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Dell PowerScale (Isilon) vs HPE StoreEasy vs NetApp FAS Series 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:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is 17.7%, up from 17.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE StoreEasy is 4.7%, up from 4.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp FAS Series is 11.6%, down from 12.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NAS
 

Featured Reviews

Scott Taylor - PeerSpot reviewer
Manages large data sets efficiently with hybrid cloud integration
My organization is quite large, with about 30,000 employees. The growth has been substantial in areas such as radiology and genomics. One of the best features we've utilized recently is offload to cloud pools due to capacity constraints on-premise. We didn't want to expand Dell PowerScale (Isilon) straight away, so we utilized cloud pools to offload some data to Azure. That's really saved us in certain areas as we didn't have funding to expand Dell PowerScale (Isilon) until next year, which is why we utilized the cloud pools functionality to offload.
Vinoth Bala - PeerSpot reviewer
Reliable, cost-effective, and easy to deploy and manage
I did not have any difficulties in deploying StoreEasy for the customers. It is user-friendly and easy to deploy. It has a Windows Server and a required license built in. For implementation, we follow the HPE documentation. We follow the Configuration guide and the Installation guide. For all HPE products, we follow the HPE documentation. For a single box, it takes a maximum of two days. It depends on the customer's availability. For different configurations, it can take two to three days. The number of people required varies from customer to customer, but generally, it requires three people. For mounting the storage, we always have three people to unbox, mount, and do other things. It does not require any maintenance. From the data center perspective, maintaining StoreEasy is very easy. No customer has complained about any difficulty in maintaining StoreEasy.
Arnaud Salmon - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers good performance and
Once, I've been in a program, but they stopped supporting protocols like HTTP, STP, and that kind of stuff. All of the DIP supports at the beginning were kind of support when it was just Python and just five storage. And it happened a few times that the customer required the STP and HTTP protocol for storage. And I was surprised I couldn't do it anymore with NetApp. So, it would be beneficial for them to support both kinds of protocols. The only little black points that I would put on top of NetApp FAS Series. There is room for improvement in deployment and configuration processes. The thing with ONTAP is that we have a lot of layers, from the raw disks to the volumes we present to servers and configure. There are quite a lot of things to configure. Probably NetApp should ease the way to install that. In NetApp products, such as ONTAP and FAS, a solid understanding of storage is still necessary to handle configurations in larger systems. It's not the same with Pure Storage or Huawei. Even someone less familiar with storage could manage it, making it more accessible.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The single pane of glass for both IT and for the end-user is a valuable feature. On the IT side, I can actually control where things are stored, whether something is stored on solid-state drives or spinning drives... The single pane of glass makes it very easy to use and very easy to understand. We started at 100 terabytes and we moved to 250 and it still feels like the exact same system and we're able to move data as needed."
"This has been a valuable solution for our business overall. It offers business continuity and replication features."
"Its scalability has been huge for us."
"The solution has simplified management by consolidating our workloads. Rather than managing all the different workloads on different storage arrays, Windows Servers, etc., we just have one place per data centre where we manage all their unstructured data, saving us time."
"The product's scalability feature is super easy to use."
"Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is a platform that is very easy for teams to work with."
"The most valuable feature of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) integration with other solutions because of the standard file system protocol."
"It has allowed us to have more consistent quality controls. It has also allowed us to expand the number of servers in clients processing and accessing data, allowing us to get a lot bigger projects out the door."
"I like the user quotas, integrations, and separations for storage."
"The most valuable feature of HPE StoreEasy is the storing of virtual machines."
"HPE StoreEasy is a stable and high-performing solution that HPE supports effectively."
"I can use both the on-premises and cloud storage options. I need to have an APR extension from StoreEasy, and it's that simple."
"The tool's data protection capabilities are robust."
"The most beneficial feature of HPE StoreEasy for us is its easy implementation and maintenance."
"The solution's most valuable feature is the duplication."
"StoreEasy offers reliable file services, which is a critical factor for customers looking for solid infrastructure."
"The solution is stable."
"NetApp's cloud-based PaaS has been a massive help for unstructured data."
"One of the most valuable features offered is double-parity RAID, which guarantees that your data will stay intact. We're also able to provision storage and monitor which ones are really consuming storage."
"The biggest advantage that makes NetApp FAS Series better is that we can use RAID technology on the storage."
"The replication feature protects us from data loss."
"The initial setup was so straightforward. It was well-documented."
"Using the built-in Snapshots and SnapMirror technology, we were able to have better working data protection locally and off-site."
"It changed the way we do Disaster Recovery (DR) around NetApp replication."
 

