Dell PowerScale vs NetApp Private Storage comparison

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Dell Technologies and NetApp are both solutions in the NAS category. Dell Technologies is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.8, while NetApp is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.0. Dell Technologies holds a 13.3% mindshare in N, compared to NetApp’s 4.4% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Dell Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of NetApp users who would recommend it.

Dell PowerScale

Read 107 Dell PowerScale reviews

17,998 Views
9,899 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

NetApp Private Storage

Read 15 NetApp Private Storage reviews

3,643 Views
3,643 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Dell PowerScale

NetApp Private Storage

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 7, 2024

Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage are prominent in the storage category, each offering notable benefits. Dell PowerScale stands out for its scalability and ease of management, providing enhanced features while requiring minimal IT resources. This advantage is highlighted by superior user feedback on scalability and support.

Features: Dell PowerScale offers key features such as policy-based file placement, SmartQuotas, and InsightIQ, enhancing storage utility and performance. The system supports scalable access from multiple hardware platforms, and continual OS improvements come without new licensing, making it a comprehensive storage solution. NetApp’s unified storage system is highly flexible with strong integration capabilities, providing backwards compatibility and robust cloud integration features.

Room for Improvement: Dell PowerScale could improve cloud integration with easier updates and more node options for smaller offices. Enhancements to the WORM feature and InsightIQ’s reporting are also needed, as well as expanding HTTP data protection. NetApp should focus on simplifying configuration and addressing support challenges. Making licensing less complicated would also be beneficial for user satisfaction.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage primarily support on-premises deployment, with Dell PowerScale proving more adaptable to hybrid cloud environments. Dell’s technical support is generally well-regarded, though some users experience initial assistance challenges. NetApp support is inconsistent, often requiring escalation to resolve issues satisfactorily.

Pricing and ROI: Both Dell PowerScale and NetApp Private Storage are perceived as costly, but Dell's flexible licensing and comprehensive features offer a compelling ROI. Dell users find value in long-term cost efficiency and reduced administrative workload, while NetApp users appreciate reliability and integration, despite finding the pricing steep.

To learn more, read our detailed Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

September 2026

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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 PowerScale

Ranking in NAS

1st

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

107

Ranking in other categories

File and Object Storage (1st)

NetApp Private Storage

Ranking in NAS

9th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale is 13.3%, down from 16.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp Private Storage is 4.4%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

NAS Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Dell PowerScale	13.3%
NetApp Private Storage	4.4%
Other	82.3%

NAS

Featured Reviews

RahulSharma8

Storage Platform Engineer at Expedia Group

Unified file sharing has simplified multi-tenant access and has delivered seamless data replication

Dell PowerScale (Isilon) includes its replication features; when we decommissioned our old Isilon cluster, we migrated all of the data to a new cluster, and it was pretty seamless. All you have to do is create the certificates and make those certificates available to the target cluster, then initiate a few jobs. The inter-cluster replication feature, called SyncIQ, allows you to set up all of the jobs and move your data entirely, either timely or all at once. Another suitable feature is the ability to back up your directories; you can take snapshots for all of your directories, and in fact, I believe you can take around a thousand snapshots for a single directory. The inter-replication, geo-replication is one feature. Dell provides a variety class of hardware suitable for your workloads, meaning if your data is just lab and not critical, you don't have to spend much on the hardware; conversely, if your data is mission-critical, you can buy a high-performance node from Dell. Additionally, you can span Dell PowerScale (Isilon) cluster to a large number of nodes, and code upgrades are pretty smooth because all protocols will be upgraded under a single piece of code. Since it provides a single file system that spans across the nodes, you don't have to worry about that directory structure being separately created on individual nodes, making it a fitting solution for a data lake solution because you can access the same data from multiple protocols.

Read full review

Atilla Celiloglu

Broadcast Technology Director at tv8

Has supported continuous broadcasting with reliable performance and consistent operations

They can make more solutions for cloud integration in NetApp Private Storage. It should be easier to use the cloud S3 integration, maybe from a NetApp interface, where users can choose the type of storage before sending to S3. I would like to see more audit and performance logs via cloud integrations and ONTAP. Without the need for separate software.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is its single space of storage."

"Customer service has been really good."

"PowerScale is one of those things that will grow in your environment; once you start it with one thing, you'll learn that it can do much more, very quickly."

"With Dell PowerScale, there is no concern about whether the system is running; Dell PowerScale operates in all circumstances, and we have experienced six years of zero seconds of downtime."

