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Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers vs HPE ProLiant DL Servers comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

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 UCS C-Series Rack Ser...
Ranking in Rack Servers
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
4.3
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
Density Optimized Servers (3rd)
HPE ProLiant DL Servers
Ranking in Rack Servers
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
160
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Rack Servers category, the mindshare of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is 5.4%, up from 4.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE ProLiant DL Servers is 17.8%, down from 21.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Rack Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
HPE ProLiant DL Servers17.8%
Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers5.4%
Other76.8%
Rack Servers
 

Q&A Highlights

it_user729372 - PeerSpot reviewer
Student at TAFE NSW _ South Western Sydney Institute at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Sep 26, 2017
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1441011 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr, Manager- Network Solution Architect at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees
Comprehensive support and integration ensure smooth cloud infrastructure operations
I may not be the right person to comment on advanced improvements because we are just using basic functionalities. We are getting all the functionalities which we used to get in other OEM rack servers. Potential areas for improvement may include a more flexible pricing model, better technical support, or tutorials from the vendor for users.
ArifSheikh - PeerSpot reviewer
Director / Chief Business Artchitect at SMARIF
High availability servers have boosted hosted payment services but still need better local support
We are not using PowerVM because of certain limitations; it is on a back-end engine. However, we are using other components such as vSphere for some small interfaces, and those are the main components we are utilizing. Since these servers are fully dedicated to various high-end solutions, they have some embedded features that their kernel and applications are using, which are bound to that functionality. We may not provide an exact assessment on its usage, but we are considering those products for some AI solutions; however, we are currently in the review stage and have not concluded our evaluation on how those are utilized yet. We are aware of the pricing of HPE ProLiant DL servers, but not off the cuff. We have obviously acquired those solutions ex-Pakistan, so they are on the rise, and while we do not remember those prices offhand, they are generally better than the IBM series, although they are becoming slightly pricey in Pakistan due to processor shortages and demand. Improvements could be made in database engine hosting services because, as it stands, the pricing of Oracle is too high from both the service and software solution perspectives. If pricing can be reduced, especially for DB servers, that could have a direct positive impact on the overall solution. Regarding reliability, it has been satisfactory so far, but since the distributors are not physically present in Pakistan, that creates a risk for long-term large customers. They provide import-based services, necessitating us to over-invest in backup stock and offline servers. If there was a market presence from those players in Pakistan, it could benefit both clients and distributors by reducing the need for investment in backup inventory.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It was simple to install and has given us no problems."
"On the Cisco side, there is a benefit in terms of server management. Cisco provides UCS Manager, which is a multi-tenant site manager. We can manage multiple sites while maintaining disaster recovery, a feature not available on other platforms."
"The Cisco UCS Servers are very dependable, and they're very reliable."
"The first advantage of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is that you don't need to buy physical hardware like I used to have to do for each application."
"The intersite options for management make life easier for the operations and management teams because it's a single point of management for the whole server infrastructure."
"The C-series is the most valuable."
"It has centralized our server management and allows us to treat servers like a pool of resources instead of discrete devices."
"It is very nice and stable with an easy administration GUI."
"IT is easily manageable and expandable as well as usability for anything, especially for clustering using VMware vCenter server solution."
"HPE servers always deliver stunning stability and performance to our customers, and support from HPE is always nice and fast."
"For the price and the functionality you get out of it, they work out great."
"Our software is working on it, so it's very useful for our company."
"The technical support from HPE ProLiant DL Servers is very good. We can contact them through various means and they are responsive, they are quick."
"The scalability is very high in 380, so instead of using the high-end servers, you can use multiple servers and segregate the applications between the servers. ​"
"The benefits are that we can customize what we want, and we're able to tailor the actual service itself to our specific requirements, as opposed to trying to get something off the shelf which doesn't quite fit and then we have to make compromises."
"The stability has been very good, and it is very reliable."
 