Cons

"The solution's rate structure or rate redundancy needs to be improved."
"If I could improve one thing on Dell PowerScale (Isilon), it would be better object storage as it recently breached into S3, and that capability could be broadened."
"The analytics could be improved."
"I'd like to see more Iceland products in the cloud so that we can port our data into different environments if needed. I would also like to see a virtual appliance or software-defined Iceland product."
"If they integrated some functions, as they have on Data Domain with a cyber recovery vault, it would be ideal."
"The legacy file system for Epsilon didn't scale into the cloud and didn't have a separate OS. It would be key if this was made possible."
"There is room for improvement in its handling of object storage."
"They should add some new services that should be for on-premises, and more analytics should be there for the data, allowing for a deep dive from that analytics, which is currently missing."
"There are some SKUs in StoreEasy that are built to order, and there are only limited options, such as StoreEasy 1670 and 1870, which can be configured to order based on customer preferences."
"When I configure the StoreEasy in a complex environment I have problems finding compatibility with all the software."
"It would be better if it were more scalable. In the next release, I would like to access some Microsoft Windows storage server features. I guess the newest version of Windows Server has some restrictions."
"The areas of HPE StoreEasy that need improvement are scalability and migration."
"There is a default Windows installation. Sometimes, when it crashes, the HPE support team asks the customer to reinstall it. That is the only issue customers are facing."
"I would like to improve the tool's technical support. I would also like to see the product's hybrid cloud version."
"There are some SKUs in StoreEasy that are built to order, and there are only limited options, such as StoreEasy 1670 and 1870, which can be configured to order based on customer preferences."
"The cluster service is not available in the latest version of HPE StoreEasy."
"The solution can improve on the replication features."
"The product should improve its user experience."
"The product must support more drives."
"The high cost of the product is an area of concern, so from an improvement perspective, the tool needs to be made cheaper."
"Currently, the newest release is not HCI friendly."
"Interfacing with the cloud environment could be better. I want to be able to move some cloud volume and integrate it seamlessly with my home on-premise storage. Sometimes I have issues with port permissions. NetApp probably needs to improve more on the integration side from on-premise to the cloud."
"NetApp systems are somewhat more complex, though not excessively so. If you're transitioning from a Windows server environment to NetApp, get training or education; otherwise, you might struggle with this solution."
"Installation of the additional switches and ETP could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I always want things to be less expensive. However, I would say the pricing is fair. Their costs are in alignment with their competitors. It is a good value for the money."
"Pricing for this solution is reasonable."
"The price of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is reasonable."
"Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is an expensive solution."
"The general cost for a system like this is expensive. The total cost depends on your use case. You need to pay for every additional feature that you use."
"The pricing is excellent."
"Price was also a significant factor in our decision to go with PowerScale. The team at EMC, now Dell EMC, came through with a highly competitive offer that tipped the scales towards their solution. There was only one other solution around the same price point, but it could not match PowerScale on features. That other solution is no longer on the market."
"The price of the solution is high."
"This is an economical solution for the company and I am satisfied with the pricing."
"I would rate the tool's pricing an eight out of ten. You need to pay additional costs for the solution."
"Based on what I hear from our customers, it is not very expensive. From the cost perspective, I see nobody complaining about its cost."
"The price of HPE StoreEasy is approximately $15,000 to $20,000 and it is a one-time purchase. The price is similar to competitors, such as Dell."
"NetApp FAS Series could be less expensive."
"Cost effective storage for all performance levels (including all-flash)."
"It is a moderately low-priced platform."
"The licensing cost is on yearly basis."
"NetApp FAS Series is a reasonably high-priced solution, partially because we select the configuration that duplicates the entire system."
"The only area that could be improved is to lower prices for their All Flash FAS."
"The pricing of NetApp FAS Series is reasonable for its performance."
"The product is on the expensive side."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Educational Organization
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Construction Company
8%
Retailer
8%
Educational Organization
26%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
The solution provides massive performance, scalability, efficiency, and ease of management.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
We have to go through a certified reseller for Dell PowerScale (Isilon). From a value standpoint, it performs very well.
What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
I would make Dell PowerScale (Isilon) better by improving SmartSync in the graphical user interface. Currently, every...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE StoreEasy?
HPE StoreEasy is competitively priced compared to competitors. It offers configuration options, such as different pro...
What needs improvement with HPE StoreEasy?
The product is stable, running on Windows Server ( /products/windows-server-reviews ) with updates from HPE, includin...
What is your primary use case for HPE StoreEasy?
I use HPE StoreEasy ( /products/hpe-storeeasy-reviews ) to provide file sharing to our business users. We are a logis...
Which SAN product would you choose: IBM FlashSystem (FS9500) vs PureFlash Array/X NVMe vs PureFlash Array/XL NVMe?
Have you considered a NetApp FAS Storage for your NAS needs? I am sure it fits very well.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NetApp FAS Series?
The pricing of NetApp FAS Series is not cheap, but in comparison to other vendors, NetApp FAS Series is affordable be...
 

Also Known As

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon
HP StoreEasy
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

OMRF, University of Utah, Translational Genetics Research Institute, Arcis, Geofizyka Torumn, Cyprus E&P Corporation, Colburn School, Columbia Sportswear, Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, National Library of France,
John Lewis, HPE IT, Comline AG, AmeriPride Services
Children's Hospital Central California, Plex Systems, PDF PNI Digital Media, Denver Broncos, PDF KSM Legal, Clayton Companies, Virginia Community College
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell Technologies, NetApp, Hitachi Vantara and others in NAS. Updated: June 2025.
859,545 professionals have used our research since 2012.