Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users
PeerSpot user
Senior Data Center Solutions Architect at ChaanBeard.com
Reseller
Top 20
Our clients see a reduction in total cost of ownership by around 40%
Pros and Cons
  • "The security operating system is its most valuable feature because it's very simple, easy to use, and operate. You don't have to do very serious training to operate this equipment. It's user-friendly and pretty straightforward."
  • "It's not so scalable. It's got moderate scaling capabilities right now. The clustering technology needs a bit of work, they need to improve that."

What is our primary use case?

We are a reseller of Pure Storage FlashArray. Our customers use it for virtualization, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.

How has it helped my organization?

It has helped to simplify storage because it has a very easy graphical user interface.

Our clients see a reduction in total cost of ownership by around 40%. We have also found that the total cost of ownership of flash is lower than SSD implementations. I track a whole bunch of business markers on the cost of components. I do a lot of cost analysis for customers and I get pricing from all the component manufacturers; Ingram Micro, Toshiba, Seagate and then I compare the pricing. I do that almost every week. I constantly see that it's cheaper than SSD implementations.

What is most valuable?

The security operating system is its most valuable feature because it's very simple, easy to use, and operate. You don't have to do very serious training to operate this equipment. It's user-friendly and pretty straightforward.

The performance analytics are moderate. It's not the best performance platform out there but it's the easiest to operate.

What needs improvement?

They need to find another way of doing data protection, RAID is not working very well. It takes performance away from the SSD.

I would like to have multi-cloud integration.

Latency needs a bit of work. It's pretty good but it needs to get below 300 microseconds. Then the data reduction would be excellent. On average I see twelve to one data reduction.

Buyer's Guide
Pure Storage FlashArray
September 2024
Learn what your peers think about Pure Storage FlashArray. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2024.
812,863 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's not so scalable. It's got moderate scaling capabilities right now. The clustering technology needs a bit of work, they need to improve that. 

How are customer service and support?

I've used their technical support and would say that it's excellent. I would give them a ten out of ten. 

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

My clients know it's time to switch solutions because I run a proof of concepts where I test the manufacturer's equipment. If I find something that is a big difference then I let them know about it. Cost, performance, tools, and ease of use are all factors that we take into consideration when choosing to switch. We also chose this solution because of the Evergreen upgrade and the ease of use.

What about the implementation team?

I also install Pure Storage for my clients. The initial setup is very straightforward and very simple. It takes me an hour to set one up.

What was our ROI?

My client's return on investment with Pure Storage is in about 7.3 months.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at Nimble, which is now owned by HPE, and E8, Dell EMC, and NetApp platform.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten. Not a ten because nobody's a ten. We haven't achieved perfection yet.

I would advise someone considering this or a similar solution to push Pure Storage for multi-cloud integration.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Reseller.
PeerSpot user
Tim Kovars - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr. Systems Engineer at Quarles & Brady LLP
User
It has made working with storage as easy and simple as it should be
Pros and Cons
  • "The amount of data that I have moved to it from legacy storage has enabled us to retire units that are three or four times the physical size."
  • "The deduplication and compression rates are beyond impressive."
  • "I never have to worry about its performance or if it is the root cause of an issue."
  • "It has made working with storage as easy and simple as it should be."
  • "Just some nit picky stuff, like allowing servers and volumes to be grouped. Therefore, it would easier to work with them in the GUI."

What is our primary use case?

SAN solution for Tier 1 storage for VMware, Exchange, SQL, and physical servers; trying to fit as much production load as possible on them.

How has it helped my organization?

The speed to deploy or move VMs is ridiculous. By migrating our important systems to the Pure arrays, we have removed any storage issues and questions when there is a problem of "is it the storage?"

The deduplication and compression rates are beyond impressive. The amount of data that I have moved to it from legacy storage has enabled us to retire units that are three or four times the physical size.

What is most valuable?

  • Ease of setup
  • Migration to it
  • Upgrading
  • Support responsiveness
  • Kick-butt mobile app
  • On box analytics and vCenter plug-in
  • The ease of creating a snapshot for testing or recovery.

I cannot stress enough the stability, speed, and awesome deduplication and compression rates. The amount of data we have moved to it has allowed us to remove units four times the size. The mobile app is kick-butt and support has been topnotch.

What needs improvement?

Mainly, just some nit picky stuff, like allowing servers and volumes to be grouped. Therefore, it would easier to work with them in the GUI.