Cons

"On the contact center and video conferencing, I would definitely like to see more AI features. The AI features are key for us. You will find a lot of them in the cloud-based solution, but in the on-premises solution, they're hardly there. I would like to see the same AI features that are there in the cloud-based Cisco UC."
"There is very little scalability for the cluster. If you need a higher availability, there is a user limitation. So that is the low side."
"Definitely the support area needs improving. Especially the time response in case of hardware failure."
"The price of the solution is problematic, not the solution itself. It could be less expensive."
"Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers could improve by adding a wider portfolio because they only have two main categories, the C-220 and 240. There is no wide range of options as other solutions have, such as Dell. Additionally, if it was more flexible with the configuration it would be good."
"The improvement should be done as per customer requirements."
"I think the pricing is high. Cisco has to look for bundling this solutions with other applications."
"The warranty and support periods should be extended."
"They can increase the controller cache. Currently, it has a controller cache of up to 4 GB. The RAID controller card comes with a maximum of 4 GB cache in HPE servers, whereas it comes with a maximum of 8 GB cache in Dell servers. They can also improve the port size. HP provides a 25 GB port on the server, whereas both Dell and Cisco provide a 100 GB port."
"Boot times are relatively slow."
"I would like the solution to improve its storage and performance. Also, I would like to replicate data between on-premises and cloud in future versions."
"The worst part about HPE hardware is their pricing and licensing model."
"When we do use it, the quality depends on the country."
"Compared to blade servers, it could use more flexibility to expand with new features, and to connect new storage systems and so on."
"There is a challenge sometimes with having quick access to some of these components when you need them. It takes a lot of time to get spare parts from genuine sellers."
"I would like to see a single pane of glass, relayed management, and fewer tours."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is moderately priced."
"The solution is expensive and I give the price a four out of ten."
"The price for Cisco is a bit higher than its competitors. We paid 40k for one server."
"​Best to buy all the blades configured for the same purposes of load balancing and failover or load shifting.​"
"If they plan to expand their infrastructure in periods, then simply Cisco is not a good choice."
"The prices of Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers are higher compared to the competition. When we try and sell against the competition, then it becomes quite difficult to sell"
"Cisco is expensive, but we didn't look at the cost of the product. We were looking at reliability and support."
"The price of the solution could be better when compared to other solutions. However, when we purchased the solution we received Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers in a bundle with other hardware, such as IP phones and networking switches."
"The solution comes with a one time perpetual license which is included with the server."
"The price is a little too high; it could be reduced."
"This was a one-time purchase for us because it's hardware that we purchased from HPE. There aren't any licensing costs."
"They need to work with Microsoft to make the licensing costs better and more efficient."
"It is expensive. Its price should be better."
"It is not expensive. Its price is similar to other solutions."
"They should reduce the prices as it is a significant concern for developing countries."
"The pricing is reasonable."
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Answers from the Community

it_user729372 - PeerSpot reviewer
Student at TAFE NSW _ South Western Sydney Institute at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Sep 26, 2017
Sep 26, 2017
Another good question to consider is, how deeply are security and anti-tampering features built in? With the advent of Gen 10 servers HPE is implementing this right down in silicon whereas the rest of the marketplace is still using firmware features to try to accomplish this. This is arguably too late in the process to be able to guarantee what BIOS code you are actually running, what back do...
2 out of 8 answers
BW
Technical Sales Architect at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Sep 24, 2017
I suggest checking the key benchmark sites directly – TPC-C, SAP etc. Each benchmark is designed to test a specific system capability. http://www.tpc.org/tpcc/ http://global.sap.com/solutions/benchmark/sd2tier.epx I have attached the URL’s. The SAP testing is most revealing for overall systems performance and scalability. The most recent certifications show Cisco UCS servers eclipsing their HPE counterparts by notable margins. Standard Proliant systems are lower in total lines processed than Cisco units, and you have to move up to the HPE Synergy line to beat lower end Cisco C240 servers. However, the higher end 4-way Cisco C480 handily beats Synergy.
it_user204816 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Cloud Consultant in CSIRO at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Sep 25, 2017
As per my experience, CISCO UCS C-series is having scalability issue but for HPE ProLiant DL RACk server is good in terms of scalability. HPE tech support is much better than CISCO UCS.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise14
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business56
Midsize Enterprise28
Large Enterprise98
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is not troublesome, but it is confusing. It takes a lot of time to navigate licensing and to work through ...
What needs improvement with Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
I think Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers could be improved, but I'm not really a forward thinker; everything works pretty well with how we're using it. It's not really an improvement, but the soluti...
What is your primary use case for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers?
My main use case for Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers is hypervisors, using them as a hypervisor.
How do Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers compare with HPE ProLiant DL servers?
Lenovo ThinkSystem rack servers offer flexibility and efficiency in order to meet mission-critical demands. I like that Lenovo blends outstanding performance, reliability, and manageability. The bi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE ProLiant DL Servers?
The pricing of HPE ProLiant DL Servers depends purely on the configuration, and it is not affordable. However, if you look at the technical caliber of the server, if a customer invests that additio...
What needs improvement with HPE ProLiant DL Servers?
If I had to choose between HP and Dell, I would choose Dell's iDRAC over iLO. iLO is adequate, but Dell is much better, especially when configuring the internal storage of the server. Mostly when w...
 

Also Known As

Unified Computing System C-Series, Cisco UCS C-Series
HP ProLiant DL series, HP ProLiant DL
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Advanced Medical Transport, Aegean Motorway, Anilana Hotels and Resorts, Artoni Transporti, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, City of Mississauga, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Kind en Gezin, Kuwait Petroleum Italia, Nationwide, Quest, Talbots, University of St. Gallen
AmeriPride Services, iSource, Bolagsverket, BlueShore Financial, British Columbia Assessment Authority, National Stock Exchange, Cardlytics
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers vs. HPE ProLiant DL Servers and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,270 professionals have used our research since 2012.