Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes comparison

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] and Dell vSAN Ready Nodes based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Dell Technologies, VMware, Nutanix and others in HCI.

To learn more, read our detailed HCI Report (Updated: July 2024).

Buyer's Guide

HCI

July 2024

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Helped 793,295 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

StarWind Virtual SAN

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2024, in the HCI category, the mindshare of StarWind Virtual SAN is 2.1%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] is 1.9%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Dell vSAN Ready Nodes is 2.0%, down from 3.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

HCI

Unique Categories:

Software Defined Storage (SDS)

9.2%

No other categories found

Featured Reviews

Felix E.

Technischer IT-Berater at ITC GmbH

Mar 8, 2024

Good monitoring and configuring capabilities but disaster recovery documentation is sparse

My impression has been mostly positive. However, there have been some pitfalls. For example, it runs until it does not - and disaster recovery documentation is sparse and mostly unclear. This consequently follows a long learning curve and can take some time until this can be done efficiently. The feature log-structured file system has been removed. While I have not used it, I know some colleagues who have reported some performance benefits under certain circumstances. Additionally, vSAN does not offer extended SAN features like inline deduplication, compression, or S3-compatible access, which is part of most modern SAN feature sets, also in hyper-converged scenarios.

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Md Shahnewaj Hossain

Senior Deputy Director of IT at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Nov 27, 2023

Offers very good data protection and provides effective system uptime availability

We are partners and integrators of HyperFlex and I am a company Deputy Operative Director of IT HyperFlex has benefited us because there are no additional storage requirements and it requires less effort from the server and services in general. This solution offers very good data protection and…

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reviewer1286349

Chief General Manager at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees

Dec 18, 2020

Excellent support, with a good set of management and administration tools

Using this product has reduced our management and administration requirements The most valuable feature is the set of user tools that are available. The support that I get from them is good. Integration is good, and we haven't had any issues. The initial setup is slightly complex and could be…

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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 fact that the solution is vendor-agnostic allows it to be used with any virtualization vendor while remaining a powerful abstraction over storage."

"The access to our data is quicker and cheaper than it used to be in a traditional storage system."

"PowerShell library is pretty good feature as I created with APC PowerChute a script to put volumes on maintenance mode then turning off the StarWind nodes together with the VM and Hosts when UPS reaches 15 percent, this way after a blackout or electrical problems when turning servers on again, there is no issues for syncing or data loss due to energy interrupts."

"The StarWind tech support is extremely helpful, especially during the initial setup."

"We can lose a site or even two of our three, and we would lose no data and have no outage."

"You can turn your local disk storage into high-availability iSCSI storage."

"Integration with virtualization platforms helped us to resolve many issues we were facing while using the physical storage."

"The support team is available to solve any problem efficiently."

More StarWind Virtual SAN pros

"There are some slight cost advantages when you need fewer resources to manage it."

"Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is simple to use, user-friendly and has been best for our purposes."

"It is a solution that best suits thre needs of our organization."

"The most valuable features are scalability and the easy operation - if it works. You can configure everything from just one window."

"The software defines networking, storage, and processing."

"It is very scalable. It is also very secure. Cisco's security portfolio is integrated with it, which makes it secure. It is a platform-based device. Its performance is also fairly good in comparison to any other solution."

"The solution can scale up and out."

"The most valuable feature of Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is the integration with everything in a much smoother, such as in physical and virtual environments. VMware NSX is a simpler solution but, Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series is more robust compared to VMware NSX."

More Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] pros

"The tool's most valuable features are compression and its usage in Kubernetes."

"The solution immediately expands storage area when you add nodes."

"They are heading in the right direction and moving to integrate everything with a hybrid cloud, and moving workloads back and forth."

"You don't have to spend much time evaluating the hardware. It can be deployed in a short time. The tool is also easy to upgrade."

"The most valuable feature is the set of user tools that are available."

"We find the initial implementation process simple and straightforward."

"The tool's most valuable feature is high availability."

"If I consider the overall product, I would say that it is an excellent solution that offers very good performance and stability."

Cons

"Although minor, some of the documentation could be rewritten to be clearer."

"If there was one feature I would like to see it would be a built-in subsystem for managing UPS backups shutdown procedures providing a way to initiate VM shutdown on all host servers, shut down the host servers, then put the fault-tolerant mirroring in standby, and finally shut down the StarWind SANs."

"Currently, the StarWind management console is a bit clunky to navigate and isn't the most user-intuitive interface."

