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Atilla Celiloglu - PeerSpot reviewer
Broadcast Technology Director at tv8
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
Reliable storage, easy to use, performs well, and the support is good
Pros and Cons
  • "It's an easy product to use that is stable and has good performance."
  • "The user interface could be improved to have better graphics and the performance analyzer could be better."

What is our primary use case?

We are using NetApp FAS Series on all of your sites.

We use it in four major systems for productions in broadcast TV channels. 

I can say that we use it in Production and Archive environments according to the model and disk structure. 

How has it helped my organization?

I can say that we use it in Production and Archive environments according to the model and disks structure.We tested many storages. Netapp was the most successful in terms of performance. We did multiple HD ingests in real-time. At the same time, Editing teams edited on the ingested files. As Ingest, we recorded more than 20 HD cameras simultaneously. We chose netapp when we saw that it was successful in the tests we carried out according to our structure.

What is most valuable?

  • First of all, I think it is very suitable storage for media.
  • When editing and recording at the same time, its performance is quite sufficient.
  • The fact that it is redundant for the controller provides sufficient security.
  • I can share all volumes as a single space through the FlexGroup structure.
  • You can manage departments independently by creating more than one SVM.
  • Ontap is a very stable and reliable operating system.

What needs improvement?

There should be a separate admin web management for each SVM. We are currently managing all SVMs from a single admin interface. it is a problem.

Real-time performance monitoring requires good software. It would be great to be able to see the audit logs.

Buyer's Guide
NetApp FAS Series
May 2025
Learn what your peers think about NetApp FAS Series. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using NetApp FAS Series for more than five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I can say that it is a stable product.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

NetApp has a structure that can grow very easily. You can expand by buying suitable model shelves. You can expand by the value allowed by the controller.

How are customer service and support?

We have opened cases with technical support in Europe. They can connect and together we resolve the issue.

At times we use support from the support site.

What other advice do I have?

NetApp FAS Series can use the cloud services in the storage and can be upgraded to the cloud.

I could recommend this solution to other media companies to use. It's an easy product to use that is stable and has good performance.

I would rate NetApp FAS Series a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1527378 - PeerSpot reviewer
Information Technology IT Manager Manager at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Reasonable price, good file sharing feature, but the file system is not dynamic and the operating system is very cumbersome
Pros and Cons
  • "The file sharing feature is most valuable."
  • "Its operating system is very cumbersome. However, after you set it up, it runs pretty smoothly. Its file system is not very dynamic. It is very static."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case was NFS. It was used for designing chips.

What is most valuable?

The file sharing feature is most valuable.

What needs improvement?

Its operating system is very cumbersome. However, after you set it up, it runs pretty smoothly.

Its file system is not very dynamic. It is very static.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is pretty stable. I would probably give it a six out of ten in terms of stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is scalable to some extent. There is a limit, but then everything has a limit. We were using it at three sites across the US. We ran into this issue of hitting the limit just once in a while. When you are growing a cluster, you usually hit that limit.

How are customer service and technical support?

Their support was okay. I wouldn't say it was very great, but it was there. Occasionally, they would just go round and round in circles. They didn't know what to do with the case.

They followed the sun model, which is followed by almost every company. If you open a case and the person is one hour away from his break or the end of his day, he would just say that he will have to give the case to someone else, and then you start all over again.

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

We have had different NetApp models. FAS has been around for a long time. The newer models are called AFF, and I have used AFF 300 and AFF 400.

How was the initial setup?

Its implementation was complicated. It takes a couple of hours if your network and DNS are ready. 

What about the implementation team?

There was a NetApp SE on the site to help us.

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

We purchased it for four years, and it wasn't expensive. It was reasonable. 

Every company has a different agreement with NetApp. We got everything we wanted with all the bells and whistles and all the features and functionalities.

What other advice do I have?

Its operating system is a little cumbersome, but it runs pretty smoothly most of the time.

I would rate NetApp FAS Series a seven 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.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
NetApp FAS Series
May 2025
Learn what your peers think about NetApp FAS Series. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2025.
857,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Temitope Oladeji - PeerSpot reviewer
NetApp Product Manager at Hiperdist Ltd
Real User
Top 10
A stable and scalable data management solution with a useful unified management feature
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the unified management feature because sometimes you end up running a single protocol on the entire system."
  • "Interfacing with the cloud environment could be better. I want to be able to move some cloud volume and integrate it seamlessly with my home on-premise storage. Sometimes I have issues with port permissions. NetApp probably needs to improve more on the integration side from on-premise to the cloud."

What is our primary use case?

