I use IBM FlashSystem for all of my VMware and BDI environments. I use a fiber channel network for conductivity.
IT Director at UAGM
High performance and effective duplication
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable features in IBM FlashSystem are IOPS, performance, duplication, and compression."
- "Sometimes the performance is effective but it gets resolved in the process."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable features in IBM FlashSystem are IOPS, performance, duplication, and compression.
What needs improvement?
Sometimes the performance is effective but it gets resolved in the process.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using IBM FlashSystem for approximately six years.
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IBM FlashSystem
June 2025

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How was the initial setup?
The implementation is difficult, and the process takes approximately three weeks.
What about the implementation team?
We use a partner that does the implementation of the solution.
What other advice do I have?
I rate IBM FlashSystem a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.

Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
You can opt for the full controller, so it's scalable
Pros and Cons
- "Installing FlashSystem is very easy. It takes less than half an hour, and I can handle it all myself."
- "The GUI for monitoring performance metrics could provide better visibility. For example, it doesn't let me segregate the IOPS per volume."
What is our primary use case?
We are providing services to the other department, so FlashSystem is running several applications across multiple servers. In the future, we plan to increase our usage capacity to around 60 terabytes.
What is most valuable?
IBM's response is very good.
What needs improvement?
The GUI for monitoring performance metrics could provide better visibility. For example, it doesn't let me segregate the IOPS per volume.
For how long have I used the solution?
We've been using FlashSystem for about six months to a year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
FlashSystem is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
You can go for the full controller, so you can say FlashSystem is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
We haven't had any problems with IBM support. However, they don't cover everything in a single contract. They have different types of contracts. For example, you need separate contracts for software services and hardware services. Dell EMC's pricing model for support is much better. There's only one all-inclusive contract.
How was the initial setup?
Installing FlashSystem is very easy. It takes less than half an hour, and I can handle it all myself. Three people on our team manage it.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
FlashSystem comes with all the licenses when you purchase it.
What other advice do I have?
I rate FlashSystem nine out of 10. I would recommend it to others.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
IBM FlashSystem
June 2025

