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Dell PowerEdge R-Series vs Lenovo Flex System comparison

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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

Dell PowerEdge R-Series
Ranking in Blade Servers
2nd
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
325
Ranking in other categories
Converged Infrastructure (1st), Data Center Networking (3rd), Rack Servers (1st)
Lenovo Flex System
Ranking in Blade Servers
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Blade Servers category, the mindshare of Dell PowerEdge R-Series is 4.9%, up from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Lenovo Flex System is 4.4%, up from 3.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Blade Servers Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell PowerEdge R-Series4.9%
Lenovo Flex System4.4%
Other90.7%
Blade Servers
 

Featured Reviews

Tom van Mil - PeerSpot reviewer
Systems Administrator at Lico Innovations B.v.
Supports flexible hosting needs through seamless upgradability and strong monitoring capabilities
The most valuable features of Dell PowerEdge R-Series for me are the feature richness and the upgradability. I really love the way that it is so dynamically applicable for every situation, and they manage to have an all-in-one solution for every single situation. Dell PowerEdge has supported the growth and operational success of my company through its great compute power and price-to-performance ratio. Every time Dell is at the top of its game for us, and there is just no other brand for us that is able to reach that kind of price-to-performance ratio. Dell PowerEdge R-Series has features that specifically cater to the needs of my small company, such as iDRAC. The iDRAC system is a complete feature set for managing servers and hardware technically and monitoring-wise. It really fits in our system and our ecosystem, and monitoring-wise, it is excellent. They have all these sensors available via different protocols and end points, which I love, and the ability to manage and control everything via the iDRAC interface is just a welcome bonus. In our use case, Dell PowerEdge R-Series is very flexible. It is another computer which helps a lot because of the durability over time. They keep running, making scalability for getting more of those resources in our environment so easy.
OZ
Head manager at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Efficient management with minimal support needs and ongoing production
We are using Lenovo Flex System on the server for our VMware environment, which includes our VMs and all our servers, Linux and Windows. It manages the daily operation efficiently It saves our time because it is stable. The stability is crucial as all operational servers rely on it, making it…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Our customers do not ask for any service for the Dell EMC PowerEdge Rack Servers because they are very durable."
"Customers share with us their experiences, highlighting reliability, ease of use, maintenance, and lifecycle management. They frequently mention that this equipment doesn't break, stating it works and functions reliably."
"We haven't had any major IT outages for six years now thanks to Dell PowerEdge R-Series."
"I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers a ten out of ten."
"Reliability is important for us. They are reliable, and the service is very good."
"The services of Dell are good, and the performance of Dell PowerEdge R-Series is also good; I didn't face any problems, and the issues I did encounter were resolved by their excellent support services, even though they're based overseas."
"The real advantage to Dell when I look at some of the other competitors is the support."
"Dell PowerEdge R-Series is basically install and feel at home, so to speak, and I find that really great."
"I have found the solution to be quite stable."
"Flex System's best features are its performance and stability."
"The Lenovo Flex System is very stable."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"The stability and speed are always good. The processor is good and it's still working with our loads."
"The product is very user-friendly and has many resources at the enterprise level."
"One of the most valuable features of this solution is its ease of use."
"It comes at a good price. We didn't face any problems with this product."
 

Cons

"Regarding improvements to the Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers, increasing the number of disk bays to provide more storage solutions is essential."
"I want Dell to offer more virtualization platforms because the cost of VMware is getting too high."
"Considering from a hardware perspective, some areas of concern were network cards on the models we had in our organization, which were fairly inaccessible, so we had to remove the whole motherboard and, basically, the whole system to get rid of or swap a network card."
"There's really nothing special about it, and Dell doesn't make servers that are any better than anybody else's."
"We are working with national markets, and HP Enterprise is cheaper. Dell could have made an effort there."
"I would like to see a virtual view of the solution after creating and configuring it."
"I would also prefer additional improvements in the thermal design and the management of servers."
"System security can be improved. They can add more power and security for ESXi version 7."
"The user-interface needs improvement, because they have an application from which we have to manage the whole system and all the infrastructure. This application is not working at our premises, because of some problem with the hardware itself. So although we brought it with our systems, and we used it to manage all the systems: the storage, the switches, and everything, nevertheless we have to support every part alone and enter the interface in one-by-one."
"The solution could improve by providing more integration with other platforms."
"The solution's firmware and driver upgrades are a bit difficult."
"The installation was not easy."
"The product could improve its integration capabilities."
"Forced restarts due to free upgrades is an issue that needs to be resolved. We can manage this as we have high availability and redundancy, but without that it could be a real problem."
"It does not have the same module flexibility that was present in IBM Blade. On the Blade System, I was able to choose between the Cisco module, or BMC module. Since the switch to Lenovo, I have not had the same choice of modules, only the BMC modules."
"Continuing the production of this product is necessary. It is currently out of support, and we are seeking support from other sources besides Lenovo."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"At present, the pricing seems a bit high for us."
"There is room for improvement in making it more cost-effective."
"The price is good for the quality of the Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers."
"I don't see any issues with respect to licensing. It's power-efficient, so it's beneficial to the customers price-wise. There are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fee."
"The pricing for this solution is reasonable. We pay a basic premium with a military premium on top of that."
"They are fairly priced."
"We do use Dell's OpenManage console. It is easy to use this console for lifecycle management or PowerEdge servers."
"I am satisfied with the pricing of the Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers and would rate the cost as seven out of ten, with ten being the best."
"The is an annual license cost to use the Lenovo Flex System. If the price was less expensive and flexible overall and for additional features, our customers would be happier."
"The price is interesting. I am able to quote a client based on their needs and offer them either Lenovo or Dell."
"There is a one-off payment to buy the equipment and the support is purchased annually."
"The 14 blade server allows significant room for upscaling before having to invest in another chassis. You would have to purchase another chassis much sooner in the case of an eight or nine blade server."
"We are just paying the operational cost, which is not much."
"We have the whole maintenance for the 3 years, starting the deployment. We also have the VMware license for 3 years and I think we have another license to buy. There are no additional costs besides licensing."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Construction Company
7%
Construction Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Outsourcing Company
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business113
Midsize Enterprise66
Large Enterprise143
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

When shopping for a rack server, would you go with Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether the Dell EMC Poweredge or Lenovo Thinksystem rack servers were the better fit for us. We ultimately decided to go with Dell EMC Poweredge....
What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerEdge Rack Servers?
The cost is one area Dell PowerEdge R-Series can be improved. If Dell PowerEdge R-Series could look at the price, that would be best. Whether it is good depends on if the company's budget is good.
What is your primary use case for Dell EMC PowerEdge Rack Servers?
I use Dell PowerEdge R-Series for installation, and all virtual VMware infrastructure is running on Dell PowerEdge servers. I am mostly using all infrastructure servers with Dell PowerEdge. I am ho...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Lenovo Flex System?
Compared to its quality, the pricing is very reasonable and represents good value.
What needs improvement with Lenovo Flex System?
Continuing the production of this product is necessary. It is currently out of support, and we are seeking support from other sources besides Lenovo.
What is your primary use case for Lenovo Flex System?
We are using Lenovo Flex System on the server for our VMware environment, which includes our VMs and all our servers, Linux and Windows. It manages the daily operation efficiently.
 

Also Known As

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers
Flex System Blade Servers, Flex System SN Series
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

NxtGen Datacenter, Medien-Service Untermain (MSU), Exasol, IndigoVision, Dayco
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerEdge R-Series vs. Lenovo Flex System and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
914,351 professionals have used our research since 2012.