Celerra [EOL] vs Dell PowerScale comparison

Celerra [EOL] and Dell PowerScale are both solutions in the NAS category. Additionally, 100% of Celerra [EOL] users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Dell PowerScale users who would recommend it.

Celerra [EOL]

Read 1 Celerra [EOL] review

100% willing to recommend

Dell PowerScale

Read 97 Dell PowerScale reviews

16,074 Views
8,680 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Celerra [EOL]

Dell PowerScale

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Celerra [EOL] and Dell PowerScale based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Dell Technologies, NetApp, CTERA and others in NAS.

To learn more, read our detailed NAS Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

NAS

June 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 907,731 peers since 2012

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

Celerra [EOL]

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Dell PowerScale

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

NAS (1st), File and Object Storage (1st)

Featured Reviews

it_user5157

Sr System Engineer at a outsourcing company with 501-1,000 employees

Highly scalable and reliable SAN with fiber channel connectivity but bulky in size and consumes a lot of power

Hot spare disk system to take over the full workload in the event of a failure, at the same performance and service levels. The data is clustered over multiple disks so data read/write access time is very low. Fiber channel connectivity option for high speed data transfer. Single point of management/control. Customized version of Linux OS hence much higher security.

Read full review

RahulSharma8

Storage Platform Engineer at Expedia Group

Unified file sharing has simplified multi-tenant access and has delivered seamless data replication

Dell PowerScale (Isilon) includes its replication features; when we decommissioned our old Isilon cluster, we migrated all of the data to a new cluster, and it was pretty seamless. All you have to do is create the certificates and make those certificates available to the target cluster, then initiate a few jobs. The inter-cluster replication feature, called SyncIQ, allows you to set up all of the jobs and move your data entirely, either timely or all at once. Another suitable feature is the ability to back up your directories; you can take snapshots for all of your directories, and in fact, I believe you can take around a thousand snapshots for a single directory. The inter-replication, geo-replication is one feature. Dell provides a variety class of hardware suitable for your workloads, meaning if your data is just lab and not critical, you don't have to spend much on the hardware; conversely, if your data is mission-critical, you can buy a high-performance node from Dell. Additionally, you can span Dell PowerScale (Isilon) cluster to a large number of nodes, and code upgrades are pretty smooth because all protocols will be upgraded under a single piece of code. Since it provides a single file system that spans across the nodes, you don't have to worry about that directory structure being separately created on individual nodes, making it a fitting solution for a data lake solution because you can access the same data from multiple protocols.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"At last we bought this Celerra NS 40, with 17 TB of space which is giving superb performance."

"The overall operational efficiency and ease of use of Dell PowerScale is commendable; it is very good storage with easy access via GUI, meaning we do not need to perform many complex maneuvers for storage management."

"Isilon is flexible in supporting various data workloads while keeping them protected. Dell continues to release updates and patches which enhance the use of this solution. This includes offering ransomware protection."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the unlimited scalability. The tool has high availability and high storage capacity."

"The most valuable features of the solution are flexibility and ease of implementation."

"My favorite thing about Dell PowerScale is its scalability."

"The most valuable feature we started using, beyond the initial scope for the solution, is the multi-protocol system that allows you to access the same set of files using different network protocols like NFS or SMB. PowerScale’s Unified Permission Model ensures that data security and access permissions are honoured regardless of whether the client is a Windows desktop or a Linux server"

"PowerScale helped free up our employees' time to focus on other business priorities. There are now automated jobs such as backing up and replicating data, that reduce the footprint we have. Those types of tasks were previously done manually."

"The ease of use of this solution has been the most valuable aspect as well as the SyncIQ and snapshot features."

More Dell PowerScale pros

Cons

"Very bulky and heavy in weight."

"Dell PowerScale (Isilon) could improve in terms of having some problems with using IPv6 and IPv4 on the same namespace at the same time, which is one of our biggest problems as you have to do some really bad workarounds to get that working."

"The management and monitoring tools comprise a disparate suite of products and the roadmap is very unclear. We've got four different products that look after the Isilon, management-wise, and it's a bit of a mess."

"It would be nice to see tools like Superna Eyeglass built into PowerScale."

"The only thing that I think PowerScale could do better is improving the HTTP data access protocol. At the present, you cannot protect access to data via HTTP or HTTPS the same way that you can secure data access through other protocols like NFS or SMB[...]the Unified Permission Model that would allow a user to authenticate before being able to access a private file, does not apply."

"PowerScale is not suitable for virtual environments."

"The solution can be integrated with an automation system. Dell uses another framework developed in-house. They can integrate it with machines."