"Perhaps more reporting features on the utilization, usage, and performance of the configured high-availability images and underlying physical disks would be helpful."

"Management tools could be improved, sometimes the usage seems to be slowed down and confusing. A native web interface could also be an option. I love to see in the future port of the software on a general Linux distribution like RedHat or Ubuntu in order to avoid windows license costs. I would also like to see features like erasure coding implemented. On the VSAN software, I would like to see some improvements in the storage pools (eliminate the usage of the file as a data container and use the raw partition)."

"If there are domain controllers inside the cluster, there needs to be some sort of logic allowing them to boot independently so all the rest of the domain clients can gain the authority they need to come online."

"For someone entering the IT sector with little knowledge of storage, iSCSI, and virtual disks, they might not find the GUI immediately obvious."

"I would like to see more monitoring and alert tools."

More StarWind Virtual SAN cons

"Cisco should combine its features with its prices."

"I have been receiving a memory overflow message every day when I use the solution."

"In the next release, Cisco should add more integration and management capabilities as well as some tweaks to the dashboard that make it more user-friendly. They could also add support for multiple hypervisors."

"There are sometimes issues with memory failure."

"The infrastructure team thinks that there are a lot of issues."

"Its price could be better."

"Sometimes when there are multiple technologies involved in a support case, this is when there is a bit of a lag."

"Cisco HyperFlex should decrease the amount of memory needed from the Controller VM that controls the physical discs. They control the discs by using the virtual VM over every ESXi host and the VM consumes memory and consumes more hardware resources. They have to improve that by decreasing the amount of required memory and CPUs to control this disc on the server."

More Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] cons

"Scalability is an area that could be improved. We are looking at a maximum of 32 nodes now in a cluster, but going to 64 or 128 would be a major advantage."

"Dell vSAN Ready Nodes must be flexible since it is complex in designing concepts. It needs to improve stability. The product should integrate with the public cloud."

"There is room for improvement in the maintenance pricing. Maintenance isn't difficult, but the prices are high and ridiculous. Some customers feel it is better to go with a new solution rather than renew this one."

"Dell vSAN Ready Nodes' deployment is complex."

"The product's price is an area of concern where improvements are required. The price of Dell vSAN Ready Nodes could be lowered."

"Dell vSAN Ready Nodes doesn't perform as well as IBM. There are significant limitations, especially with scalability and flexibility over time. For example, adding drives can be problematic if the specific drives aren't available with older nodes that are four or five years old. Unlike IBM, Dell vSAN Ready Nodes isn't as flexible and doesn't scale easily. Additionally, while present, features like deduplication and compression don't perform as efficiently as they do on IBM. Our experience shows that the tool isn't as robust or flexible as advertised."

"The power switch on the hardware is located in a poor location where it can accidentally be pushed. In an update, they should solve this issue so people do not push it accidentally to have their service go down. A possible solution is the switch should be inside."

"Compatibility with other hardware nodes needs to be improved."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Once you buy the license, you are free to build your own hardware solution based on your needs."

"StarWind is a low-cost, full-featured alternative to the traditional SAN environment, and their support will guide you every step of the setup."

"The licensing is a bit weird. If you license the standard version of StarWind, it allows you four terabytes. Then, they have a pro version, but with the pro version, the only difference is it doubles the terabytes to eight."

"The pricing is excellent. It will run on anything. You don't have to buy a $100,000 server, with hardware you don't need. You just pay for the license and you're good to go."

"Their pricing seems pretty good, and their licensing structure is pretty straightforward."

"It's priced fairly. It was definitely cheaper than the competition. The licensing terms are straightforward and reasonable."

"I think the cost of this solution is quite fair."

"The cost seems a bit steep, and I wish it was less expensive."

More StarWind Virtual SAN pricing and cost advice

"For customers in the private sector, this product can have a very high return on investment."

"We currently have a perpetual license, which is kind of unlimited, so we don't have the normal licensing cost, yet."

"The cost is expensive, but there is a chance to save money in the future."

"It's much more expensive than rack servers. It was an issue, but when you compare it to the number of people who were administrative assistants before, it's on the positive ROI side. It's much cheaper."

"Our licensing is Hybrid. We have all of our applications for billing and outage management through this."

"There is a license required to use this solution."

"The product could be cheaper."

"Pricing is better if you buy more Cisco products."

More Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] pricing and cost advice

"The price of the solution was reasonable."

"Comparing the price of Dell vSAN Ready Nodes to other solutions it is not expensive."

"The solution is more expensive than a traditional array. The prices are skyrocketing."

