StarWind Virtual SAN Reviews

My main use case for StarWind Virtual SAN is that we're using it with older hardware to create a new SAN.

I have a number of virtual servers that run utilizing this service on top of StarWind Virtual SAN in my environment.

Our file server benefits most from StarWind Virtual SAN because of the speed and the ease of use.

StarWind Virtual SAN has impacted my organization positively by saving a lot of money over purchasing a new SAN.

By choosing StarWind Virtual SAN over buying a new SAN from a big vendor, I probably saved about $50,000.

The best features StarWind Virtual SAN offers in my experience are the ease of implementation and it runs on Microsoft Windows platform, which stand out for me.

The ease of implementation was important for my team because it saved us a lot of time and research, and we didn't have to do anything other than just install the software and we were up and running in a few minutes.

StarWind Virtual SAN could be improved, and I wish the management GUI worked better.

I have been using StarWind Virtual SAN for a year.

StarWind Virtual SAN is stable in my experience.

StarWind Virtual SAN's scalability is good, and I have had an easy experience adding more space to the system.

I have not had to reach out to customer support, so my experience has been positive.

I previously used an older Dell SAN.

Before choosing StarWind Virtual SAN, I evaluated other options, including purchasing SANs from Dell and HPE.

I decided to switch from the older Dell SAN to StarWind Virtual SAN because we had existing hardware that we could use and implement for this project.

I have definitely seen a return on investment because we saved money.

Specifically, we saved money over having to purchase a SAN from a big vendor, which has impacted my IT team's workload.

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing was that it was easy to implement, license, and the cost was very good.

My advice to others looking into using StarWind Virtual SAN is to download a trial and try it for yourself. I rate StarWind Virtual SAN 10 out of 10.

On-premises

I'm using it in several virtualization for testing the capability of some hypervisor example proxmox ve, redhat enterprise virtualization, ovirt, oracle vm for x86, hyper-v and more. Using Starwind VSAN i was able to test the block storage of most cases using iscsi with ease of use

Since I'm using free version. testing deployment of various virtualization get as a lot of discount.

FREE! It's free please try to use it.

I hope you can try to have a multiple deployment option like ceph which covers several nodes and replicas

I have been using Starwind VSAN for years. When doing home lab and testing for the need of external storage, Starwind VSAN always come to my mind.

There are like same users like truenas

As per white paper. you can scale this product

It's easy to file a ticket when you are experiencing problem with this vsan

Positive

Yes. dell emc, oracle pillar and oracle zfs and truenas

It is straight forward. white papers is easy to understand

Inhouse only. since i have several experience in storage. Mostly in iscsi it much easier to understand

0 years. I tried it mostly in testing in the implementation. with zero cost i can test a solution like proxmox

You can purchase support with this. this is a great product and good support even you are using free version! community is ok as well

I can compare it via truenas. It's both free

I hope can have more option like zfs.

On-premises

Other

We use StarWind Virtual SAN to create a failover cluster and high availability servers for our products.

The best features are the software's ease of setup and the excellent technical support. My company relies heavily on technical support from experts to maintain reliability, as our crew is not very IT savvy. StarWind Virtual SAN helps us keep customer satisfaction and provides the solutions we need without having to hire many IT specialists.

More comprehensive reporting and educational resources for error resolution would enhance the user experience. There have been cases where not understanding exactly what's failing on the Virtual SAN has been an issue. Having more visibility on what's actually happening when an error occurs would be beneficial.

I've been using the product for six years.

I don't worry about it failing. Most of the failures are not actually from the software itself, but from another cause.

The technical support team has been very involved and supportive. They have been great at demoing what they can do for us. When we set it up, they validate our settings and configurations to ensure we don't miss anything, especially as we are not fully up-to-speed with all technical IT aspects.

Positive

We previously used another software for four years. We switched because the software was bought out by another company and was painful to set up. The ongoing maintenance was hard to deal with, and it was more labor-intensive to implement.

The initial setup was simple. Going in blind and just reading the documentation took me maybe a day to figure things out. Compared to other software I've used, it’s night and day regarding ease of installation.

The return on investment is good. We don't sell a lot of redundant servers, so it's not a massive ROI, but the ability to rely on their technical support and the software's ease of setup allows us to reduce labor costs and go to market competitively.

StarWind Virtual SAN allows for high availability server configurations and data replication between two servers. It ensures high availability uptime, letting us not worry about hardware failures. Overall, I would rate it as a nine out of ten. They are really great for everything that they do.

On-premises

First, I need to explain what motivated me to use VSAN. 

Some time ago, I developed a work environment with KVM Proxmox by creating a cluster made up of four servers: two HP and two Dell, along with two servers running Proxmox Backup Server, both interconnected to ensure redundancy for the backups of all virtual machines. 

Now that I’ve described a bit of my environment, the main use I have given to this tool is in the creation of HA (High Availability) servers to provide better performance to the services running on my Proxmox cluster.

Since I started using VSAN to create high availability servers in my Proxmox environment, even referring to the free version, the services we provide in the company have achieved a high percentage of effectiveness over the year, significantly reducing downtime due to hardware issues with any server in the cluster. 