For how long have I used the solution?

Less than one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

None.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

No issues.

How are customer service and technical support?

It has been great; easy to work with to resolve cases or perform upgrades.

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

Yes, plainly put, it sucked and we wanted to get to a solution that was fast, easy to maintain, and reliable.

We had issues with it not handling the load and could never trust that it was serving data fast enough to not be causing issues.

How was the initial setup?

Easy as pie.

What about the implementation team?

In-house.

What was our ROI?

  • Speed
  • Time saved in management
  • Availability
  • No fingers pointing at storage as an issue.

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

It is a more expensive solution, but it is worth it. You are getting what you paid for. I never have to worry about its performance or if it is the root cause of an issue.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We looked at Nimble and EMC.

What other advice do I have?

I never have to worry about its performance impacting the firm. It has made working with storage as easy and simple as it should be.

I had high expectations and they have met or exceeded each one of them. It was an exciting day when I finally got them up and running.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Pure Storage FlashArray
September 2024
Learn what your peers think about Pure Storage FlashArray. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: September 2024.
812,863 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Works at a comms service provider with 1-10 employees
Real User
Top 20
Smooth provisioning and a single pane of glass for management
Pros and Cons
  • "We only have storage provisioning, so the provisioning feature is good. The compression and deduplication are good."
  • "They can also include file services such as NAS shares and CIFS shares. There should be provisioning of the file shares from a unified array."

What is our primary use case?

We have a contract with Pure Storage, and we use it for VMware and database server storage provisioning.

We have multiple applications in the environment, and we are provisioning from Pure Storage.

How has it helped my organization?

The single pane of glass is important for us because we can view all the array details in one place. We can see the details about the capacity, utilized space, available or free space, alerts, and performance in one place. This overview is important.

It did decrease the storage footprint compared to other models and storage, but I do not have the metrics.

It helps to reduce the downtime.

What is most valuable?

We are not using any replication features. We only have storage provisioning, so the provisioning feature is good. The compression and deduplication are good.

What needs improvement?

It does not require much improvement. They can maybe improve the file services. The focus is on block storage. They can also include file services such as NAS shares and CIFS shares. There should be provisioning of the file shares from a unified array.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Pure Storage FlashArray for one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

There is no lagging or crashing. It is quite stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is good in terms of scalability. We can scale up to a higher number.

How are customer service and support?

I have interacted with their technical support. They were good at providing support when I requested.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We have different flash array systems from HPE GreenLake. Pure Storage is better than the HPE GreenLake flash array. Performance-wise, Pure Storage is better. The cost of Pure Storage might be high, but I am not sure.

How was the initial setup?

It is on-prem. I do not know about its initial deployment because I was not there at the time of deployment. So, I do not know if its benefits could be realized immediately after the deployment. However, it has been effective in terms of utilization and capacity. We are now planning for different storage and doing the migration from Pure Storage to others because of the EOC limit that we have.

In terms of maintenance, there are firmware updates. We have to schedule a change window and then update the firmware.

What other advice do I have?

It is good. Working with it is easy. Provisioning is smooth and good. The GUI and everything else is good. You can just do training with Pure Storage and get on with your storage tasks.

Overall, I would rate Pure Storage FlashArray a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Flag as inappropriate
PeerSpot user
Kleber Fernandes - PeerSpot reviewer
Diretor Comercial at a security firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Top 5Leaderboard
A highly stable and scalable solution that ensures return on investment for its users
Pros and Cons
  • "On a scale of one to ten, where ten is the most comfortable pricing, I rate the solution a nine out of ten."
  • "Currently, the solution fails to support file screening."

What is our primary use case?

It's a very simple tool to use with extremely low latency and high performance.

How has it helped my organization?

Pure Storage FlashArray has improved the performance of applications.

What is most valuable?

Feature-wise, the solution provides direct flash storage.

What needs improvement?

Improvement-wise, Pure Storage FlashArray must support real-time incidents. I think that Pure Storage should improve its pricing.

Currently, the solution fails to support file screening. I want to see the solution supporting file screening in the future.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Pure Storage FlashArray for four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten. Presently, five people in my company use the tool.

How are customer service and support?

I rate the solution's technical support a ten out of ten.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

How was the initial setup?

The solution's initial setup process was straightforward.

What was our ROI?

