Lutz Kirchner - PeerSpot reviewer
Founder & CEO / CIO at German Top Secure Data Processing GmbH
Real User
Top 10
Offers good performance and easy to deploy
Pros and Cons
  • "I would rate the stability a solid ten out of ten."
  • "There is room for improvement in the update process, especially the web UI update process."

What is our primary use case?

We use them as a core connection throughout the entire company. Our entire company network is run by those switches. So, it's for internal Ethernet. We use it for almost everything.

What is most valuable?

They are running very robustly, so they handle the default tolerance.

What needs improvement?

There is room for improvement in the update process, especially the web UI update process, is very, very slow. That should be improved.

In future releases, I would like to see zero downtime updates. Currently, when I do updates on a certain website, I have to restart the entire device, which makes it hard to keep network connectivity going.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for five years. 

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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I would rate the stability a solid ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is definitely scalable. I would rate the scalability a nine out of ten. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We actually looked into three companies, HPE, Dell, and Ubiquiti, during our initial setup. We made our decision for HPE because the price value was quite competitive. Even though at some point, they were more expensive than Dell's tools, they had some advantages in terms of stability and availability as well.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was actually straightforward. The onboarding was quite easy. You just have to learn some command line codes, which are very well documented. So with some experience, it was an easy task to do.

The initial deployment took me about three months throughout the entire company. We're talking about thousands of switches.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also have Ubiquiti. We use them in our branch offices as a connection throughout the office network because they are very easy to manage. It's one of the best UI experiences I've had in the past years.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend that you talk to the folks from HPE. They have real knowledge of what they are doing. They don't see you as a typical customer; they see you as a partner. So they went pretty far with engineering and ingenuity, which took me very, very far. They've made a difference for us to get this all up and running.

Overall, I would rate the solution a nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
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System engineer at Colourtex Ind Ltd
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Issue-free, easy to set up, and reliable
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution offers lifetime warranties."
  • "The pricing could be lowered."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for Layer 2 switching and we are using it for the searching, VLAN features, and some DDoS prevention and protection.

What is most valuable?

The Layer 2 switching capabilities are very useful. 

It has an easy initial setup.

The solution offers lifetime warranties. 

It has good stability.

it's been issue-free, and we haven't needed any support.

It can scale. 

What needs improvement?

We haven't had any issues as of yet.

The quality could be better. For example, I much prefer Cisco. However, they are both almost at the same level. 

The pricing could be lowered. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for four years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's a stable solution. It is reliable. There are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn't crash or freeze. If it is configured correctly, I will rate the stability nine out of ten. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

They have 24 or 48 ports. It can scale. You choose according to your needs. We have 100 users. 

We do not have plans to increase usage. 

How are customer service and support?

We've never faced any issues, and our team is very knowledgeable. So far, we have not needed support or assistance. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We use a variety of products, including Cisco, HPE, Aruba, Ruckus, Cambium, and D-Link. 

How was the initial setup?

For switching and networking, it is okay to set up. We didn't run into any issues. 

The deployment is quick and only takes half an hour. We used the console and the GUI during the process. 

I have one or two resources available to handle any maintenance tasks. 

What about the implementation team?

We handled the setup ourselves via the GUI. 

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The solution is a bit expensive.

What other advice do I have?

I tend to prefer Cisco over HPE. We buy HPE mostly for its warranty. 

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Buyer's Guide
HPE Ethernet Switches
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about HPE Ethernet Switches. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
768,246 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Manager, Information Technology Security at Nesma
Real User
Top 10
Useful for network setup and improves performance
Pros and Cons
  • "Switching to HPE Ethernet Switches greatly improved our network. We used to have both Cisco and HPE Ethernet Switches. Our network performance has increased by 300 percent."
  • "Sometimes, we encounter the need for new technologies, especially when we require higher bandwidth. If we can't find what we need with HPE Ethernet Switches, we explore options from other vendors like Cisco."

What is our primary use case?

We use HPE Ethernet switches for our networking setup. Most of our infrastructure is configured with them. Recently, there have been discussions about changing them, but we've been using them extensively.

What is most valuable?

Switching to HPE Ethernet Switches greatly improved our network. We used to have both Cisco and HPE Ethernet Switches. Our network performance has increased by 300 percent. 

What needs improvement?

Sometimes, we encounter the need for new technologies, especially when we require higher bandwidth. If we can't find what we need with HPE Ethernet Switches, we explore options from other vendors like Cisco.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The tool is scalable. 

How are customer service and support?

The solution's technical support is good. 

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We're not currently using Cisco. We used a mix of HPE Ethernet Switches and Cisco in the past but ultimately opted for HPE.

How was the initial setup?

The solution's deployment is easier than Cisco's. Cisco deployment can be challenging primarily due to its complex configuration process. Accessing certain features may not be straightforward, which adds to the difficulty. In contrast, HPE Ethernet Switches are easier to navigate and configure. The tool's deployment time depends on the switches. Smaller ones, like the 24-volt or basic ones, may take less time. However, our experienced team typically takes around an hour or less to install and configure them.