Learn what your peers think about IBM FlashSystem. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Head of Data Center Administration at ООО Компания Тензор
Flexible, quick, and simple setup
Pros and Cons
- "IBM FlashSystem is flexible, quick, and has a solid design."
- "There could be some extra features added."
What is our primary use case?
We use IBM FlashSystem for backing up data.
How has it helped my organization?
There could be some extra features added.
What is most valuable?
IBM FlashSystem is flexible, quick, and has a solid design.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using IBM FlashSystem for approximately three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
IBM FlashSystem is a stable solution.
How are customer service and support?
We have the technical support from IBM but we have not needed to use them. We do not have any problems.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was easy.
What other advice do I have?
I rate IBM FlashSystem a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Technology Supervisor at a media company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Has good availability and performance
Pros and Cons
- "It's very easy to manage."
- "The solution is quite expensive. That's one of the downsides to using it."
What is most valuable?
The availability of the product is great.
I appreciate how well it can scale.
The solution is stable. The performance is quite good.
It's very easy to manage. They make it very, very easy to add notes.
What needs improvement?
The solution is quite expensive. That's one of the downsides to using it.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution over the last 12 months at least.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is quite good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's a very reliable product.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of the product is quite good. If a company needs to expand it, it can do so. It's not a problem at all.
How are customer service and support?
We don't need any external support. We do it on our own.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost of the solution is too high. They should work to make it lower.
What other advice do I have?
I'm not sure if the company I work for has any business relationship with IBM. I am just an end-user.
I'd rate the solution at an eight out of ten. It's been quite good overall and I like the capabilities it has.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Technical Support Manager at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Stable and high-performing solution
Pros and Cons
- "No queuing and high ops, speed, and performance."
- "The price is very costly."
What is our primary use case?
My primary use case of this solution is an ERP application on finance.
What is most valuable?
The product has no queuing and high ops, speed, and performance.
What needs improvement?
The price is very costly, which could be improved. In the next release, I would like to see some integration with VMware so that storage can be managed directly from a single pane.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using IBM Flashsystem for between six months to a year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
This solution is stable and high-performing, causing no hassles or problems.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This product has good scalability, allowing us to scale up as much as we need.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward with a smooth installation.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The product is available on a perpetual license based on the capacity used and the features required.
What other advice do I have?
If you have the funds and you require speed, this product is the answer. I would rate this solution as 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
Pre-Sales Consultant - Infrastructure at InfoTech Group
High performance, thoroughly stable, and easy to scale
Pros and Cons
- "The performance of IBM FlashSystem is very good. The new technology and high throughput have given us more confidence in the solution. The management of the system has improved and we can control the monitoring system alerts and multiple FlashSystems with the Enterprise Cloud Edition, which is free. The migration of recently stored data to a new flash is much easier. You can move your data because you can utilize it externally."
- "The technical support in my region is satisfactory but it could improve. Support is very important for customers and downtime is very critical for us. We would like onsite or complete technical support which can help us to minimize our downtime or if problems occur."
What is our primary use case?
We are using IBM FlashSystem as a storage system for core banking operations.
How has it helped my organization?
IBM FlashSystem has improved our company. We run multiple reports for management and it would take more than 12 reports sometimes and more than 18 hours to complete. With IBM FlashSystem the report takes two hours or less than a two-hour on a rotation. We can get our reports very quickly and this is something very valuable to our management.
What is most valuable?
The performance of IBM FlashSystem is very good. The new technology and high throughput have given us more confidence in the solution. The management of the system has improved and we can control the monitoring system alerts and multiple FlashSystems with the Enterprise Cloud Edition, which is free. The migration of recently stored data to a new flash is much easier. You can move your data because you can utilize it externally. Additionally, the front menu of the FlashSystem is very user-friendly and easy to understand.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using IBM FlashSystem for approximately one year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is highly stable. We did not receive any errors in the two years since we have been using them. We had one occasion when we had to call IBM for a replacement flashcard, otherwise, we did not have and performance impact or any issue with the FlashSystem.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
IBM FlashSystem is scalable as per our organization's requirements. We have also upgraded the capacity after two years and it is working fine and it was quite easy to add more capacity to the existing pool. We can use the same capacity to increase the existing two drives or for the new workload.
I work for medium to large enterprises which use this solution.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support in my region is satisfactory but it could improve. Support is very important for customers and downtime is very critical for us. We would like onsite or complete technical support which can help us to minimize our downtime or if problems occur.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward.
What about the implementation team?
I did the implementation myself.
What other advice do I have?
I rate IBM FlashSystem an eight out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
Hybrid IT Enterprise Executive at a computer software company with 11-50 employees
Reliable, easy to install, and well documented
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature is reliability."
- "Cloud file sharing is an area that needs improvement."
What is our primary use case?
I am an IBM reseller and I sell this solution to our clients. I have a lot of knowledge of this solution.
Our clients use this solution for database performance.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is reliability.
What needs improvement?
Cloud file sharing is an area that needs improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been selling this solution since it was released.
We sell the whole model, the entire line.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
IBM FlashSytem is very stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This solution is very scalable. We have no issues with the scalability of the IBM FlashSystem.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support is complicated.
The technical support can be improved. it should be more automated.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward.
It is well documented.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
You purchase it as a bundle and the price is comparable.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate IBM FlashSystem a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
Senior Systems Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Good price, good performance, and useful for data reduction
Pros and Cons
- "I like most of the features. Its speed, performance, and availability are valuable. We are implementing the data reduction technology the most."
- "Their technical support needs improvement in terms of reachability for the clients and response times. They should be more responsive and have more online platforms for support. They should make more technical information available online. There could be some kind of documentation community."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for data reduction technology. We are using this solution on-premises, and we are also providing services to customers.
What is most valuable?
I like most of the features. Its speed, performance, and availability are valuable. We are implementing the data reduction technology the most.
What needs improvement?
Their technical support needs improvement in terms of reachability for the clients and response times. They should be more responsive and have more online platforms for support.
They should make more technical information available online. There could be some kind of documentation community.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for three or four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We are only using one box or enclosure for now. We don't have experience with scaling the systems. Our companies here don't need big systems for now.
How are customer service and technical support?
Their technical support needs improvement.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very simple.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Its price is very good.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution. I would rate IBM FlashSystem an eight 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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Updated: June 2025
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