IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe vs NetApp NVMe AFF A800 comparison

IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe vs. NetApp NVMe AFF A800

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Pure FlashArray X NVMe

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2024, in the NVMe All-Flash Storage Arrays category, the mindshare of Pure FlashArray X NVMe is 4.4%, down from 6.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is 3.4%, down from 3.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NetApp NVMe AFF A800 is 4.2%, down from 5.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

NVMe All-Flash Storage Arrays

Featured Reviews

Consulta3c88

Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees

Sep 3, 2019

Stable, good technical support, and improved our operational efficiency

We use this solution for our primary storage. Our deployment is in a private cloud environment Using this solution has benefitted us operationally by making us more efficient. VMware benefits our IT organization through cost efficiency. The most valuable feature of this solution is its ease of…

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Anslim Narinesingh

Directors at NYCO Solutions Ltd

Jan 31, 2023

Beneficial predictable maintenance cycle, clear documentation, and remarkable performance

The scalability of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is impressive. The system can be scaled from a small two-unit system to a large multi-rack system that can accommodate up to eight units. The scalability of the solution is dependent on the size of the rack cage, making it possible to scale the system to meet the needs of different customers. Additionally, the system comes in different storage capacities, so it is possible to choose the right storage capacity based on your needs. The IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is linked to one to multiple DR systems. We have a large system that is using the solution with the Z operating system which are larger system.

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Kleber Fernandes

Diretor Comercial at a security firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

Apr 12, 2023

Good performance, low latency, and stable

We use the solution for our virtualized environment to manage our data NetApp NVMe AFF A800 has improved performance and access to the data. Low latency is the most valuable feature. The technical support has room for improvement. The price has room for improvement. I have been using the…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Pure FlashArray X NVMe will quickly overcome all the hurdles you face, including network and latency issues."

"The standout features for us in Pure FlashArray X NVMe are its robust DDoS protection, seamless transparent failover, and failback capabilities ensuring high availability."

"The most valuable features of this solution are its ease of use and performance."

"Technical support has been helpful and responsive."

"The tool's valuable features are speed, security, data compression, and reliability. Its data compression feature is the best that we have ever seen. It helps us to save money and resources."

"It has good, reliable, fast storage."

"It is very easy to install and configure. It has got excellent diagnostics. If you really need to see how the box is performing, the console gives you a lot of information. You can set thresholds as well as alerts based on the thresholds, which is a very powerful functionality. They are very proactive. They know how to monitor and manage the systems. They see a problem, and they are all over it before us. They see the problem before we see it, which is very good."

"The solution is very straightforward to set up."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe pros

"Its ease of use, performance, and hardware compression is very useful feature."

"It is a very stable product. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten because we did not face any issues in the last three years."

"IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is easy to use and comes with good performance."

"A key feature is that compared to storage systems that we've been familiar with over decades, IBM simply does not fail. The reason is that IBM is the only manufacturer that engineers its own flash module, and there is a key architectural difference from everything else that we have seen in the market. The difference is that the flash module has the computational capability, which allows reliability and capacity enhancements to be uploaded from the main controllers and run in each module. So, each of the flash drives becomes its own little storage system, and that is extremely effective architecture. In this field, with this type of system, IBM has made a statement. They've never had one of these modules cause an outage. So, the failure rates on these things are just in a whole different universe from what we were accustomed to."

"There are many valuable features of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMele I have found to meet my needs. Specifically, the maintenance cycle is a standout feature of this solution. The main component of the IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is the maintenance of the batteries, which have a predetermined and reliable four-year life cycle. This is in stark contrast to other solutions that may use spinning disks, which can fail unexpectedly, causing unwanted downtime and maintenance. Having a predictable maintenance cycle is a significant advantage and has made this solution a preferred choice for me."

"The most valuable feature of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is the snapshot. We use it daily for all of the storage units."

"The most valuable feature is the speed."

"Good performance with a user-friendly UI."

More IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe pros

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is a product that is fast and provides a fast I/O."

"The storage features are valuable."

"We find the product to be very flexible."

"Low latency is the most valuable feature."

"During the use cases of the solution, its reliability and suitability are the best."

"The product can be scaled vertically as well as horizontally."

