Works at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Has worked well for two years, but requires a minimum of nodes for maintenance mode
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable thing about vSAN is that all of its features have been working well for us for the past two years. We haven't had an issue with them."
  • "When designing the implementation for vSAN, I have noticed that it requires a minimum of six nodes, and this creates a problem when it comes to maintenance. If, out of the six nodes, I put one node in maintenance mode, then vSAN does not create other VM components."

What is our primary use case?

We are an implementation partner for VMware vSAN and we use it alongside our hyperconverged infrastructure solutions with products such as Nutanix, HyperFlex, and SimpliVity. It is currently implemented in key areas off-site for over seven customers.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable thing about vSAN is that all of its features have been working well for us for the past two years. We haven't had an issue with them.

What needs improvement?

When designing the implementation for vSAN, I have noticed that it requires a minimum of six nodes, and this creates a problem when it comes to maintenance. If, out of the six nodes, I put one node in maintenance mode, then vSAN does not create other VM components. I think the reason for this is that the minimum configuration is a six node arrangement. If any one of the six nodes is put into maintenance mode, we're simply unable to create a VM, but if there are seven nodes in that cluster, then we are able to put one under maintenance. That's one thing that should be looked at.

More generally, the features of vSAN as we see them are dependent on the quality of the storage, since each different storage technology has its own separate features that go along with it.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been working with VMware vSAN for at least two years. 

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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable product, especially now that we have it fully implemented. However, if any two or three of the nodes go away, vSAN goes down. I think we've had a few VMs where the data has been lost for this reason. I guess that the way it works would be similar to other technologies, but that's what we have observed.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

You can increase the compute capability as well as the disk storage, so it is scalable.

How are customer service and support?

I've already escalated the issue regarding the six nodes, which I've mentioned. This has been escalated to VMware and they know that it is a limitation, because apparently it is normal behavior for any nodes that are put in maintenance mode.

How was the initial setup?

The setup is easy.

What other advice do I have?

We have been working with vSAN for the last two years, and we haven't seen too many issues overall, but because of the troubles we have faced with the fact that vSAN doesn't let you put a node in maintenance mode unless you have six or more nodes, I would rate VMware vSAN a six out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Implementer
PeerSpot user
Senior Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
MSP
The vendor has been around for a long time, so the solution is pretty stable
Pros and Cons
  • "I think vSAN's stability is good. It's an underlying solution for both on-prem and in the cloud, especially the VMC on AWS stuff too. VMware has been around for a long time, so it's pretty stable."
  • "There is a lot that VMware could improve from a marketing perspective. The cloud is still new for many people, so extending storage should be effortless. It shouldn't be so complicated to extend the storage so workloads can access it no matter where they go."

What is our primary use case?

All of our customers are either doing virtual storage on the cloud, or they're trying to extend their on-prem storage solution into the cloud. Our typical use case is providing features in the cloud that are typically on-premise, and that includes storage as well. For example, we might have vSAN on-prem storage that the workloads are accessing, and we want to extend it to the cloud to start spanning workloads out there. 

Most customers have a hybrid setup, with some of their infrastructure on-prem and some on the cloud. Other customers are getting out of the data center business altogether and moving everything into the cloud.

What needs improvement?

There is a lot that VMware could improve from a marketing perspective. The cloud is still new for many people, so extending storage should be effortless. It shouldn't be so complicated to extend the storage so workloads can access it no matter where they go. 

When you're moving a workload, you don't want to worry about whether the storage will be there or not. Ideally, that should be easily replicated and extended to a cloud environment. We have a lot of vendors trying to extend their on-prem infrastructure seamlessly. That could be workloads. It could be extending the virtual hardware to on-prem storage or the physical storage to virtual storage in the cloud. Everything should be easy for customers to consume and configure, but some of this stuff is still pretty complex because it's so new.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using vSAN for about five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I think vSAN's stability is good. It's an underlying solution for both on-prem and in the cloud, especially the VMC on AWS stuff too. VMware has been around for a long time, so it's pretty stable.

How was the initial setup?

All the vendors are working on making the setup more straightforward. Things are becoming a little more scripted. More automation and installations where you don't have to check every box are always good.

What other advice do I have?

I rate VMware vSAN nine out of 10. 

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
VMware vSAN
March 2024
Learn what your peers think about VMware vSAN. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2024.
765,386 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Senior Technology Consultant at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Easy to configure with basic functionality
Pros and Cons
  • "VMware vSAN is easy to configure, with basic functionality and the customer can maintain the solution."
  • "The only thing that can be improved is the cost."