I use NetApp FAS Series for storage consolidation, database management, performance, and data protection. We also use it for unified environments where you run multiple protocols. You can run it through a FAS or an AFF system. Our core applications are running on it, so it's always up.

What is most valuable?

I like the unified management feature because sometimes you end up running a single protocol on the entire system. Although it has the capacity to do multiple, you have to go the route to enable that. Sometimes it isn't convenient. You rather have a system for a particular protocol and another system for other protocols, especially in a big environment like mine.

What needs improvement?

Interfacing with the cloud environment could be better. I want to be able to move some cloud volume and integrate it seamlessly with my home on-premise storage. Sometimes I have issues with port permissions. NetApp probably needs to improve more on the integration side from on-premise to the cloud.

Capacity management could also be better. The difference between AFF and FAS has always been an issue, but now we have the advanced disk partitioning technology on the whole FAS systems that can give us more usable capacity. That has been the bigger issue that I had with NetApp in terms of improvement, and they seem to be working on it now.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with NetApp for more than ten years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's a stable solution. The trouble we have with stability is the trouble we created ourselves. Once the system is installed and configured, it's stable. Except sometimes, we want to check out things, and they create some trouble for us. If it weren't stable, we wouldn't be investing in it for the past ten years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

NetApp FAS Series is a scalable solution. We scale transparently, and we scale out and scale up. If we are scaling up with heavy capacity, it's very simple. Once we loop it, we have it and send it. We don't even have downtime for that. 

Sometimes it's tricky when we need to cluster several controllers and to scale-out many times. But it doesn't really have a major effect on our business. Sometimes we schedule it to let the business know that there might be some downtime for a period. We are finding ways to reduce the impact, and I think it's seamless. If I have to rate it, I'll give it 85%.

How are customer service and technical support?

My experience with technical support has been very good. In fact, most of the things I'm able to do, I learned how from the technical support team. They don't just work. They work, and then they allow me to learn with them. As they are doing it, they put me through, and I'm able to pick up one or two things every time I get their support.

Although it's in two layers because of the kind of customer I am, we have what we call dedicated service accounts managers. Even before your issues come up, the guy triggers it, and then they are proactive in managing our whole system. 

But sometimes, we will have issues where we have to raise support cases, and we have a good contractor there. We have four hours of premium support. So far, we always get a response within four hours, and sometimes we have our resolution.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was a complex process, but it's better now.

What about the implementation team?

We use a local vendor and integrator most of the time to implement this solution. Initially, the system always comes with about three years of support. I have very good vendors around, and it's great all around. They also come around to support, but first level support, I do it by myself. When it gets complex, I invite the integrator and sometimes the OEM.

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

It's not cheap, but at the same time, it's also inexpensive. It's somewhere in between.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to new users because it's easy to implement. It's easy to install, it's easy to scale, and there is what we call investment protection. If there's a new controller that comes up, your existing controller can integrate with it. You don't have to trade in what you have. It always has forward compatibility and backward compatibility. I will always recommend NetApp FAS Series.

On a scale from one to ten, I would give NetApp FAS Series a nine.

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
PeerSpot user
reviewer1215186 - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Director, IT at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Easy to manage with good data consolidation, visualization and snapshots
Pros and Cons
  • "Data consolidation and visualization."
  • "The solution could do more than just data."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for data storage. We are customers of NetApp and I'm the assistant director of our company. 

What is most valuable?

One of the valuable features of the solution is data consolidation and visualization - and snapshots of course. The solution is easy to manage. 

What needs improvement?

We'd like to move to a solution that does more beyond just data, like starting to get more to servers and network specialization and data visualization and things like that. Server network and management specialization or consolidation. And also, trying to see a bit more single plane of glass in terms of managing, so that it gives you more insight in terms of what's happening. 

Ideally the solution should have one console, the ability to use a single plane of glass across the enterprise. Because we have one VRR, one size duplication so just to have one console where you can manage everything else in harmony would be a good additional feature. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using this solution for 15 years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable solution. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable at the data level because it uses aggregates so you can easily increase data. But of course it's dependent on your provision for growth reports. I don't know how many use the solution but our company has around 600-700 employees and we have two people dealing with maintenance on the product. It doesn't require more than that. 

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very straightforward. If you're good, you can get it up and running within a week. 

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

I think the pricing of this solution could be lower because really it's just storage consolidation these days. I think this technology has matured so much. It's time to make it slightly more competitive, it's on the high side for now.

What other advice do I have?

Obviously anyone looking at this solution must have primarily a data storage use case. If they have a strong case for data storage, it's a good solution. From there it's just a matter of managing work flows between SAN and NAS which requires planning. You can then manage your capacities very well if you know your data requirements. 