"We have a four-year contract to use Dell EMC vSAN Ready Nodes."

"There is a problem, which is the lack of an integrated price structure."

"The tool's pricing is competitive compared to others. The tool's licensing is based on annual subscriptions."

"My company makes yearly payments towards the licensing charges attached to the solution. The solution is expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

19%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

26%

Government

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

16%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about StarWind Virtual SAN?

It is easy to use and can monitor system synchronization and check Storage status. StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN) combin...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for StarWind Virtual SAN?

Make the most of your 30-day trial license, and if needed, you should contact the sales department of StarWind to ext...

See all answers

What needs improvement with StarWind Virtual SAN?

The dashboard is functional, but it could benefit from a more modern and visually appealing design. A facelift would ...

See all answers

How do I choose between Cisco Hyperflex HX Series and Nutanix Acropolis AOS?

Cisco HyperFlex HS series vs Nutanix Acropolis AOS Cisco HyperFlex gives extended hyper-convergence functions from ...

See all answers

How does VxRail compare with Cisco HyperFlex HX Series?

VxRail provides stable solutions for technical problems while at the same time not being too expensive for a company ...

See all answers

What do you like most about Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series?

It's easy to get the tool started.

See all answers

What do you like most about Dell vSAN Ready Nodes?

If I consider the overall product, I would say that it is an excellent solution that offers very good performance and...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell vSAN Ready Nodes?

The solution is more expensive than a traditional array. The prices are skyrocketing.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell vSAN Ready Nodes?

Dell vSAN Ready Nodes doesn't perform as well as IBM. There are significant limitations, especially with scalability ...

See all answers

Comparisons

VMware vSAN vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 32% of the time

StorMagic SvSAN vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 17% of the time

Microsoft Storage Spaces Direct vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 16% of the time

Red Hat Ceph Storage vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 14% of the time

Red Hat Gluster Storage vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 1% of the time

More StarWind Virtual SAN Competitors

VMware vSAN vs Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

Compared 30% of the time

VxRail vs Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

Compared 27% of the time

Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI) vs Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

Compared 16% of the time

Dell PowerFlex vs Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

Compared 9% of the time

Lenovo ThinkAgile HX Series vs Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

Compared 2% of the time

More Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] Competitors

VxRail vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

Compared 33% of the time

VMware vSAN vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

Compared 15% of the time

Lenovo ThinkAgile VX Series vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

Compared 13% of the time

Dell PowerFlex vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

Compared 9% of the time

DataCore SANsymphony vs Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

Compared 2% of the time

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

StarWind Virtual SAN

June 2024

Download StarWind Virtual SAN product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL]

July 2024

Download Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series [EOL] product report

Buyer's Guide

Dell vSAN Ready Nodes

July 2024

Download Dell vSAN Ready Nodes product report

Also Known As

StarWind SAN & NAS

No data available

vSAN Ready Nodes

Learn More

StarWind

Cisco

Dell Technologies

Overview

StarWind Virtual SAN provides high availability and fault tolerance for virtualized environments without the need for dedicated SAN hardware. It allows for real-time replication between servers, shared storage for Hyper-V clusters, and enables vMotion and High Availability features for VMware vSphere. The solution reduces costs and leverages existing hardware while providing a scalable and reliable infrastructure. Valuable features include ease of use, scalability, top-tier support, hardware agnosticism, and the ability to use off-the-shelf standard servers to increase storage space. StarWind VSAN has helped organizations improve performance, data availability, and data security while reducing downtime and providing cost-saving storage options.

The Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform is a purpose-built, high-performance, scale-out file system with a wide array of enterprise-class data management services. The data platform’s innovations redefine distributed storage technology, giving you complete hyper-convergence with enterprise storage features:

Enterprise-class data management
Continuous data optimization
Securely encrypted storage
Dynamic data placement
Clusterwide parallel data distribution
Linear and incremental scaling
API-based data platform architecture
A simplified approach

Dell EMC vSAN Ready Nodes are pre-configured building blocks that reduce deployment
risks with certified configurations, improve storage efficiency by up to 50%1
, and can help
you build or scale your vSAN cluster faster.14 Whether you're just getting started, and/or
expanding your existing VMware environment, Dell EMC is here for you every step of the
way with consulting, education, deployment and support services for the entire solution.

Sample Customers

Baker Tilly BVI, CMS Internet, Board Harpeth Hall School

BluePearl Veterinary Partners, Ready Pac Foods, Bryant University, Bellevue Group, KPIT Technologies, City Harvest

Rackspace

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