"My favorite thing about Dell PowerScale is its scalability."

"The stability of the solution is good."

"Overall, the hardware itself, and the OneFS file system, are the best selling points, combined with the delivery and the installation."

"The tool's most valuable features are high density and scalability."

More Dell PowerScale pros

"When it came time to replace, we evaluated EMC, NetApp, IBM again and chose NetApp and have not regretted it."

"The beauty is it's worth it."

"They have the scalability that we need, that we ask for, and I think it is a very, very good solution."

"If your company has the budget for NetApp Private Storage I would recommend it."

"Disaster recovery. And I like the security very much. I think they have the needed options for security. Can manage NPS using the same tools and process that we use today."

"The most valuable feature of NetApp Private Storage is out-of-the-box integration with the SAN switches. They are much easier compared to Dell solutions. Additionally, the connector that comes with the solution that allows connection back to the Cisco SAN switches is very good. In Dell, I would need to use an FCIP or CIP port that is required."

"At the moment, we are extensively using SnapMirror."

"Integration with other NetApp solutions and merging them is manageable."

More NetApp Private Storage pros

Cons

"Dell PowerScale could be improved by simplifying management and monitoring, making AI analytics integration more seamless, and reducing the complexity and cost of scaling."

"I think Dell PowerScale (Isilon) can be improved, as the cost models are quite expensive for administration."

"My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Dell PowerScale has been expensive."

"The price always has room for improvement."

"The solution can be integrated with an automation system. Dell uses another framework developed in-house. They can integrate it with machines."

"The solution isn't suitable for small environments or small customers."

"The management and monitoring tools comprise a disparate suite of products and the roadmap is very unclear. We've got four different products that look after the Isilon, management-wise, and it's a bit of a mess."

"The analytics could be improved."

More Dell PowerScale cons

"I'm not sure how easy it is to use on the cloud versus on-prem."

"There may actually be so many features that the end-user gets lost in the volume."

"I'm not sure how easy it is to use on the cloud versus on-prem. If they have different user experiences, they should work to make the two as similar as possible to make it easy for a user to understand both even if they only deal mainly with one."

"The one thing I've noticed with NetApp when you buy hardware and you can use it for a while and then you have to get new hardware."

"The documentation could be improved."

"This product is probably one of the most complex to set up on the market."

"If you overthink provisioning, if you over-allocate, if it gets full, or if something crazy happens and you haven't been watching, then you can lose data."

"They need a little more technical people in Akola."

More NetApp Private Storage cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We paid an additional fee to have Dell's ProDeploy Plus team implement it."

"The solution is expensive; it is not the cheapest solution out there. If you look at it from a total cost of ownership perspective, then it is a very compelling solution. However, if you're looking at just dollar per terabyte and not looking at the big picture, then you could be distracted by the price. It is not an amazing price, but it's pretty good. It is also very good when you consider the total cost of ownership and ease of management."

"The price of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is reasonable."

"The platform is not cheap. However, on the software side, you can choose what you want license. So, you can start your licensing with the features that you need, then after buying the platform add some other features."

"The pricing is expensive, but I think it's a fair value because it does manage itself. It definitely is much simpler than any of the other scale-out storage platforms that we've looked at in the past."

"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."

"Dell PowerScale is an expensive solution compared to other products like Qumulo."

"It is an expensive product with a high storage capacity suitable for large data requirements."

More Dell PowerScale pricing and cost advice

"It is an expensive solution."

"The product is costly."

"The price of NetApp Private Storage is similar to other solutions. There is typically an annual license required for this solution."

"In general, I am pleased with the pricing, though it is a little high."

"We negotiate whatever deal we can get on the type of storage that it is, but it's totally under our control,."

"The price could be lower."

"NetApp Private Storage is cheaper here in India compared to other solutions, such as Dell."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

10%

Outsourcing Company

Financial Services Firm

Government

Outsourcing Company

11%

Construction Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	30
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	65

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

The on-premises solution with Dell PowerScale, when we buy directly from Dell, is economical. We have done some level of comparison. Although in the current markets we have seen the price differenc...

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What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

There should be some enhancement where Dell PowerScale can have block level functionality or block storage kind of functionality. Although there is a different product line from Dell, if there is s...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?

We use Dell PowerScale for our object scale and different kinds of storage, including both object storage and file storage.I am part of the solution architect team, which is a techno-commercial rol...

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What needs improvement with NetApp Private Storage?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for NetApp Private Storage?

It consists of a large production company and national television channels broadcasting 24/7. We wanted to choose a stable product with flawless SLA levels for an organization that broadcasts 24/7....