"You can easily scale up, and scale-out."

"Over the eight years, we've been using NetApp with ONTAP, we've never lost a bit of data, and we've only experienced a few minutes of downtime in that entire time."

More NetApp NVMe AFF A800 pros

Cons

"One point I'd like to improve is that the tool should start selling small boxes again. It discontinued some products and is focusing on bigger, more capable boxes, neglecting the SMB market. Even though it's not a big market, it shouldn't have removed them."

"The tool's portfolio is minimal. It is expensive."

"If the customer only needs 500 terabytes and doesn't care how much data they'll put in the server, IBM is cheaper than Pure."

"The UI for this solution needs to be improved."

"We would like to see more visibility into garbage collection and CPU performance in the GUI."

"Our use cases require more multi-tenant capabilities and additional VLAN interfaces for separating different customers. We currently use it to provide storage, sometimes shared storage, to different customers, but it is less flexible in comparison to a dedicated solution."

"Every time I think of something that needs to improve, they're one step ahead, which I love. The only area I wish to see improve, I believe is coming, is in the FlashBlade product. Blade implementation fell short on a few of the services."

"We need better data deduplication."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe cons

"IBM's support is not good. I experienced a big problem where I opened the console IBM Storage and would see that something was broken. I called the call centers, and I said, "I have a problem. My drive is not working." They want me to give them the serial number, I gave it to them and they told me "I cannot find your product. Your product is not here.""

"IBM is currently not offering volume-based encryption or compression, while other brands or IBM's competitors are doing it."

"IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is currently at the end of its lifespan and will soon become obsolete in the markets."

"I would like to see IBM products become more affordable because they can be quite expensive, which limits their accessibility to a broader customer base."

"I would like to have replication functionality built directly in the product, rather than having to use a separate device for this."

"The storage system itself should have built-in capabilities for different ransomware attacks."

"The tool's architecture is complex. It also needs to add data utilization reports."

"There is a tool provided by IBM for repairing batteries which can only be utilized by those who have an IBM technical advisor under service contract. However, for individuals who do not have such a contract, the tool can be difficult to use and requires a zip file copy. I believe that it would be greatly beneficial if the tool were made more user-friendly and accessible for all individuals who need to repair batteries."

More IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe cons

"The product’s UI could be better."

"Stability is an area with a certain shortcoming where the solution needs to improve"

"Increasing the RAM, and including physical cords would be beneficial."

"The product's performance has some shortcomings, making it an area that could be a little better."

"The support can take a few days to have a response. However, the response that we do receive is very informative."

"Sometimes, it takes a while to get somebody competent on the other end of the line. They do have engineers in multiple time zones around the world. However, their level-one support is not always the best."

"The cost of the solution is quite high. It would be ideal if they could adjust it so that it's a but less."

"The initial setup is complex."

More NetApp NVMe AFF A800 cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"With Pure Storage, we would like to continue seeing price reductions with flash storage. I don't think we're any different than anybody else when we continue to look to the industry for price reductions of both NVMe and traditional SSD storage. We would like to see these prices continue to decline and erode, even displacing large spinning disks."

"Pretty much everything that you need is licensed when you buy the product. Licensing to me is different than the maintenance cost, but they can bleed into one another. We buy the product, and we expect three years of support bundled into what we negotiate on our storage arrays. I would start to see maintenance costs going into the fourth year, but we're not there yet."

"Pure FlashArray X NVMe’s pricing is cheaper than other products."

"They can tout the functionality and cutting edge technology that they have, but that's where the price tag comes in. The cost is high, but I think as they grow their business and get more customers that it will probably go down a little bit."

"The product is expensive."

"Its price could be better. It is not too expensive, but it is the high-end cost. It is kind of a Rolls-Royce. You pay a lot, but you get a lot out of it. So, the price pressure on the way down would be great, but at the end of the day, if you need to do the work, you just pay for it."

"Given its price, Pure is not the first option."

"With VMware, we pay $300,000 annually."

More Pure FlashArray X NVMe pricing and cost advice

"The solution is priced well."