Its maintenance depends on the size of our infrastructure. For our setup, which is quite large, we usually have around three to four people to maintain it.

What other advice do I have?

The reliability of HPE Ethernet Switches, in terms of uptime and performance, is good. We have no concerns in this regard. I rate the overall solution a nine out of ten. You need to choose the right switching system for your network. The tool offers a wide range of modules, so it is important to select the ones that best serve their specific needs. For instance, if they require high bandwidth, they should opt for those designed for that purpose. Similarly, they should choose the appropriate switching system for a standard network.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Kelem Birhane - PeerSpot reviewer
Enterprise Solutions Manager at Ethio Telecom
Real User
Easy to set up and quick to deploy with fair pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "You can scale the product as needed."
  • "It would be ideal if the product offered more security."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for the switch mechanisms. 

What is most valuable?

We actually use these only as the situation calls for it. It depends on if the switches make sense for a company. They are good for IT companies and enterprises. 

The solution is stable and the performance is good.

You can scale the product as needed. 

It is a product that is very easy to set up and deploy.

The pricing is pretty good. 

What needs improvement?

It's not easy to find the devices. Companies often don't keep them in stock and only get them when there is a demand. 

It would be ideal if the product offered more security.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been dealing with HP for years now. It's been a while. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is good. The solution offers good performance and reliability. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable and easy to expand. If a company needs to scale, it can do so.

We have maybe 1,000 people using the product in our company right now. 

How are customer service and support?

I've dealt with technical support in the past and never have had issues with their level of service. I'm satisfied with them.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

I'm also familiar with Cisco, which is a bit more expensive. 

How was the initial setup?

It is easy to set up the product. It doesn't take long either. Deployment might take an hour. It's not a difficult process at all. A company wouldn't have any issues setting everything up.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

The product itself is less expensive than, for example, Cisco. 

What other advice do I have?

I'm just a customer and an end-user. I don't have a business relationship with HP. 

I'm not sure which version of the solution I'm using at this time. 

I'd recommend the solution to other people and other companies. 

I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Andriejus Artamonovas - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Specialist at DataBank
Real User
Top 10
Has a simple and understandable user interface
Pros and Cons
  • "I value that there is a clear place to find a MAC table with HPE Ethernet Switches."
  • "The next release would benefit from adding a central management that could be deployable on premise and allow you to see the layout of topology."

What is our primary use case?

The use case of this solution depends on our client's environment. Some use HPE Ethernet Switches right out of the box, while some of them use models where the interface can only be opened by Internet Explorer.

The primary use cases would be office interconnection and industrial interconnection. The switches are best suited for our small or medium-sized clients. 

What is most valuable?

For me, as an administrator, I value that there is a clear place to find a MAC table with HPE Ethernet Switches. 

HPE Ethernet Switches are quite robust. I have not seen them damaged to the level that they are not operable anymore.

The solution has a simple and understandable user interface providing everything I need.

What needs improvement?

In the past, I have encountered configuration problems with the Spanning Tree Protocol. The switches were only handling a single loop. There were quite a few looped switches that could not handle the board blocking, creating the need to manually fight each loop. I have not had the same problems with the newer models of HPE Ethernet Switches.

HPE Ethernet Switches tend to hang from time to time, but all switches do that.

The next release would benefit from adding central management that could be deployable on-premise and allow you to see the layout of topology.  

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with HPE Ethernet Switches for about one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. HFE does not fail any more or less often than other switches.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

HPE Ethernet Switches, especially the 1820s, are best suited to small or medium-sized organizations, however each case is model dependent. The switches we use, are used in large companies, but they are fractured into smaller layers of three subnets. 

The solution is scalable, you can add a switch when you need to, and you can reconfigure it.

How are customer service and support?

I have not had the need to contact customer service and support. Any past issues, we were able to resolve by go through some of our forums.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

Since our company provides services, we work with the switches that the clients have. Most of the switches we work with are HPE's, Cisco, and UniFi.

I found that when using Aruba or UniFi, you have to search for the MAC table from CLI. This is difficult because when someone calls using a MAC, I will not get the IP address and I need to guess where the user is.

UniFi requires less intervention in configuration, requiring some tune-up support. HPE needs to be configured manually.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup of HPE Ethernet Switches is straightforward. The time it takes to deploy depends on the overall network configuration, including the number of LAN, number of up links and down links for that switch.

If you only need to connect the switch to the up link and give out for a test for the end devices, it would take a maximum of thirty minutes after installing the switch to its correct place.

In a case where there is a lot of VLAN with some trunking, deployment could take a couple of hours.

I would rate the initial setup of HPE Ethernet Switches a five out of five. They require little to no maintenance and are reliable enough.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

As a technician, I am not certain of pricing, but I believe HPE is less expensive than Aruba and UniFi and that is why certain clients have chosen them as their solution.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend to anyone looking into implementing HPE Ethernet Switches to go for it if the price makes sense for their organization.