"There are some missing features in the product, especially when our company needs to do some tape backup, and we see that the tool doesn't have integration capabilities."

"There is room for improvement with the updates. It can take a significant amount of time to do a major OS update. However, even though it takes multiple reboots, the cluster stays up. If we want to apply a newer version of the OS, we have to roll back some of the patches so that we can upgrade. It requires a few reboots just to do that. The cluster doesn't come down, everything is still running, but it's time-consuming, at times."

More Dell PowerScale cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"The price of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is reasonable."

"Our company finds the pricing high, but it decreases over time."

"The only drawback for us is that it's a large upfront investment. This was a huge decision for a startup company to make. It took a bit for us to get over the line on it, but we have not regretted it."

"It is a really expensive solution."

"The pricing is excellent."

"I always want things to be less expensive. However, I would say the pricing is fair. Their costs are in alignment with their competitors. It is a good value for the money."

"The price of the solution is high."

"The solution's licensing cost varies based on capacity and performance requirements."

More Dell PowerScale pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which NAS solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

907,731 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	28
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	54

Questions from the Community

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Dell PowerScale has been expensive. Setup costs or provisioning experience has been pleasant. Typically you have kickoff meetings and there...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

For improvements, we can focus on enhancing performance, upgrading the nodes, and accessing data through Isilon for more efficiency. Additionally, improvements to interfaces and certain aspects of ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

Dell PowerScale is our main NAS environment storage where we create CIFS and NFS file shares for users.When users request a CIFS file share, they specify the SMB share name and the SmartConnect zon...

See all answers

Comparisons

No data available

NetApp FAS Series vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 18% of the time

Everpure FlashBlade vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 8% of the time

Qumulo vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 5% of the time

Dell ObjectScale vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 3% of the time

VAST Data vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 3% of the time

More Dell PowerScale Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

NAS

June 2026

Download Celerra [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale

July 2026

Download Dell PowerScale product report

Also Known As

Celerra

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon

Overview

Each Celerra unified product is a dedicated network server optimized for file and block access, delivering high-end features in a scalable, easy-to-use package. For the ultimate in scalability, the Celerra unified storage platforms leverage both the innovative best-in-class EMC Fibre Channel RAID storage and deliver industry-leading EMC Celerra availability, performance, and ease of management. Celerra unified storage systems deliver a single-box block and file solution offering a centralized point of management for distributed environments.

Dell Technologies

Dell PowerScale leads in unstructured data management with unified file and object storage, massive scalability, security, and cloud adaptability, enhancing AI, analytics, and enterprise applications with exceptional performance and resilience.

Dell PowerScale Isilon provides a comprehensive platform for unstructured data, excelling in scalability, management, and performance. With features like single-pane management, SyncIQ, and SmartQuotas, it handles large datasets with flexibility and robust security. Its multi-protocol support and seamless expansion improve operational efficiency. While it offers strong data protection, enhancements in cloud integration, cybersecurity, and performance are sought. Users note potential for cost reductions and streamlined configurations and mention desired improvements in object storage handling and NFS support.

What are the key features of Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Single-pane management: Simplifies data control and monitoring through a unified interface.
SyncIQ: Ensures efficient data replication for business continuity.
SmartQuotas: Provides intelligent quota management for optimized storage allocation.
Multi-protocol support: Facilitates cross-platform data access and integration.
Seamless storage expansion: Allows effortless scaling to accommodate growing data needs.

What benefits should users consider when reviewing Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Operational efficiency: Reduces workload with easy management and automation.
Enhanced security: Offers comprehensive data protection and recovery options.
Scalability: Supports large-scale data storage with flexible growth capabilities.
Performance: Delivers high-speed data processing for demanding applications.
Integration flexibility: Adapts to on-prem and hybrid cloud environments for diverse deployment needs.

Organizations across industries utilize Dell PowerScale Isilon for large-scale unstructured storage, supporting applications like video archiving, genomic data storage, and high-resolution imaging. Educational institutions, research centers, and media enterprises rely on its scaled-out storage capabilities, providing centralized, secure storage for diverse applications in hybrid, cloud, and on-prem environments.

Dell Technologies

Sample Customers

Wentworth-Douglas Hospital, Kindred Healthcare, Cosentry, Sumitomo Life Insurance Company, Shriners, BZWBK

OMRF, University of Utah, Translational Genetics Research Institute, Arcis, Geofizyka Torumn, Cyprus E&P Corporation, Colburn School, Columbia Sportswear, Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, National Library of France,

Find out what your peers are saying about Dell Technologies, NetApp, CTERA and others in NAS. Updated: June 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

907,731 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best NAS vendors.

We monitor all NAS reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.