your new location is the part that really makes this awesome. The stability and scalability are quite good.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The most valuable feature of this solution is its flexibility."

"The critical features of this solution are SnapMirror for replication, data protection, and SnapLock."

"We use Azure NetApp Files mainly for backup."

"Azure NetApp Files gives our clients better options."

"The most valuable features of the solution is replication to another region and the performance. The solution is stable. The solution is scalable. The initial setup is straightforward."

"It all depends on the requirement; if the customer is an enterprise customer wanting a disaster recovery solution without manual efforts to migrate or replicate data from one Azure region to another, then Azure NetApp Files is a seamless solution."

"You can change it non-disruptively. You can increase the size and decrease the size online, which is a huge benefit compared to Azure disks. It just works seamlessly. You don't need to stop the instances."

"We recommend this solution to our customers because of its ease of use, availability, and security, but they don't usually go for it because of its price."

More Azure NetApp Files pros

"The ELT versus ETL extract, transform and load versus extract, load, and then transform, the ELT method is what really sells SoftLayer."

"The solution is highly stable."

"The stability is the solution's most valuable aspect for our organization."

"The ability to extract from your current location, load into your future location with limited change, and then be able to take the transfer actions slowly and methodically after you're in your new location is the part that really makes this awesome."

Cons

"Features are being added to this product at a very slow pace, and they should be speeding that up and being a little more aggressive."

"This solution would be improved with more innovation."

"Azure NetApp Files is expensive."

"It is expensive in small environments, which could be better. The reason is the four terabyte minimum."

"Reserved Instances for Azure NetApp Files would improve more use cases, making them more valuable in Azure as the cost would be reduced."

"The main area for improvement is in the support ticket system. Since it's a SaaS platform, support tickets are managed by Microsoft or NetApp backend. This can sometimes lead to cross-functional challenges for organizations."

"Its pricing can be better."

"The solution needs to improve it's ABS environment."

More Azure NetApp Files cons

"For us, the versioning was an issue."

"The interface is hard to use for us. It should be simplified."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The performance has improved by about 30 percent."

"The solution’s combination of the ease of use, simplicity, and reduction in IT management versus the cost has helped a lot. It is very fast to deploy. It's very easy to maintain. You don't have to do a lot in the cloud to maintain this thing, so it gives good performance. It's fast to deploy, easy to maintain, and it gives a better performance. These are the most basic three criteria for any application. This saves cost because the manpower you need to deploy is going down. You're getting better performance and not buying new resources. You have resources available in the cloud. It's just a couple of clicks, then you're good to go."

"Our pricing has not been determined because we are still waiting on additional features."

"We are currently on a pay-as-you-go model with the storage that we use."

"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."

"It is expensive in small environments, which could be better. The reason is the four terabyte minimum. A one terabyte minimum would be better."

"The licensing fees for this solution vary, ranging from a single shelf to a full suite."

"Its price is double the price of the premium disks, which is the main reason why customers don't go for this solution in the end."

More Azure NetApp Files pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Educational Organization

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	14

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does Azure NetApp Files compare to NetApp ONTAP?

Azure NetApp Files is a Microsoft Azure file storage service built on NetApp technology. The platform combines the file capabilities of Azure and NetApp to move critical file-based applications to ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure NetApp Files?

On pricing, I would rate it around eight. It's highly priced, and there's no cost reservation option available compared to Azure Files. If NetApp could bring that kind of model for customers to sav...

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What needs improvement with Azure NetApp Files?

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Comparisons

NetApp Cloud Volumes ONTAP vs Azure NetApp Files

Compared 9% of the time

Amazon S3 vs Azure NetApp Files

Compared 9% of the time

Microsoft Azure File Storage vs Azure NetApp Files

Compared 8% of the time

Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) vs Azure NetApp Files

Compared 7% of the time

Nasuni vs Azure NetApp Files

Compared 5% of the time

More Azure NetApp Files Competitors

Amazon S3 vs IBM SoftLayer

Compared 18% of the time

Amazon S3 Glacier vs IBM SoftLayer

Compared 17% of the time

Oracle Cloud Software Appliance vs IBM SoftLayer

Compared 13% of the time

Amazon AWS vs IBM SoftLayer

Compared 9% of the time

HPE Alletra Storage MP B10000 vs IBM SoftLayer

Compared 8% of the time

More IBM SoftLayer Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Azure NetApp Files