My company saw a return on investment using the solution as it helped us reduce the time it took to access applications and reduced the space required in our data center.

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

Pure Storage FlashArray is expensive.

What other advice do I have?

When considering the use of this solution, I suggest evaluating the price and taking into account its performance and potential to reduce the space in the data center. I rate the overall solution a ten 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.
PeerSpot user
Infrastructure Engineer at ISAM
Real User
Meets our needs, and has good speed and good programmability
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the speed, and I like the API and how programmable it is."
  • "Its price could be cheaper. It is not the cheapest one out there, but I'm not directly involved in the figures and negotiations."

What is our primary use case?

At the moment, we're migrating our complete infrastructure onto Pure Storage. All of our storage is going onto it.

We are using its latest version.

What is most valuable?

I like the speed, and I like the API and how programmable it is.

What needs improvement?

Its price could be cheaper. It is not the cheapest one out there, but I'm not directly involved in the figures and negotiations. 

In terms of features, we are really happy with it. We haven't had it long enough to give feedback on that.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for a year now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

So far, it has been brilliant. We haven't really had it long enough to judge it.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It seems pretty good, but we haven't really tested it.

We have about a hundred users. We will possibly increase its usage. It will be done slowly.

How are customer service and support?

It has been really easy to use. Their support has been very helpful.

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

We were using another solution. We switched because it was very old, and we were looking at something that was an SSD. 

How was the initial setup?

I was not involved in the initial setup. For its deployment, we had a couple of engineers.

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

It is not the cheapest one out there. We're paying yearly, but I'm not 100% sure.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Pure and NetApp, and we eventually went with Pure. A positive point with NetApp was the price.

What other advice do I have?

If it's financially viable for you and you can afford it, it's worth it.

I would rate it a nine out of 10.

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.
PeerSpot user
System Administrator at a government with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Has high reliability and enables us to have faster access to our data
Pros and Cons
  • "The top-tier support and reliable storage are the most valuable features of this solution."
  • "In the next release, I would like to see file-level encryption."

What is our primary use case?

We use the private on-premise deployment model. Our primary use case of this solution is for virtual machines. We just use it as storage for our vCenter environment.

How has it helped my organization?

It has improved my organization in the way that we have high reliability and faster access to our data.

It has improved our IT organization in the way that we are able to provide systems to our customers quickly and provide high availability and reliability for their applications. 

We are running VMware on Pure. Our main driver was speed. The joint solution has helped our organization through speed of delivery and speed of applications.

What is most valuable?

The top-tier support and reliable storage are the most valuable features of this solution. 

What needs improvement?

In the next release, I would like to see file-level encryption.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's highly stable. It's one of our biggest successes. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It's been really easy to expand storage with no downtime. It's one of the things we like about it. 

How are customer service and technical support?

Their technical support is great. 

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

We knew we needed to switch to this solution because the industry is going away from spinning disks. We were on spinning disks, and the whole industry is going away from that. 

We are still using IBM but we are not happy with it. IBM has taken old technology and tried to make it new. Pure has started from the ground up and built it.

How was the initial setup?

The integration was straightforward. 

What about the implementation team?

Pure Storage did the integration for us. 

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

Our costs are around $100,000.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also evaluated Nimble, EMC, and HPE 3PAR. We ended up going with Pure because of the architecture, speed, and support.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate it a ten out of ten for its reliability, speed, and support. The support is awesome.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Vladimir Blazek - PeerSpot reviewer
Solution Architect at Storage One
Real User
Top 10
Integrates seamlessly with major platforms while offering tight integration with backup software for faster restores
Pros and Cons
  • "I find two features of Pure Storage most valuable. The first is the "safe mode" function, and the second is its simplicity."
  • "The primary drawback is the cost, which can be prohibitive for small configurations."

What is our primary use case?

Our customers primarily use Pure Storage for virtualization, whether it is VMware or Hyper-V. They choose Pure Storage for its high-performance, low-latency, and reliable all-flash arrays, which are essential for efficiently running virtualized workloads, including critical applications, databases, and virtual machines.

What is most valuable?

I find two features of Pure Storage most valuable. The first is the "safe mode" function, and the second is its simplicity. I value its simplicity and artificial intelligence monitoring. It also integrates seamlessly with major platforms like VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, and Microsoft SQL, while offering tight integration with backup software for faster restores. This connectivity promotes cyber resilience and can be leveraged for disaster recovery solutions.