Overall, I would rate HPE Ethernet Switches an eight out of 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
PeerSpot user
Consultant at Lifeline IT
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Has a helpful user interface and provides good reliability
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution's interface is helpful, and you can see the traffic."
  • "The solution lacks certain protocols and has a limited warranty."

What is most valuable?

The solution's interface is helpful, and you can see the traffic. HPE Ethernet Switches is a reliable solution.

What needs improvement?

The solution lacks certain protocols and has a limited warranty. You have to pay extra to get more warranty on it.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using HPE Ethernet Switches for ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

HPE Ethernet Switches is a stable solution, but it depends on your requirements.

I rate the solution a nine out of ten for stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable to a certain extent. You won't be able to do advanced networking on it. Around 100 users are using the solution in our organization.

How are customer service and support?

The solution's technical support team will arrange for things to be changed or replaced.

How was the initial setup?

The solution’s initial setup is straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We implemented the solution through an in-house team. To deploy the solution, you need to log on to the interface and configure whatever you need to configure. The solution can be deployed within minutes. The solution has a plug-and-play deployment process.

What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

HPE Ethernet Switches is a fairly cheap solution. The solution does the job well for its price. You have to pay a lot more money for higher features, but then you are probably better off looking at higher-end switches. HPE Ethernet Switches are designed for smaller size businesses.

What other advice do I have?

The solution can be deployed on-premises and on the cloud. Integrating the solution with our existing network infrastructure was very easy.

Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Regional IT at PMGL
Real User
Top 5
So reliable that they offer a lifetime warranty on their products
Pros and Cons
  • "HPE is very reliable because it has a lifetime warranty, so the switches didn't give us any problems."
  • "The pricing could be better."

What is most valuable?

HPE is very reliable because it has a lifetime warranty, so the switches didn't give us any problems. We were planning on replacing our switches with new HP ProCurve switches.

The solution is very straightforward for HPE users. It is not difficult to configure.

What needs improvement?

The pricing could be better.

For how long have I used the solution?

We've used HPE Ethernet Switches for about ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The switches have been stable since we put them in there. HPE gives a lifetime warranty on their switches because they know they're reliable. We have never had a single issue with HPE switches being offline or being upgraded and not working again.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very scalable.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We've used D-Link switches for smaller offices.

How was the initial setup?

It's a very straightforward solution because it is not that difficult to configure. HPE was much simpler to set up than FortiGate. It didn't take a long time to set up.

What about the implementation team?

We implemented the solution in-house.

What was our ROI?

The product's pricing is high, but you always get your ROI. It has served me for ten years without trouble.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We transitioned to Fortinet due to a company policy that came in to change from HPE to Fortinet. However, at the HPE level, I don't think Fortinet is on the same level. You won't compare HP with Fortinet. If you're going to compare HPE, then you have to go to Cisco Enterprise. But we try to stay just a little bit below the very high-level enterprise systems that HPE and Cisco have.

What other advice do I have?

I rate HPE Ethernet Switches a ten out of ten. I recommend the product to everybody who wants to use it. HPE gives you a lifetime warranty on their switches, promising to fix them any time they break down. That tells you the product is reliable.

The pricing could be better, but I don't blame them for their price. HPE is not a small-business switch, especially the ProCurve switches, which are a bit expensive. Cisco prices are also not cheap, so I'm sure it's because of the competition. If HPE should make their prices a bit cheaper while Cisco keeps their price up there, it implies that Cisco is much more reliable than HPE. For competition's sake, reducing their price might not be something that can be done unless it can still be competitive at that level.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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Engineer at Bit 2 Bit Communication SRL
Real User
Top 5
Easy to deploy, stable, and scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature of the solution is its stability."
  • "The security of the solution always has room for improvement."

What is our primary use case?

I use HPE Ethernet Switches to connect virtual PBX or IP PBX to the voice infrastructure. There are some exceptions to what I will configure, which is to have the same connection for connecting the phone to the switch, and from the phone to the PC, using only one cable.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable feature of the solution is its stability.

What needs improvement?

The security of the solution always has room for improvement.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using the solution for ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

From the perspective of an integrator, HP's technical support is good.

How was the initial setup?

The complexity of the deployment depends on the configuration required. One is to use the solution for a small company that has fifty employees, and we will put fifty phones, and another situation is when we install the solution for a company with more than two thousand employees.

The deployment for a large organization takes around four months.

The deployment is not difficult. For large customers, they use two different switches; HPE 2680 for the office and HPE 5406ZL for the distribution and core. These switches are capable of both layer two and layer three functions.

What about the implementation team?

The implementation is completed with our help as the integrator.

What other advice do I have?

I give the solution a nine out of ten.

I recommend HPE Ethernet Switches to others.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
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Download our free HPE Ethernet Switches Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: March 2024
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