This has led to a remarkable improvement in the services we offer, and since this is a company that provides security in various areas, the difference between before and after is huge. 

For this reason, I have submitted a request to the company management to acquire the Pro version of the product, as I have not found any negative comments about its use so far.

The feature I have found most valuable in VSAN is its high availability capability. This function has been essential to ensure that our services remain operational even in the event of hardware failures. 

Thanks to its seamless integration with Proxmox, the implementation of high availability servers has drastically reduced downtime, which is crucial for our security-focused company. 

Before implementing VSAN, we faced more interruptions and downtime, which impacted our ability to provide reliable services. The ability to manage a cluster with servers from different brands and ensure backup redundancy has significantly improved our operational efficiency.

Although I am generally satisfied with VSAN and its performance, there are some areas that could be improved to enhance its effectiveness even further. 

One area that could benefit from improvement is scalability. While the tool works well in its current configuration, allowing for greater ease and flexibility in adding new nodes to the cluster without complications would be very beneficial, especially in growing environments. 

Additionally, I would like to see additional features in the next version, such as better support for automated resource management. This could include proactive suggestions for optimizing storage and memory usage, as well as preventive alerts about the health status of the servers. 

A more intuitive interface or an improved dashboard for monitoring the cluster would also be helpful, as it would facilitate performance tracking and help identify potential issues before they affect services.

I have been working with VSAN for about one year on the free version.

My impressions of the tool's stability so far have been positive, as it has met my expectations.

I believe that scalability should be further improved, especially considering the possibility that environments may grow exponentially. Strengthening this aspect would allow for better adaptation to future demands and ongoing growth.

We have not had any contact with technical support.

Positive

I had not used other solutions before because I didn't need them. When I finally decided to look for a tool, I chose VSAN due to the many positive recommendations I found. That trust in the feedback from other users led me to try it, and so far, it has met my expectations.

The initial setup on my part was quite intuitive.

The solution was implemented internally.

My role within the company is IT support, focusing on infrastructure and servers.

I can't give a sincere opinion on the installation and licensing costs because, as I have mentioned repeatedly, I am currently using the free version. 

However, I can say that I have submitted a request to the company management to evaluate the acquisition of the Pro version. 

I haven't tried other options. When I set out to research which solution or tool could help with the issues I was facing, I came across many positive reviews about VSAN. This convinced me to give it a try, and its performance was so impressive that I was hooked right away.

I would recommend considering the high availability feature of VSAN as an important asset for any organization. It has greatly improved the reliability of our service by drastically reducing downtime, especially in a security-focused environment like ours.

While I have only used the free version so far, I have found that its seamless integration with Proxmox is extremely beneficial.

I'd rate the solution ten out of ten.

On-premises

Other

My main use case for StarWind Virtual SAN is testing in lab environments and as a temporary setup where I needed storage on existing hardware.

A specific example of how I used StarWind Virtual SAN in my lab is as storage for virtual machines in Proxmox.

The best features StarWind Virtual SAN offers in my experience are that there is a free version and it can be used as hyper-converged storage over multiple nodes.

StarWind Virtual SAN has positively impacted my organization because the straightforward setup has made things easier for my work and organization.

StarWind Virtual SAN can be improved by adding a possibility to install bare metal on hardware to use as storage without using it in a hyper-converged configuration.

I have been using StarWind Virtual SAN for approximately two to three years.

In my experience, StarWind Virtual SAN is stable.

From my experience, StarWind Virtual SAN's scalability is good.

I did not need to contact customer support for StarWind Virtual SAN.

I previously used a different solution, specifically Open-E, but the experiences were not as good from a stability standpoint.

I have not seen a return on investment and cannot share any relevant metrics, such as time saved, money saved, or fewer employees needed.

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that there is a free version, which is beneficial. However, when you need pricing information, you have to contact sales, which is a downside.

Before choosing StarWind Virtual SAN, I did not evaluate other options and simply found StarWind Virtual SAN ranked first on Google.

I have used StarWind Virtual SAN on multiple virtual machines to create a high-availability storage solution. I gave this review a rating of 8 out of 10.

On-premises

Other

My main use case for StarWind Virtual SAN involves our physical servers, where I monitor the virtual machines and the storage we have attached to it.

It has simplified the daily monitorin gof our VMs

In my opinion, the best features StarWind Virtual SAN offers are its flexibility and the ability to combine the storage types we have, and it stands out because it is easy to use.

StarWind Virtual SAN has positively impacted my organization by giving us the flexibility and freedom to have more time for other projects. It is a tool that does not have many problems or create any issues, so we can concentrate on other projects.

Currently, StarWind Virtual SAN is working perfectly fine, so there are no changes I would suggest.

I have been using StarWind Virtual SAN for a couple of years now.

StarWind Virtual SAN is stable.

The scalability of StarWind Virtual SAN is pretty good.

We did not use customer support for StarWind Virtual SAN.

Positive

I did not previously use a different solution before StarWind Virtual SAN.

