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reviewer917832 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Director at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees
Real User
Nov 23, 2021
Provides interoperability between VMware products but needs more support for applications
Pros and Cons
  • "VMware comes with different stacks like VMware Cloud Foundation, which is integrated with different VMware modules. There's interoperability between VMware products."
  • "I would like to see more support for applications. I think currently it only supports applications between two vSAN clusters."
  • "I'm not happy with the VMware support. There are so many delays attributed to different reasons, like when you transfer the case from one engineer to the other, the second engineer is not aware of what the first engineer has done, so we need to update the second engineer from the beginning."

What is most valuable?

VMware comes with different stacks like VMware Cloud Foundation, which is integrated with different VMware modules. There's interoperability between VMware products. 

Another good feature is that you can create profiles for each VM. You can mirror one set of VMs according to another set of VMs. You can also define the quality of service for that profile.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see more support for applications. I think currently it only supports applications between two vSAN clusters. I heard that VMware is planning to have applications using vSAN at the hypervisor layer. I'm not sure whether it's available or it's being planned for the next release. I would prefer it to be on the storage layer than on the hypervisor layer.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been working with VMware vSAN for two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I haven't had any issues with the stability of VMware vSAN.

Buyer's Guide
VMware vSAN
May 2026
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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I haven't had any issues with scalability, but I think historically it supports only 64 nodes. It's a VMware limitation, but in our deployment in Sri Lanka, hardly any customers use that many nodes. If you consider that aspect, then scalability is okay. The largest customer we have here uses two nodes.

For Nutanix, there is no such limit as far as I know.

How are customer service and support?

I'm not happy with the VMware support. There are so many delays attributed to different reasons, like when you transfer the case from one engineer to the other, the second engineer is not aware of what the first engineer has done, so we need to update the second engineer from the beginning. 

Their response is also not that fast. We have seen that sometimes the competency of the backend engineers is not that high, and because of that VMware support is a bit of a concern for us. Apart from that, I don't have many issues with the product.

How was the initial setup?

Setup is not that difficult. We have had a few issues with the implementation. Initial setup is not as straightforward as Nutanix.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Compared to Nutanix, the design of VMware vSAN is probably the highest in the marketplace in terms of market penetration. I think it's number one, and Nutanix is not that far behind.

From an upgrade perspective, it's not as straightforward compared to a Nutanix. You need to do a lot of checks and balances before you do the upgrade. With Nutanix, you don't need to worry about it at all, probably because those nodes are coming from Nutanix itself. Because of that, they kind of keep everything to a single file where all these checks will be done initially when you run it. With vSAN, the server could be coming from different vendors like HP or Huawei. So it won't be that easy to come up with a single package to check all of these formula licenses because the upgrade is not that smooth compared to Nutanix.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution 7 out of 10.

My advice is to plan well which workload you're going to use for VMware vSAN. Not all workloads are suitable for VMware vSAN. Before using VMware vSAN, you should consider implementation planning, network sites, and group layout.

Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Account Executiveager at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Nov 21, 2021
It offers us some flexibility, but it could be integrated better with the cloud
Pros and Cons
  • "If we decide to expand, vSAN could offer us some flexibility. We are researching ways to set this up from a new data center, which is located somewhere different from the current location right now."
  • "For the high price of VMware, you get seamless operation and manageability."
  • "I would like to see better integration between the cloud and our VMware virtual environment. We only have one virtual environment, which is VMware vSAN. Right now, there is little interoperability with the cloud solution at the moment."

What is our primary use case?

I work at a small company, and we have VxRail. Like Rubrik, VxRail can be upgraded brick by brick. Now we are studying considering deploying another traditional setup comprising a host and SAN Storage. VMware vSAN is a virtual SAN Storage. 

We are planning to expand the resources of our system, including CPU, RAM, and storage. Currently, we are utilizing the basic VxRail setup, which consists of only three nodes, and we're in the process of acquiring another. I'm upgrading because it's at capacity, so we have no choice but to add another node so we can expand the loads for some new applications that we need to employ under the virtual servers. Our expansion to a new data center will add some more capacity to the current setup.

In the end, we could wind up with around six nodes, SAN storage, or flash array storage. But we don't have a definite plan yet. Everything is being drafted at the moment, and we're researching some details on backup solutions and VR solutions. We also have some cloud-based and server-hosted applications from Azure and AWS. So maybe the on-premises solution could involve some VMs or a hybrid backup solution that goes back and forth between the cloud and on-premises. 

What is most valuable?

If we decide to expand, vSAN could offer us some flexibility. We are researching ways to set this up from a new data center, which is located somewhere different from the current location right now.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see better integration between the cloud and our VMware virtual environment. We only have one virtual environment, which is VMware vSAN. Right now, there is little interoperability with the cloud solution at the moment. We are currently researching to figure out if we can achieve that. 

It's possible that we'll need to acquire new infrastructure for the new data center. And for that, we need to consult some architects, whether it's a VMware architect or some AWS and Azure architects. And we could come up with a workable blueprint that to use as a guideline so we can manage our infrastructure.