October 2026

Download Azure NetApp Files product report

Buyer's Guide

Public Cloud Storage Services

September 2026

Download IBM SoftLayer product report

Also Known As

NetApp ANF, ANF

CloudLayer

Overview

Azure NetApp Files offers flexibility, speed, and tight Active Directory integration, making it versatile. Its scalability, rapid response time, and replication capabilities like SnapMirror enhance its value, along with SEC compliance through SnapLock and efficient database management.

Azure NetApp Files is a robust service for unstructured data storage within Microsoft Azure and on-premises environments. It supports NFS and CIFS protocol testing, SQL backups, SAP virtualization, Azure Virtual Desktop, and event collection. This service facilitates seamless provisioning, non-disruptive resizing, and fast snapshots for disaster recovery. Known for high availability and cost-effective throughput, its ease of use and security make it preferred by users. Issues with high pricing and support highlight areas for enhancement, alongside desires for expanded regional availability, better security, and integration with diverse solutions.

What are the key features of Azure NetApp Files?

Flexibility: Supports diverse applications with robust Active Directory integration.
Scalability: Easily adjusts to increased performance demands.
Fast Snapshotting: Enhances disaster recovery capabilities.
SnapMirror: Provides effective replication features.
SnapLock: Ensures SEC compliance.

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

High Availability: Delivers reliable performance.
Cost-effective Throughput: Balances performance with expenditure.
Ease of Use: Simplifies data management tasks.
Non-disruptive Resizing: Facilitates seamless storage adjustments.
Enhanced Security: Protects sensitive data effectively.

In educational contexts, Azure NetApp Files shines by offering seamless data handling and high IOPS performance, supporting high-demand environments like research facilities. For enterprises, it aids legacy system migrations and optimizes virtual environments while enhancing data protection and file share performance.

NetApp

IBM SoftLayer, part of IBM Cloud offerings, provides robust infrastructure services designed to meet business demands for scalability and flexibility. It supports a range of computing needs, offering customizable resources with high performance and reliability.

IBM SoftLayer is an enterprise-grade cloud platform that combines powerful networking, security, and redundancy features. It enables users to deploy a combination of physical and virtual devices, facilitating hybrid cloud solutions. Known for its flexibility, it caters to businesses needing infrastructure tailored to specific operational needs, ensuring efficient workload management and performance.

What are the most important features of IBM SoftLayer?

Network Configuration: Offers high-speed networking with options for private, public, and management networks.
Security Measures: Comprehensive security with DDoS protection, firewalls, and encryption services.
Scalability Options: Flexible scaling of resources for dynamic business requirements.
Hybrid Deployments: Seamless integration of physical and virtual environments.
Data Centers: Global presence with numerous data centers offering reliability and low latency.

What benefits and ROI should you expect from IBM SoftLayer?

Cost Efficiency: Competitive pricing and transparent billing to manage IT budgets effectively.
Performance Optimization: High-performance infrastructure enhancing application speed and responsiveness.
Business Agility: Rapid deployment capabilities aiding timely project launches.
Operational Ease: Streamlined management of resources reducing operational overheads.

Industries such as finance, healthcare, and gaming find IBM SoftLayer beneficial due to its secure, reliable infrastructure supporting sensitive data and high transaction volumes. It enables financial services to manage data flows seamlessly, healthcare sectors to ensure compliance with data security regulations, and gaming companies to deliver low-latency user experiences. Designed for enterprises needing tailored solutions to meet operational demands efficiently.

IBM

Sample Customers

SAP, Restaurant Magic

Whogohost Ltd., Skypicker, Infinity Computers and Communications Company, Grace Co. Ltd., Keyword, Uvionics Tech, Tennis Australia, immixGroup, Salesbox, Cxense ASA, Avnet Inc., Komsomolskaya Pravda, Seekr

Buyer's Guide

Azure NetApp Files vs. IBM SoftLayer

September 2026

Free Report: Azure NetApp Files vs. IBM SoftLayer

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