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Dell PowerProtect Data Domain vs ExaGrid EX comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 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 PowerProtect Data Domain
Ranking in Disk Based Backup Systems
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
Deduplication Software (1st)
ExaGrid EX
Ranking in Disk Based Backup Systems
4th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Disk Based Backup Systems category, the mindshare of Dell PowerProtect Data Domain is 33.3%, down from 40.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ExaGrid EX is 9.3%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Disk Based Backup Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell PowerProtect Data Domain33.3%
ExaGrid EX9.3%
Other57.400000000000006%
Disk Based Backup Systems
 

Featured Reviews

Branko Cirovic - PeerSpot reviewer
Storage Engineer at Comtrade Group
Provides seamless backup integration and long-term reliability for enterprise data protection
The price is quite high; this product is not considered cheap. Additionally, if you use higher availability boxes, they also come at a premium price. However, they provide business continuity, which is the main reason why companies invest in this solution. Tape is slow; when restoring several virtual machines or databases amounting to several terabytes, Dell PowerProtect Data Domain represents the fastest and most reliable solution, ensuring great integration with backup software. If a customer has limited budget constraints, they may opt for cheaper external storage comprised of just a bunch of disks and utilize it for backup, as backup is not a business-critical service. However, I see great value in Dell PowerProtect Data Domain because it is fully automated, features great integration with backup software, and provides good value for money. I would rate software support as a ten, while I would give hardware support a seven. I never give any product a perfect score; I think Dell PowerProtect Data Domain deserves a nine. The only minor problems are the certificate issue and the price. These certificate issues are quite rare and mainly arise when we forget to restart and upgrade the box for several years.
AhmedEl-Tayeb - PeerSpot reviewer
Sales Manager at a tech consulting company with 201-500 employees
Has offered a cost-effective option with solid results but requires automation features for better efficiency
For ExaGrid EX, I would appreciate additional features such as backup and restore, automation processes, and automation software for backup and restore processes. I mention that some additional features may be provided by VMware or Dell as support for the hardware they are selling, but ExaGrid EX is more of a budget-friendly solution for customers who are in charge on a daily basis of the solution itself, dealing with manual tasks rather than automated tasks. I am not in a situation to provide an exact answer for what I would specifically improve in this regard.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It should provide everything that an enterprise needs."
"My advice about Dell PowerProtect Data Domain is straightforward: I recommend this product to all clients, because it provides the best deduplication, compression, and security."
"The solution has excellent technical support."
"The most valuable features of PowerProtect DD are the immutable storage and the AI scanning."
"The most valuable features are that it is secure, reliable, and has officer support."
"Just keep going with the solution as it performs; it meets our expectations well."
"It securely protects data against threats like Trojans."
"The DD Boost protocol is very fast in backup and while data is being transferred to Dell PowerProtect Data Domain, and I am using the immutability features built in so that the backup copies are immutable and no one can edit or delete them anymore unless the retention period is over."
"I find ExaGrid EX to be a useful solution for customers looking for a budget-friendly product."
"Backup and restore processes are much shorter now, and we don't need forklift upgrades every three to four years."
"The most valuable features of ExaGrid EX are the Veeam features and Landing Zone."
"Both the pricing and the performance are excellent."
 

Cons

"First-time integrations are difficult in NetWorker. NetWorker software needs to be simplified. It's very complex."
"The last downtime for upgrading the model 9410 took a long time, approximately two hours, which could be bad for production environments."
"We have had deduplication and replication issues. When we used another backup software we noticed that it didn't have the same issues."
"From a technical point of view, all EMC products have to improve the troubleshoot feature like, log should be in human readable format."
"The cost could be lower. Sometimes it's not very competitive."
"Each solution has its pros and cons regarding Dell PowerProtect Data Domain. Regarding the cons, it has high licensing and expansion costs."
"While Data Domain is a good product, it doesn't fit every case, as customer requirements vary."
"Looking at Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain), there is a need for improvement, especially in terms of protection from cyber resiliency, cyber recovery, or man-in-the-middle attacks."
"ExaGrid EX is more of a budget-friendly solution for customers who are in charge on a daily basis of the solution itself, dealing with manual tasks rather than automated tasks."
"I would like to see free disk space."
"The solution’s web access should be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of Dell EMC PowerProtect DD could improve, it is expensive."
"The product is expensive."
"The approximate license cost for Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain) is around 5,00,000."
"The solution is expensive. However, if you pay less you receive less, it is cost-effective."
"The price of the solution and support for Dell PowerProtect DD is expensive. We have customers that cannot upgrade to a newer version of the solution because the support is too expensive."
"Pricing for this product could still be improved, though several years ago, its price was very high. When buying an IDPA product such as Dell EMC PowerProtect DD (Data Domain), you don't have to buy anything else, because you'll have an integrated solution: a data domain appliance plus software."
"We usually buy products at the end year, and the license is included."
"It is expensive, but the performance and deduplication cover for the cost."
"The renewal fee is approximately $3,500 to $3.750 for a 60 terabyte device."
"I rate ExaGrid EX ten out of ten for pricing."
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Top Industries

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

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise26
Large Enterprise44
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your primary use case for Dell EMC PowerProtect DD (Data Domain)?
I use Dell PowerProtect Data Domain for backup storage and target storage backup.
What needs improvement with Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain)?
The only improvement I see for Dell PowerProtect Data Domain is pricing. The issue I experienced is primarily with support rather than the product itself. The product is rugged and runs smoothly, b...
What needs improvement with ExaGrid EX?
For ExaGrid EX, I would appreciate additional features such as backup and restore, automation processes, and automation software for backup and restore processes. I mention that some additional fea...
What is your primary use case for ExaGrid EX?
My role in relation to ExaGrid EX is partner and reseller.
What advice do you have for others considering ExaGrid EX?
I would prefer another way to provide support; sending all the questions in an Excel sheet or a Word file would allow me to answer them in a couple of hours and send them back. I have no problem re...
 

Also Known As

DataDomain, Dell EMC Data Domain, PowerProtect Data Domain
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

The US Army, City of Houston, Lloyds TSB, TiVo, Teck, Ingram Entertainment, The New York Mets
7-Eleven, ABC, ACNB Bank, Admiration Foods, Aeroflex, AGH, Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, Alberta Motor Association, Allegro MicroSystems, American Standard, Ameris Bank, Arch Reinsurance Ltd., Arthritis Foundation
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerProtect Data Domain vs. ExaGrid EX and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
908,834 professionals have used our research since 2012.