For how long have I used the solution?

I am new to this company, but I worked with different solutions at my previous company, including vSAN and the traditional VMware vSphere setup. So I've been using vSAN for two years or three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

VMware vSAN is stable, although there's is some room for improvement. 

How are customer service and support?

I've been working with VMware technical support since I had my own company. It's pretty dependable because I used to work primarily with level three infrastructure support. We are the last escalation. I am one of the contact people between the company and the VMware vendor. The final escalations would be working with the vendor itself or some VMware engineer, whether it's vSAN, vSphere, Center, or anything else within the scope of our license.

In my environment right now, we only handle a limited set of VMware products. These solutions are not perfect because we must apply patches and updates to deal with glitches and minor bugs. Byt I think vSAN will be reliable, especially if the after-sales support and engineers are excellent and could help us work seamlessly and comfortably.

How was the initial setup?

Our initial vSAN setup is a backup from Rubrik being thrown up to AWS for Glacier. But in the near term, maybe we could migrate that kind of solution in a more seamless and resilient way. That's what we're considering right now.

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

VMware is quite expensive compared to Microsoft's Hyper-V. However, when you factor in flexibility and comparability of use, it's reasonable enough. For the high price of VMware, you get seamless operation and manageability. At the same time, I think VMware is lowering the price for its cloud-based solutions. And it's stable enough that some organizations might want to put part of their setup on the cloud and the other part on-premises. VMware's advantage is that they were already preparing for cloud solutions many years ago. 

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

There are several virtual solutions that I have hands-on experience with, including VMware, Hyper-V, and some open source software. I could only compare Microsoft and VMware. VMware is significantly more expensive than Microsoft, but I still prefer VMware because it's manageable and easy to set up.

As a VMware customer, it's hard to judge the value I'm getting for the price in terms of operability and manageability. Then there are other factors, such as the amount of resources used. So when we're evaluating, we're not just looking at the price. We don't want to settle for something cheaper that might cost us some headaches.

What other advice do I have?

I rate VMware vSAN seven out of 10. I prefer a traditional SAN storage solution. Right now, we're only using vSAN for small solutions. At the basic level, it's good enough because it operates the same way as the traditional setup. It's suitable for companies that are starting and might expand in the near future. For those use cases, vSAN is a great choice compared to Hyper-V. It's much easier to maintain. However, I haven't deployed vSAN for a larger configuration.

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
VMware vSAN
May 2026
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSAN. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: May 2026.
899,283 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Managing Director at WISE VARY
Real User
Nov 15, 2021
Easy to manage, with a convenient dashboard and good stability
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution fits well with my requirements."
  • "It is easy to deploy and great for virtualization."
  • "It would be ideal if the solution offered some intelligent monitoring."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for virtualization for our organization.

What is most valuable?

The solution is easy to manage due to the fact that it uses the same dashboard as Center.

vSAN is okay for HCI.

The solution fits well with my requirements. 

The stability is good.

The product can scale.

I have always found the technical support to be helpful and responsive. 

What needs improvement?

So far, the solution is okay with me. 

It would be ideal if the solution offered some intelligent monitoring. Right now, most of these features are in another subscription such as Log Insight.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for three years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability has been very good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We currently have ten people that directly use the solution in our organization. 

The scalability is simple. It's very easy to scale the HCI node.

How are customer service and support?

We rarely use technical support. We might use them for consulting purposes sometimes if, for example, we have a new system and then we are concerned that it might or might not be running on vSAN. We might need them to probe it first. So far, we have been satisfied with the level of support we get.

How was the initial setup?

I was not a part of the implementation process and therefore cannot speak to how easy or difficult it may be. 

The solution has very few maintenance requirements. Occasionally, they may recommend a fix or patch by updating it, and we do so. However, other than that, it's pretty simple to maintain.

What about the implementation team?

Normally we use a local system integrator or distributor to do the setup for us.

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

The pricing is competitive with other vendors. It's mid-range in terms of pricing. It's not cheap and it's not overly expensive.

What other advice do I have?

We are a customer and an end-user.

We are using the latest version of the solution at this time. 

I'd recommend the solution to other users. It's easy to deploy and great for virtualization. 

I would rate the solution at 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
reviewer935562 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Buyer at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Real User
Nov 4, 2021
Reliable, scales well, and has good documentation
Pros and Cons
  • "I like the tolerance of VMware vSAN."
  • "It is easy to scale VMware vSAN."
  • "The integration could be improved. I would like to see integration with other platforms."

What is our primary use case?

We use VMware vSAN to build storage for our virtual machines.

What is most valuable?

I like the tolerance of VMware vSAN.

What needs improvement?

The integration could be improved. I would like to see integration with other platforms.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using VMware vSAN in our environment. I have used this solution for more than five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

VMware vSAN is a stable solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is easy to scale VMware vSAN.

In our organization, we have 100 members.

We may increase our usage in the future. With the company's growth, there are plans to expand in the future. We may require additional members. It's possible that we'll be able to scale this solution more in the future.

