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HPE Alletra dHCI vs StarWind Virtual SAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

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

HPE Alletra dHCI
Ranking in HCI
10th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
StarWind Virtual SAN
Ranking in HCI
4th
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.7
Number of Reviews
192
Ranking in other categories
Software Defined Storage (SDS) (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the HCI category, the mindshare of HPE Alletra dHCI is 4.8%, up from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of StarWind Virtual SAN is 2.0%, down from 2.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
HCI
 

Featured Reviews

Antonin Pavlik - PeerSpot reviewer
Effortless upgrades with one-click feature while new server deployment needs a smoother process
I have a data center, and all the servers are connected to HPE Alletra dHCI. I use it for data management with VMware running on the servers The most valuable feature of HPE Alletra dHCI is the one-click upgrade function, which allows all drivers and services to be downloaded to all servers…
WJHG - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless integrations, high availability, and offers a free version
Although I am generally satisfied with VSAN and its performance, there are some areas that could be improved to enhance its effectiveness even further. One area that could benefit from improvement is scalability. While the tool works well in its current configuration, allowing for greater ease and flexibility in adding new nodes to the cluster without complications would be very beneficial, especially in growing environments. Additionally, I would like to see additional features in the next version, such as better support for automated resource management. This could include proactive suggestions for optimizing storage and memory usage, as well as preventive alerts about the health status of the servers. A more intuitive interface or an improved dashboard for monitoring the cluster would also be helpful, as it would facilitate performance tracking and help identify potential issues before they affect services.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product provides zero downtime."
"The solution works well."
"We have this feature in Nimble dHCI, wherein we can upgrade individual components in the infrastructure."
"Nimble is easy to use, but hard to install. Once it's installed, it's user-friendly. Reporting is another advantage because we get a lot of statistical forecasting. It helps us see into the future with that."
"The product has cut down a lot of service tickets. Earlier, people complained about slowness."
"HPE Nimble Storage dHCI's user interface is very easy to work with."
"I love InfoSite. That gets you a lot of good detailed information."
"With regards to performance, configuration, and longevity it is upgradeable, which means it has a good TCO rate. These are valuable aspects to me."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the support. They are excellent and you can learn a lot from the support team."
"StarWind vSAN has allowed us to leverage our server infrastructure more completely without the need to add more hardware."
"The instant failover, with vSAN copying data to the second node, allowed for the continuous availability of our applications."
"The ease of reaching the support team and their promptness for support is great."
"It also provides a high degree of mobility, as the virtual SAN can be moved relatively painlessly between on-site devices and the cloud."
"The installation of StarWind Virtual SAN was pretty easy, and the configuration was done in no time."
"It includes every feature that a traditional SAN offers and so much more."
"The product has improved the ability to mimic physical SAN environments to demo scenarios and troubleshoot problems."
 

Cons

"The performance of HPE Nimble Storage dHCI could improve. Other solutions, such as Cisco, are better."
"I rate Nimble one out of 10 for ease of setup. Setting up Nimble Storage was a nightmare. It took us three months to deal with all the kinks and bugs. We had two people from HPE assisting us and two from our team."
"HPE Nimble Storage dHCI's website does not open properly or work consistently."
"The solution could improve by providing better file-level restoration and DVX system options."
"The implementation process was problematic due to firmware incompatibilities and lengthy support intervention."
"They could expand product support to Microsoft Hyper-V and Red Hat Linux platforms."
"I can tier my data in different storage on the cloud, but I cannot tier the data with HPE Alletra dHCI."
"Sometimes the technical support would get back to us in two hours, but other times it would take them two or even three days to respond."
"I would like additional documentation regarding possible networking configurations with 10GbE switching."
"I did not see any indication that StarWinds vSAN is a usable solution with non-GUI instances of Hyper-V."
"I would like to see options for automated notifications of any changes, including, for example, synchronization issues."
"I think the setup could be streamlined a bit."
"A better overall view of the different deployments could be beneficial, although this is difficult due to how flexible the solution is."
"More comprehensive reporting and educational resources for error resolution would enhance the user experience."
"While we had little to no issues in setting up StarWind and received excellent support from the StarWind technicians, we would have appreciated a clearer guideline for a setup with the free version of StarWind Management Console or, in other words - for the setup with the PowerShell."
"To enable the proactive support capability that is part of our support agreement, I would ask that the terms and conditions be revised and made acceptable to corporate security."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate the licensing model a three out of ten, where one is extremely expensive, and ten is cheap."
"The prices are very high."
"The customers have found the solution to be expensive. However, when compared to the competition the price is reasonable."
"The solution’s pricing was very good."
"The product licensing costs vary depending on whether VMware or other solutions are used."
"The price of HPE Nimble Storage dHCI is expensive."
"With the features that HPE Nimble Storage dHCI provides, I cannot say its pricing is more."
"The product is costly."
"We are happy with the price."
"The StarWind VSAN business model is very cost-effective."
"The cost, including OPEX, is lower compared to other solutions."
"Once you buy the license, you are free to build your own hardware solution based on your needs."
"It's priced fairly. It was definitely cheaper than the competition. The licensing terms are straightforward and reasonable."
"I think the bang for the buck is much better with StarWind Virtual SAN."
"I think that purchasing StarWind Virtual SAN Professional Edition would be optimal for most."
"The licensing is a bit weird. If you license the standard version of StarWind, it allows you four terabytes. Then, they have a pro version, but with the pro version, the only difference is it doubles the terabytes to eight."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Educational Organization
8%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE Nimble Storage dHCI?
Pricing is rated at six, which is normal. The price is appropriate for the capabilities and features that the customers receive.
What needs improvement with HPE Nimble Storage dHCI?
I would like the HPE Alletra dHCI to provide options to install products separately. When extending or when servers are already present, normal Alletra systems are more suitable. dHCI projects ofte...
What do you like most about StarWind Virtual SAN?
It is easy to use and can monitor system synchronization and check Storage status. StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN) combines flash and disks of the cluster and forms a virtual shared storage “pool” acce...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for StarWind Virtual SAN?
I can't give a sincere opinion on the installation and licensing costs because, as I have mentioned repeatedly, I am currently using the free version. However, I can say that I have submitted a req...
What needs improvement with StarWind Virtual SAN?
More comprehensive reporting and educational resources for error resolution would enhance the user experience. There have been cases where not understanding exactly what's failing on the Virtual SA...
 

Also Known As

HPE Nimble Storage dHCI
StarWind SAN & NAS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Baker Tilly BVI, CMS Internet, Board Harpeth Hall School
Find out what your peers are saying about HPE Alletra dHCI vs. StarWind Virtual SAN and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,963 professionals have used our research since 2012.