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Cisco MDS Series vs Pure Storage FlashArray comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Cisco MDS Series
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise SAN (3rd)
Pure Storage FlashArray
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
199
Ranking in other categories
All-Flash Storage (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Storage Solutions solutions, they serve different purposes. Cisco MDS Series is designed for Enterprise SAN and holds a mindshare of 5.9%, down 24.5% compared to last year.
Pure Storage FlashArray, on the other hand, focuses on All-Flash Storage, holds 6.5% mindshare, down 7.4% since last year.
Enterprise SAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco MDS Series5.9%
Dell PowerStore30.7%
Dell PowerVault29.6%
Other33.8%
Enterprise SAN
All-Flash Storage Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Pure Storage FlashArray6.5%
Dell PowerStore15.9%
HPE Alletra Storage10.0%
Other67.6%
All-Flash Storage
 

Featured Reviews

OğuzKalaycı - PeerSpot reviewer
Ensures consistent availability during updates and integrates seamlessly
I am using Cisco MDS in SAN environments for storage connections and server connections The product is very stable and performs well. During the update periods, the devices do not need to reload, ensuring constant availability. It is easy to set up and use. I do not have a central management…
Nabeel Sayegh - PeerSpot reviewer
Supercharges enterprise storage by way of highly optimized hardware, comprehensive data management and a feature rich interface.
During their early years, I was a member of Pure's Customer Advisory Board. In addition, when we first adopted Pure, they did not have replication GA yet. We got into their beta testing program and help them work out certain issues with that technology. One weakness I can say the array has, still to this day, is limited control on scheduling snapshots. Depending on the type of replication schedule you are building, you may or may not have control on specifying the start time of a given replication schedule. This is not a very big problem in the grand scheme of things, but something nonetheless that has bothered me about the scheduler in general. Another area for improvement would be automatic host alias creation. Other platforms such as EMC Unity/PowerStore will automatically detect the host name, create a alias for it and associate the logged in HBA's to it. Pure does not do this for you and as a result, requires manual configuration. This can be very time consuming especially when you are deploying a large number of new servers.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product is easy to use."
"The most valuable feature of the Cisco MDS Series is its reliability, support, and scalability."
"The issues with these switches are extremely rare, and the whole product line is very predictable and stable."
"The product is very stable and performs well."
"SAN switches in Cisco MDS Series are a valuable feature of the solution for our company."
"The most valuable features of this solution are the devices, databases, and zoning."
"The features I found most valuable are the ease of deployment, it's easy to upgrade, easy to configure and easy to administer. There is no need for vendor professional services which saves project cost. The usage of WebUI for all primary features like hostname, IP address, SNMP traps, zone sets, addition and deletion of zone members or zone sets, backup of switch DB is very simple."
"The most valuable feature of the Cisco MDS Series is security."
"The speed is the most valuable feature, along with the ease of getting it connected. We were able to get it online in less than a day."
"The predictive performance analytics are good."
"The GUI is very easy to use and intuitive."
"We also like the compactness, the small footprint. It takes up very little space in a data center and uses little power."
"The support team is available all the time and they seem to know what they are doing."
"We put a fair amount of stress on it because we run sequel workloads and we run web applications where the same web files are hit over and over. We have had almost zero stability issues with that SAN, that has been really great for us."
"We have seen savings in our storage. The speed of deployment has gone from several days to a few minutes. This product has reduced that time into minutes, simplifying storage for us."
"The amount of data that I have moved to it from legacy storage has enabled us to retire units that are three or four times the physical size."
 

Cons

"The licensing model could be less complicated."
"Cisco MDS Series could improve by adding more gigahertz. However, they are doing this over time."
"The solution's management interface and GUI need improvement."
"Cisco MDS Series can improve by having API functionality for automation and programming."
"I do not have a central management software to manage these products due to the licensing cost. It would be beneficial to have central management software for easier handling."
"It is quite a stable product. It should be shipped with the latest firmware to avoid download and upload schema at the beginning of the initial setup. There should also be the possibility of downgrading the firmware when required. WebUI needs DCNM instead a web-based GUI should be made available like Brocade san switch."
"The GUI client is Java-based and we know that Java is not secure, so everyone disables it."
"The product is very expensive."
"If I need to change or troubleshoot the dashboard, I cannot do it without calling support. If I want to move something critical, I cannot do it by myself. The dashboard blocks me from changing those critical things."
"There was some complexity in the initial setup."
"They could improve the price."
"We did have one hiccup with the integration of vCenter. When we were installing Pure Storage, we were using vCenter 6.7, which defaults to the HTML5 Web Client. The current plugin for Pure Storage doesn't show up in that client at all. You have to go and use the legacy FlexFlash client to see the Pure Storage plugin in vCenter."
"Awareness about Pure Storage needs to increase. Currently, people mostly think of Dell and NetApp when it comes to storage."
"I would love to see a true one click upgrade solution. Right now, you have to click and schedule an appointment with Pure Storage to be able to upgrade. I would love for it to automatically download, install, and fall-over every controller as it updates."
"I would like to see data tiering to AWS."
"I want to improve the overall service level of the solution."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the Cisco MDS Series is high."
"It's perpetual licensing and maintenance is a recurrent cost."
"Pricing cannot be considered an advantageous trait of the solution since it is expensive. I rate the solution's pricing a three out of ten."
"I don't know the exact cost but it's around $1,000."
"I would rate it a seven out of ten for pricing. It could be improved."
"It is light years beyond anything else with the same price point."
"It is cost-effective because after buying a subscription, they provide a service to upgrade hardware for free. They are providing so many features. When you consider the features provided, it is cost-effective."
"It's a good price point and it's a solid product for the price."
"We have seen a reduction in the TCO, because Pure Storage is partnering with Belfrics. This partnership reduces our latency and space."
"For us, as the customer, it reduced the price of the management."
"The price, in general, is around $100,000, however, I know it costs more."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
22%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Educational Organization
8%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business60
Midsize Enterprise34
Large Enterprise134
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco MDS Series?
The pricing could be improved as the solution is very expensive. I am on a yearly payment basis.
What needs improvement with Cisco MDS Series?
I do not have a central management software to manage these products due to the licensing cost. It would be beneficial to have central management software for easier handling.
Which should I choose: HPE 3PAR StoreServ or Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform F Series?
Both are great platforms, but if you are considering all flash solutions, I would recommend you to consider Pure Storage. It may be more expensive, but it should pay for itself for its functionalit...
What do you like most about Pure Storage FlashArray?
We consume less physical storage because of the solution’s deduplication and compression.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pure Storage FlashArray?
I don't have the billing details right now, but the pricing is high.
 

Also Known As

Cisco MDS 9100, Cisco MDS 9222i, Cisco MDS 9700
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

National Rugby League
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