How are customer service and support?

We read the manual, which provided us with a thorough explanation. It was sufficient. We use technical support only on rare occasions.

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

Nutanix is a product that I am familiar with. We were able to use the Nutanix supported trial version.

In Microsoft's system center, both Nutanix and VMware can be easily maintained.

We will not be using the Nutanx system at this time.

Nutanix's integration with other platforms could be improved.

How was the initial setup?

This solution was easily installed by our team.

We have a team of four people to deploy and maintain this solution, including one administrator and one manager.

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

This solution requires the purchase of a license.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Because of COVID-19's impacts, we looked for a different IT system that would match our budget.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I would rate VMware vSAN an eight 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
reviewer965808 - PeerSpot reviewer
Solution Manager at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Oct 28, 2021
High performance, scalable, and great technical support
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution has high performance."
  • "The technical support has been great from VMware vSAN."
  • "VMware vSAN could improve by adding NAS and object storage."

What is our primary use case?

VMware vSAN is a software-defined storage solution and there are no hardware dependencies. We use it for general-purpose workloads or Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).

What is most valuable?

The solution has high performance.

What needs improvement?

VMware vSAN could improve by adding NAS and object storage.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VMware vSAN for approximately four years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution has been stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

VMware vSAN is scalable.

We have approximately 5,000 people using this solution in my organization. 

Our last customer in India had over 180 servers running.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support has been great from VMware vSAN.

How was the initial setup?

The installation was straightforward. We did not find it difficult.

What about the implementation team?

We have a team of 50 that does the maintenance and support of the solution.

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

We pay for a license to use the solution through our company CapEx and then we continue to pay annually.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate VMware vSAN 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
reviewer1682655 - PeerSpot reviewer
Head of Professional Solutions at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Oct 10, 2021
Very integrated and is scalable
Pros and Cons
  • "vSAN is very integrated."
  • "VMware vSAN is software-defined storage; you don't have to buy additional external storage, and you can manage all the storage entities from the console, which is very important to our customers."
  • "Ease of administration is one area where vSAN could be improved."

What is our primary use case?

VMware vSAN is software-defined storage. I think that says it all. You don't have to buy additional external storage, and you can manage all the storage entities from the console. That's very important to our customers.

What is most valuable?

vSAN is very integrated.

What needs improvement?

Ease of administration is one area where vSAN could be improved. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We've been using vSAN for probably four to five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

For our purposes, vSAN's stability is okay.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

vSAN is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

As far as I know, any VMware tickets that we've escalated have been handled professionally. and their support team is very skilled.

How was the initial setup?

It's straightforward. Because we are deploying it from the VxRail global setup, there is no dedicated vSAN setup that we are providing. It's all integrated into the VxRail setup. However, installing vSAN itself can be quite complex if you're doing it from scratch.

What other advice do I have?

I rate vSAN eight out of 10. I would recommend it to others. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
PeerSpot user
PeerSpot user
Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Sep 26, 2021
Lets you efficiently use hardware resources, but the UI needs work
Pros and Cons
  • "Everyone uses virtualization to more efficiently utilize hardware resources. That's the main point of vSAN and VMware."
  • "The UI falls short compared to other solutions. It needs some development to make it more user-friendly."

What is our primary use case?

The vSAN is similar to other VMware products that are quite popular in Thailand. Everyone uses virtualization to more efficiently utilize hardware resources. That's the main point of vSAN and VMware.

What needs improvement?

The UI falls short compared to other solutions. It needs some development to make it more user-friendly. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using vSAN for six years. 

How was the initial setup?

vSAN isn't easy to install, because it's separate from VMware. You have to install vSAN and monitoring separately. Configuration is not straightforward. You have to define the policy first and then allocate through the virtual machine.

What about the implementation team?

We used the VMware professional team to install, and it took them around two days. After it was deployed, we used one engineer to maintain the system.

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

The license for vSAN is a yearly subscription. 

What other advice do I have?

I would rate vSAN seven out 10.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Integrator
PeerSpot user
IT Coordinator at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Real User
Sep 13, 2021
A stable solution, but is overpriced and could have faster replication and compression features
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is stable."
  • "While I like the replication and compression features, there is a problem with them running too slowly."

What needs improvement?

The user-friendliness could be better. 

The solution is quite pricey in comparison with other products, such as HP or Cisco. 

While I like the replication and compression features, there is a problem with them running too slowly. This is not of benefit to the customers, but it is important when it comes to migrating. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using VMware vSAN for around two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable. 

How are customer service and technical support?

It is difficult for me to comment on the technical support, as we are not the customer or user. 

How was the initial setup?

The complexity of the initial setup varies with the customer. 

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

In comparison with other solutions, such as HP or Cisco, I find the solution to be quite pricey.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

HP and Cisco have lower priced solutions than VMware vSAN, which I find to be quite pricey. 

What other advice do I have?

I think I am satisfied with the product. I would say it is so so. 

I rate VMware vSAN as a seven out of ten. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. partner
PeerSpot user
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Download our free VMware vSAN Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.