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering NetApp Private Storage?

I believe it will deliver the expected performance and stability for television channels and production studios. On a scale of 1-10, I rate NetApp Private Storage an 8.

See all answers

Comparisons

NetApp FAS Series vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 16% of the time

Everpure FlashBlade vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 7% of the time

Qumulo vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 5% of the time

VAST Data vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 3% of the time

Panasas ActiveStor vs Dell PowerScale

Compared 2% of the time

More Dell PowerScale Competitors

NetApp FAS Series vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 10% of the time

QNAP NAS Storage vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

FreeNAS vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

Buurst SoftNAS vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

Qumulo vs NetApp Private Storage

Compared 7% of the time

More NetApp Private Storage Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale

September 2026

Download Dell PowerScale product report

Buyer's Guide

NetApp Private Storage

September 2026

Download NetApp Private Storage product report

Also Known As

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon

NPS

Overview

Dell PowerScale leads in unstructured data management with unified file and object storage, massive scalability, security, and cloud adaptability, enhancing AI, analytics, and enterprise applications with exceptional performance and resilience.

Dell PowerScale Isilon provides a comprehensive platform for unstructured data, excelling in scalability, management, and performance. With features like single-pane management, SyncIQ, and SmartQuotas, it handles large datasets with flexibility and robust security. Its multi-protocol support and seamless expansion improve operational efficiency. While it offers strong data protection, enhancements in cloud integration, cybersecurity, and performance are sought. Users note potential for cost reductions and streamlined configurations and mention desired improvements in object storage handling and NFS support.

What are the key features of Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Single-pane management: Simplifies data control and monitoring through a unified interface.
SyncIQ: Ensures efficient data replication for business continuity.
SmartQuotas: Provides intelligent quota management for optimized storage allocation.
Multi-protocol support: Facilitates cross-platform data access and integration.
Seamless storage expansion: Allows effortless scaling to accommodate growing data needs.

What benefits should users consider when reviewing Dell PowerScale Isilon?

Operational efficiency: Reduces workload with easy management and automation.
Enhanced security: Offers comprehensive data protection and recovery options.
Scalability: Supports large-scale data storage with flexible growth capabilities.
Performance: Delivers high-speed data processing for demanding applications.
Integration flexibility: Adapts to on-prem and hybrid cloud environments for diverse deployment needs.

Organizations across industries utilize Dell PowerScale Isilon for large-scale unstructured storage, supporting applications like video archiving, genomic data storage, and high-resolution imaging. Educational institutions, research centers, and media enterprises rely on its scaled-out storage capabilities, providing centralized, secure storage for diverse applications in hybrid, cloud, and on-prem environments.

Dell Technologies

NetApp Private Storage provides efficient, cost-controlled storage solutions with fast, seamless cloud integration, ensuring robust security and scalability for diverse applications.

NetApp Private Storage integrates smoothly with cloud platforms like Azure or AWS, offering a unified approach to storage through the ONTAP operating system. With SAN integration, disaster recovery, and strong security measures, it supports scalability and diverse use cases. Users appreciate its effective backup solutions and reliability, enhanced by Snapshot functionality. However, enhanced cloud integration tools and user-friendly interface improvements are desired. Users often confront configuration complexity and support access issues, along with costly upgrade cycles due to hardware limitations.

What are the key features of NetApp Private Storage?

ONTAP Operating System: Facilitates unified storage management across platforms.
Integration Capabilities: Ensures seamless connections with cloud providers like AWS and Azure.
Disaster Recovery: Provides robust options to safeguard data.
Security Measures: Offers strong protection against potential threats.
Scalability: Easily adapts to growing storage demands.

What benefits should users consider?

Cost Control: Allows efficient management of storage expenses.
Ease of Use: Simplifies complex storage management tasks.
Speed: Enhances data processing and access times.
Reliability: Ensures consistent performance across applications.
Flexibility: Adapts to a variety of storage environments and needs.

NetApp Private Storage is employed in industries requiring robust storage solutions, supporting OpenStack cloud backends, VMware environments, and media broadcasts. It aids in database server replication and hybrid flash storage, managing marketing data and facilitating ESXi backend solutions through NFS shares, SnapMirror, and file replication. Recognized for simplifying storage management and connectivity, it efficiently supports demanding applications across sectors.

NetApp

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,

ASE IT, Concerto Cloud

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

September 2026

Free Report: Dell PowerScale vs. NetApp Private Storage

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