What needs improvement?

I don't see any major issues with Pure Storage, but one thing to note is that Pure Storage can be seen as a premium product, and other vendors are catching up in terms of performance and features. However, overall, the feature set and performance are excellent.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using Pure Storage FlashArray for two and a half years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is highly stable, especially if you follow recommended patching and software upgrades. Pure Storage offers an officially published uptime guarantee, ensuring device stability, which is legally binding.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Pure Storage is very scalable. Even the smallest model can be successfully upgraded all the way to the largest model, which is a feature I haven't seen with other solutions.

How are customer service and support?

Pure Storage's tech support is excellent. They use AI effectively, and their support team is highly reliable and responsive. Our customers have experienced no issues with their support.

How was the initial setup?

Setting up Pure Storage is incredibly easy. You just plug it in, connect it to the network, and start building your storage – it is that simple. Deployment takes less than a day. Deployment is straightforward and typically manageable by a single person or resource. However, when lifting heavier equipment, like the larger Pure Storage units, it is recommended to have two people, but the rest of the setup can be accomplished via servers. Maintenance is straightforward. Once it is connected to the internet and secure communication is enabled, it sends monitoring data to Kubernetes and artificial intelligence in the cloud, providing early warnings of potential issues. This cloud-based AI can often assess the health of your device better than you can.

What was our ROI?

Our customers see a return on investment and value for their money with Pure Storage. They measure it through methods like net present value and comparisons to the weighted accumulated cost of capital, which provide a robust financial assessment.

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

It has a flexible, pay-as-you-go option.The primary drawback is the cost, which can be prohibitive for small configurations, but this is the only major downside.

What other advice do I have?

My advice for new users is to not be afraid to start using it from day one, but take the time to educate yourself on all the valuable features available to make the most of it. Since it is a significant investment, ensure you manage and protect the asset effectively. Overall, I would rate Pure Storage FlashArray as a ten out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
David Ivorra - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Lynx View
Real User
Top 10
A great enterprise solution helpful with performance, reliability and cost
Pros and Cons
  • "We find the ease of usability and setup valuable."
  • "Pricing could be better in comparison to other solutions."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case for this solution is focused on enterprise solutions, a support solution that needs either performance, reliability or cost. For example, most companies have databases, virtualized workloads, or VDI workloads. So with those kinds of environments like the Block Storage, it is perfect because it switches very well with the cost, performance, and reliability ratio. Additionally, it's easy to deploy to benefit the IT team in the management costs.

What is most valuable?

We find the ease of usability and setup valuable.

What needs improvement?

Pricing could be better in comparison to other solutions. The amount of storage the customers receive is approximately 20% higher when you compare it with similar solutions. So it can be a problem when you are positioning the product.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using the solution for seven years as partners and are currently working with the latest version.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is highly scalable, but scalability is sometimes undervalued, but everyone can scale. In the case of Pure Storage FlashArray, our experience with upgrading the capacity only involved changing the controllers. So, for example, if you have 20 terabytes and want to go to 100, you only have to change the controllers when paying for that storage capacity upgrade. You can also include the controllers, and the controllers' upgrade does not impact production. You can do it without stopping, so the upgrade of the machines can start with the smallest to the biggest machine that can deploy up to five petabytes. If you cannot do it smoothly, you don't have to stop production and will not have a disruption.

How are customer service and support?

Our experience with customer service and support has been very good. It is very good even though they are still growing, and they are very responsive to issues. They promise a 15-minute response time and are very good at keeping that promise.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. Two engineers are usually tasked with deployment.

What was our ROI?

Our return on investment is good.

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

The licensing cost is close to zero. Every new function or functionality is included when paying the annual maintenance. Our customers value it because the maintenance is always the same regardless of whether it's the first year, the seventh or the tenth year. Additionally, the products use the same operative system with new capabilities, like ransomware and safe mode. Another thing that is quite nice to have is outstanding performance. They can provide a lot of performance, so there is not a lot of difference. Still, efficiency is something customers value because the compression can be up to twice of the second competitor. I rate licensing costs a ten out of ten.

What other advice do I have?

I rate the solution a ten out of ten. The solution is good but can be improved by improving upgrade prices.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Pure Storage FlashArray Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: September 2024
Product Categories
All-Flash Storage
Buyer's Guide
Download our free Pure Storage FlashArray Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.