I would rate this solution an eight out of 10. 

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.
PeerSpot user
ICT-I Manager at KTDA
Real User
Easy to install and the backup features are powerful
Pros and Cons
  • "The most important features are SnapVault, Snapshots, and SnapMirror."
  • "Technical support needs to be improved, as there are no longer partners in our country."

What is our primary use case?

We used NetApp FAS for both block and file sharing but we have now switched to another product by HP.

What is most valuable?

The most important features are SnapVault, Snapshots, and SnapMirror.

What needs improvement?

Netapp closed their local offices in our country leading to no technical and sales support representation.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We've had issues with scalability because the product that we were using went end-of-life many years ago, and we were not able to expand because there were no spares available.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward and the deployment took just a few days.

What about the implementation team?

We had in-house experience for implementation and deployment.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Before choosing this product originally, we evaluated others and were ultimately impressed by the Snapshots, ShapVault, and SnapRestore features. These were what we really wanted, and at the time, we could not find another product that had similar capabilities.

We had been using NetApp for quite some time, but the equipment was quite old and we wanted a new system. Between NetApp and HP, we chose HP because the NetApp support is not very good. They used to have partners in the country, but they have left.

What other advice do I have?

My advice for anyone who is considering NetApp FAS is that it is a good product and our only real complaint is the lack of technical support. If they live in a country where technical support is available then I recommend it.

I would rate this solution 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.
PeerSpot user
MuhammadAli5 - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Unit Head at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Top 10
Has an excellent feature set and protection
Pros and Cons
  • "The best feature is its ONTAP product line for Ransomware protection. It also has features for file storage and block storage. The solution is stable. We've had no issues with it. The tool is scalable and meets our requirements. The technical support and the supporting partner are great. The initial setup is straightforward. It is very easy to maintain the product. The feature set is excellent. I recommend the solution."
  • "Replication should ideally be part of the ONTAP base bundle."

What is our primary use case?

We use it for storing our database data and for our virtual machines.

What is most valuable?

The best feature is its ONTAP product line for Ransomware protection. Another benefit is the hybrid and unified model. It also has features for file storage and block storage.

What needs improvement?

I was a little skeptical about the model. I wonder why the replication is included in the ONTAP One bundle when some customers may not require additional features. It should ideally be part of the ONTAP base bundle, even if there's a slight price increase.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with this solution for approximately two years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. We've had no issues with it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The tool is scalable and meets our requirements for TVs. It handles beta bytes well. We are happy with its scalability.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support and the supporting partner are great.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

I work with HPE and Huawei OceanStor, too. HPE is great, but I'm not satisfied with Huawei OceanStor. I'm comfortable with HPE and NetApp FAS Series.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. It is a SaaS solution. and very easy to maintain. It’s not a high-maintenance device. It runs smoothly. We use it within our university and have up to a hundred concurrent user sessions. 

What about the implementation team?

The deployment was handled by the partner from whom we made the purchase.

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

The product is on the expensive side, but the feature set is excellent.

What other advice do I have?

I recommend the solution. Overall, I rate it a perfect ten because I haven’t encountered any issues since I’ve started using it.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Sarthak Panchal - PeerSpot reviewer
Module Lead - NetApp Admin, CMA at a tech consulting company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Top 5
Easy-to-setup product with efficient scalability features
Pros and Cons
  • "NetApp FAS Series is simple to set up."
  • "They should add new features to the product."

What is most valuable?

NetApp FAS Series provides all the essential capabilities of E-Series. It is a complete package and even more reliable than E-Series.

What needs improvement?

They should add all features from Flash Pool, Flash Cache, and other new features into the product.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I rate the product’s stability a ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I rate the product’s scalability an eight out of ten.

How was the initial setup?

NetApp FAS Series is simple to set up.

What about the implementation team?

We deployed the product with the help of our in-house team.

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

It is a moderately low-priced platform.

What other advice do I have?

If you are looking for a solution with good scalability options, go for NetApp FAS Series. I rate it an eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
reviewer1200537 - PeerSpot reviewer
Owner at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Reseller
Top 20Leaderboard
A scalable solution that is the best one in the market in terms of features and pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "The product is flexible."
  • "The solution's configuration is not flexible."

What is most valuable?

The product is flexible. 

What needs improvement?

Everythink is ok. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with the product for four to five years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The product is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. It is recommended for medium companies. 

How was the initial setup?

The product's setup is easy and takes one working day to complete. One person is enough to implement the solution. 

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

The product's pricing is reasonable. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate the product a nine out of ten. The tool is the best one in the market in terms of pricing and features. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free NetApp FAS Series Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: May 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free NetApp FAS Series Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.