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Citrix XenServer vs Scale Computing Platform 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

Citrix XenServer
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
Server Virtualization Software (11th)
Scale Computing Platform
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
HCI (15th), Edge Computing Platforms (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

Citrix XenServer and Scale Computing Platform aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Citrix XenServer is designed for Server Virtualization Software and holds a mindshare of 5.0%, up 4.2% compared to last year.
Scale Computing Platform, on the other hand, focuses on HCI, holds 1.4% mindshare, up 1.2% since last year.
Server Virtualization Software
HCI
 

Featured Reviews

Tonatiuh Torres Zamorano - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers comprehensive solutions for small and medium businesses with a straightforward setup
I find Citrix XenServer valuable for small to medium-sized businesses. It is user-friendly and easy to deploy, making it an attractive option. When included with Citrix virtualization solutions, it provides a comprehensive package with existing licenses. Despite being effective for small to medium infrastructures, it may not be the best hypervisor for larger deployments.
Benjamin Bodenehim - PeerSpot reviewer
The solution is user-friendly, stable, and easy to deploy
The snapshot technology takes up 500 times more space compared to other solutions. The snapshots are working on the byte level and not the bit level. The solution has three detriments, there is no performance, we can't see how much CPU each node is using, and we have no technical data on anything that happened on the server. Additionally, replication is also lacking and does not work well, partially to the fact of the snapshot technology.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The support for this solution is phenomenal."
"It is user-friendly and easy to deploy, making it an attractive option."
"Citrix XenServer is suitable when working with VDI solutions. It provides essential capabilities and stability, which are crucial."
"The solution integrates well with other solutions, which makes it really strong as a primary solution to deploy."
"This is a dependable solution for virtualization with a good community for product support."
"The solution is extremely user friendly."
"There's no complexity in using the tool, especially with the VBI integration. It works very well and has proven to be a stable platform. I have experienced attacks, such as ransomware, but my Citrix Hypervisor virtual machines were protected. This is due to its hardened operating system and DNS, which successfully protected the virtual machines on that platform."
"I find Citrix XenServer valuable for small to medium-sized businesses."
"The product's initial setup phase is too easy."
"I rate Scale Computing support 10 out of 10. They're accessible and responsive."
"The most valuable features are the appliance-type feel and that you don't need additional licenses as everything is built-in."
"The initial setup is pretty straightforward."
"I like that Scale Computing HCR is slimmed down and gives me the features I need and not features that I don't need."
"The most valuable feature of Scale Computing HC3 is if one of the devices fails, you won't even notice, the service maintains operation. The customers don't have to waste two, or three days on delays. Additionally, you do not have to waste time with recovery software, it is a lot easier."
"It gives the ease of management for a small IT department."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is the nice GUI."
 

Cons

"Assigning the order of virtual server startup is not very easy and this can be improved."
"I would like the possibility of updating the hypervisor by applying security patches."
"There's a learning curve, especially for those coming from a Microsoft background. Setting it up and managing it can introduce some complexity."
"The USB support for the virtual server needs improvement."
"Citrix needs to improve the hypervisor, specifically in security and performance."
"The solution would benefit from faster technical support."
"The solution should be more flexible and allow for greater customization."
"We'd like them to add more automation to the product."
"Scale Computing HC3 said in an announcement they were going to integrate with a backup service which would be good. If they could do this it would be beneficial."
"I would like bigger clusters with more than eight nodes."
"The product struggles to cope with bigger workloads. In the next release, I'd like some backup solutions to be added."
"The snapshot technology takes up 500 times more space compared to other solutions."
"Scale HC3 improvements would involve literally fixing up the replication."
"There could be an easier way to see which servers are on each node"
"On the fly, you cannot do anything on Scale Computing HC3, though it is a very rarely needed area."
"I've had so many issues with the sales team when I was looking to make some improvements, and improve the performance. They would create so many excuses to force me to buy new nodes all the time and not let me add more memory to each node."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We used it only for some desktop licenses, so the pricing is great. We used the free licenses for server virtualization."
"The pricing and licensing is so important. Customers do consider the price seriously."
"Citrix Hypervisor is a licensed product, and customers who buy the Citrix XenDesktop get Citrix Hypervisor for free. If they don't buy the license for Citrix XenDesktop, they'll need to pay for Citrix Hypervisor and its price is high. Pricing is even higher than VMware. The licensing policy for Citrix Hypervisor is good. It's straightforward. The only issue is the price because it's an expensive product."
"While it is free for small networks, the pricing is high if your network grows past a certain size."
"The most valuable feature is the cost; it is a free product."
"There are free and paid versions. The free version is limited in features but not by time limit. The paid version has more features."
"The licensing is straight forward based on usage and features."
"Citrix Hypervisor is expensive."
"I pay for Scale Computing HC3 and it includes customer service for one year. We paid for an additional year for customer service but that includes the updates and everything for the software. Additionally, the licensing is for Windows, which is the same for everybody."
"The product is worth the money, but I would not say it's very cheap or very expensive."
"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."
"rate HC3's pricing a five out of ten since it is affordable."
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Comparison Review

VL
Jan 13, 2015
vSphere vs. RHEV vs. Hyper-V vs. XenServer
We have used the following functions: 1. Hypervisor: to ensure that the virtual server provide web and email services to the company, thus providing a stable operation a with single sign-on integration of an AD server and vCenter. 2. Network and Storage: centralized data server…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
45%
Computer Software Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
5%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Educational Organization
37%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Citrix Hypervisor?
The core function enables multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical server. This maximizes hardware utilization and efficiency.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Hypervisor?
XenServer is considered cost-effective, as its licensing allows users to utilize the hypervisor as part of Citrix virtual app or desktop licenses. It is cheaper compared to its competitors.
What needs improvement with Citrix Hypervisor?
Citrix needs to improve the hypervisor, specifically in security and performance. Additionally, the response time from customer support has room for improvement, which could enhance the overall use...
What do you like most about Scale Computing HC3?
The product's initial setup phase is too easy.
What needs improvement with Scale Computing HC3?
There could be an easier way to see which servers are on each node. It shows you a small graphical interface, but you have to see them all, and you have to really struggle to figure out which nodes...
 

Also Known As

Hypervisor
Scale Computing HC3
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

U.S. Army Shared Services Center, SoftLayer, Educational Services of America, Independent Bank, and SK Telecom.
Resorts World Las Vegas, Stena, Telford Offshore, Goodwill, Sandals, Jerry's Enterprises, Mendard's Royal Farms, Delhaize, Benchmark Electronics, Classic Hotels, Genting Casino, Lindt, Sainsbury's, Landmark Cinemas, Golden Queen Mining, Coca Cola. Holiday Inn, Iron County School District, Sevier County Bank, City of St. Cloud Minnesota, Presbyterian Mo-Ranch Assembly, KIB Electronics, Brake Masters, Lincoln County Hospital, Ohio Summit County Board of Elections
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