"The price of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMele can be considered affordable when taking into account the operating system that is required for it to function properly. This operating system, which is licensed by IBM, may carry a higher cost, but it is worth the investment for larger corporate entities, such as insurance companies, Fortune Five companies, and banks, who make up a significant portion of their target market. The FlashSystems are designed for larger corporations and multinational enterprises, and may not be the most cost-effective solution for smaller businesses."

"The solution's price is competitive."

"There are pricing options from the mid-rand to the high-range, of which the suitability depends upon the requirements."

"Compared to other solutions, the cost of IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is reasonable, with a one-time payment of around $70,000. However, additional support is available for $25,000 for three years. The overall maintenance cost is steep."

"On a scale of one to ten, where one is a low price and ten is a high price, I rate the pricing an eight."

"The tool's pricing is competitive."

"The price of the FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is reasonable."

More IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe pricing and cost advice

"I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten."

"The solution is expensive."

"Considering the requirements and the situation, I don't feel that this is an expensive product."

"There are licenses for the use of this solution, such as commercial licenses."

"Though NetApp NVMe AFF A800 may seem like a highly-priced product, it is not extremely expensive."

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800,905 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Government

Computer Software Company

21%

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Manufacturing Company

22%

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Educational Organization

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

Pure FlashArray X NVMe helps to improve our processing speed. It is user-friendly and easy to use.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

The tool's pricing is cheap; I rate it a six to seven out of ten. Most of our sales are not subscription-based. We se...

What needs improvement with Pure FlashArray X NVMe?

Managing data isn't difficult for me. The performance is usually perfect, but we sometimes have capacity problems.

What do you like most about IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe?

The storage serves the virtual environment. Most of our applications run in the virtual environment, and it serves ne...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe?

Compared to its competitors, IBM's offering is the most cost-effective. However, in the context of the Egyptian finan...

What needs improvement with IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe?

It's a good system, but some vendors limit specific models from being upgraded to larger capacities. This forces us t...

What do you like most about NetApp NVMe AFF A800?

The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is a product that is fast and provides a fast I/O.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NetApp NVMe AFF A800?

Though NetApp NVMe AFF A800 may seem like a highly-priced product, it is not extremely expensive.

What needs improvement with NetApp NVMe AFF A800?

The product's performance has some shortcomings, making it an area that could be a little better. I don't expect to s...

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Compared 11% of the time

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Compared 52% of the time

Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform vs IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe

Compared 17% of the time

Dell PowerMax NVMe vs IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe

Compared 11% of the time

HPE Primera vs IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe

Compared 11% of the time

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Compared 10% of the time

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Compared 23% of the time

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Compared 19% of the time

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Compared 17% of the time

Lenovo ThinkSystem DM Series vs NetApp NVMe AFF A800

Compared 13% of the time

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Product Reports

Pure FlashArray X NVMe

Download Pure FlashArray X NVMe product report

IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe

Download IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe product report

NVMe All-Flash Storage Arrays

Download NetApp NVMe AFF A800 product report

Also Known As

Pure FlashArray//X NVMe, Pure FlashArray//X, FlashArray//X

IBM FlashSystem 9100, FlashSystem 9100

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Pure Storage

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IBM

NetApp

Overview

Pure Storage FlashArray//X is the world’s first enterprise-class, all-NVMe flash storage array. It represents a new class of storage – shared accelerated storage, which is a term coined by Gartner – that delivers major breakthroughs in performance, simplicity, and consolidation.

IBM FlashSystem 9100 combines the performance of flash and Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) end-to-end with the reliability and innovation of IBM FlashCore technology and the rich features of IBM Spectrum Virtualize - all in a powerful 2U enterprise-class storage system. Providing intensive data driven multicloud storage capacity, FlashSystem 9100 is deeply integrated with the software defined capabilities of IBM Spectrum Storage allowing you to easily add in the multicloud solutions that best support your business.

Your data is a gold mine. Get the most out of it - faster - with AFF A800. Designed for NVMe media, further accelerated with NVMe/FC connectivity to the host, AFF A800 all-flash systems deliver an incredible sub-200 microsecond latency. Providing more than 11.4M IOPS and 300GB/s throughput in a single cluster, AFF A800 redefines the limit of what’s possible with artificial intelligence and deep learning.

Sample Customers

Fremont Bank, Judson ISD, The Nielsen Company

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IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe vs. NetApp NVMe AFF A800