The pricing and setup were easy. It was easy to deploy, which was the best part I think, and for pricing, it is a relatively good price.

I have seen a return on investment with StarWind Virtual SAN, particularly in time saved, as I can have more free time to concentrate myself and the team on other projects.

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for StarWind Virtual SAN was okay.

Before choosing StarWind Virtual SAN, I did not evaluate other options.

My advice to others looking into using StarWind Virtual SAN is that they should use it and give it a try because it is a very nice, easy, and working solution.

I just want to say to StarWind Virtual SAN to keep up the good job.

On a scale of one to ten, I rate StarWind Virtual SAN a ten out of ten.

On-premises

I work as a Senior Systems Administrator at a mid-sized company in the financial services industry.

The single sign-on capabilities have been a huge time saver for our users. The multi-factor authentication also adds a much-needed layer of security, especially with so many people working remotely these days. The centralized management is great. Being able to manage user access and permissions from one place simplifies things considerably. The integration with other Microsoft products is also a plus.

Initially, there was a bit of a learning curve for some of our users, but Microsoft's documentation was helpful. Also, the pricing can be a bit complex depending on the features you need.

We used a previous identity and access management solution before Azure Active Directory. Azure AD is much more user-friendly and has a better integration with our existing infrastructure.

Also, the pricing can be a bit complex depending on the features you need.

Overall, I would recommend Azure Active Directory to other companies. It’s been a valuable addition to our IT infrastructure.

Other

The product is being utilized within an airgap lab environment, which means it is isolated from external networks and internet connectivity for security reasons. The virtual Storage Area Network (SAN) is integrated into the system alongside Hyper-V, a virtualization platform developed by Microsoft. 

This configuration allows for efficient storage management and virtualization capabilities within the isolated environment of the lab. The virtual SAN helps in providing centralized storage resources that can be dynamically allocated to virtual machines running on the Hyper-V infrastructure, enhancing the overall performance and flexibility of the system. 

By combining these technologies, users can optimize their lab environment for testing, development, or research purposes without compromising security or network integrity.

This innovative product has significantly enhanced speed, security, and organization. With its advanced features and capabilities, users can experience improved efficiency and productivity. 

The optimization of speed ensures rapid performance, allowing tasks to be completed more quickly and effectively. Additionally, the enhanced security measures provide peace of mind and safeguard sensitive information from potential threats. 

Furthermore, the organization features streamlined processes and ensures easy access to important data, ultimately contributing to a more seamless and structured workflow. 

This product has proven to be a valuable asset in enhancing overall operations and effectiveness.

When it comes to ease of installation, the whole process is designed to be user-friendly and straightforward. With simple step-by-step instructions and all the necessary tools included in the package, setting up the product is a breeze. Even for those who are not particularly tech-savvy, the installation can be completed in a matter of minutes without any hassle. Whether it's assembling a piece of furniture, installing software, or setting up a new device, the ease of installation ensures a smooth and hassle-free experience for users.

The dashboard is functional, but it could benefit from a more modern and visually appealing design. A facelift would not only enhance the overall aesthetics but also improve user experience by making it more intuitive and user-friendly. 

Updates such as streamlined navigation, clearer data visualization, and customizable widgets could make the dashboard more engaging and efficient for users. 

A fresh look and improved functionality would elevate the dashboard to better meet the needs and expectations of users.

I've used the solution for six months.

One of the standout features of the device is its exceptional stability when used for virtual SANS (Storage Area Network). The stability ensures that data transfer and storage operations are smooth and uninterrupted, making it a reliable and efficient solution for managing and accessing large volumes of data in a network environment. 

This feature enhances the overall performance and reliability of the virtual SANS, making it a valuable asset for businesses and organizations that rely on secure and high-speed data storage solutions.

One of the best features of the product is its scalability. This allows users to easily customize and adjust the product to suit their specific needs and preferences. 

Whether it's expanding storage capacity, upgrading performance capabilities, or adapting to different user requirements, the scalability of the product ensures versatility and flexibility. 

Additionally, scalability often means that the product can grow with the user, accommodating changing needs over time without the need for a complete overhaul or replacement. This feature adds significant value to the product by enhancing its longevity and adaptability in various scenarios.

Their support team is highly knowledgeable and skilled in assisting customers with any technical issues they may encounter. 

Whether it's troubleshooting a complex setup, optimizing performance, or addressing compatibility concerns, the StarWind customer service team is well-equipped to provide expert guidance and solutions. 

Customers can rely on their technical expertise to ensure smooth implementation and operation of the Virtual SAN solution.

Positive

I did not previously use a different solution. 

The installation of StarWind Virtual SAN was straightforward and seamless. The user-friendly interface guided me through the process step by step, making it easy to set up and configure. 

I was impressed by the clear instructions and the minimal technical knowledge required to get the software up and running. The whole installation process was efficient and well-organized, allowing me to quickly deploy the virtual SAN solution without any hassle.

My experience with installing StarWind Virtual SAN was smooth and hassle-free.

We used an in-house team.

We witnessed an ROI within one to three months.

I did not evaluate other options. 

On-premises