What is our primary use case?

Our company works in a multi-cloud model, hybrid environment using both the hyperscalers AWS and Azure with a combination of public and private clouds. Our organization is an integrator so VMware vSAN is used for our end customer.

VMware vSAN is used for VM workloads. We show our customers that they do not need to keep everything on-premises and that they can move not critical data to minimize data compliance security. We move them to a public cloud with the two hyperscalers. For workloads that they are not comfortable keeping in a public cloud, we recommend using a hybrid model. My use cases deal with virtual workloads, retailing and manufacturing solutions.

What is most valuable?

VMware vSAN is easy to configure, with basic functionality and the customer can maintain the solution.

What needs improvement?

The only thing that can be improved is the cost.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VMware vSAN for more than two years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

VMware vSAN is stable. We would not recommend it to so many of our partners if it were not. It is foolproof; it's on multiple workloads.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. Our customers have varying workloads, so we use the combination of on-premises and hybrid cloud, moving from private to public, and public to private so the scalability is always there. 

How are customer service and support?

We have in-house support for normal operational transactions. We also have a contract with VMware vSAN. Even our end customers have direct support contracts for the solution. Normally escalations to VMware support have to do with product bugs, a defect, or an engineering issue. 

What about the implementation team?

Our team deploys the solution in the customer's environment. We use VMware administrators to manage the storage. They have a combination of storage and VMware background. Our virtualization administrator is VMware certified and cross-trained with the storage administrator to increase productivity. 

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

VMware vSAN is less expensive than having a traditional three-tier solution or a full virtual VFX using a hyper-converged soluton. The cost is still too high and should be lower.

What other advice do I have?

VMware vSAN is not right for all types of use cases. It is specific to an opportunity if the customer is looking at an interim solution and wants to keep the costs low. This environment is more to do with development testing.

VMware vSAN is a good fit if you are looking at security and scale. In an environment that is more productive and needs better performance, this solution may not be the right fit.

I would rate this solution a 9 out of 10.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Hybrid Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Other
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Muzamil Yakub - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Executive Officer at Infoview Limited
Real User
Frequent feature updates, beneficial webinars, and simple to manage
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable features of VMware vSAN are that it receives updates frequently, has good compression, optimized storage, and they provide webinars on what is new. Additionally, the integration with third-party products is good and it is easy to manage."
  • "Customers who are using Essentials Plus or even Essentials have to pay for technical support. However, they should not have to pay for support."

What is our primary use case?

We are using VMware vSAN for data center virtualization.

How has it helped my organization?

The solution has benefited our organization from all the consolidation features, such as disaster recovery and backups.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable features of VMware vSAN are that it receives updates frequently, has good compression, optimized storage, and they provide webinars on what is new. Additionally, the integration with third-party products is good and it is easy to manage.

What needs improvement?

Customers who are using Essentials Plus or even Essentials have to pay for technical support. However, they should not have to pay for support.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VMware vSAN for approximately seven years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is highly stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

VMware vSAN is scalable.

We have approximately 20 to 30 customers using this solution.

How are customer service and support?

The support is very good. However, there are times it could be quicker.

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

I have worked with other solutions, such as Hyper-V and Citrix. Our preference is always VMware.

How was the initial setup?

The initial implementation is straightforward. The time of installation can vary, it depends. If you're looking at virtualizing a host only, it can be done in five minutes.

What about the implementation team?

We use one engineer for the installation and maintenance of the solution.

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

There is a license required for this solution, it is a one-time payment. However, if they want support for the solution, it can be paid annually or for three years.

What other advice do I have?

I rate VMware vSAN a nine 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
Consultant at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Reseller
Deploys on any server or hardware, reliable, and good overall support
Pros and Cons
  • "One of the valuable features of vSAN is it has a universal type of technology that allows you to deploy it on any server or hardware. Competitors, such as Nutanix, provides the AOS and can be deployed only on certified hardware. For vSAN, it does not require any kind of certified hardware."
  • "In a future release, they could add micro-segmentation or security level features integrated into vSAN."

What is our primary use case?

We have a lab setup using VMware vSAN which is on Nutanix. We are using the vSAN for testing purposes and attempting to answer some questions. For example, how will the application be supported, how will the exit configuration be, and what would happen in terms of failures.

What is most valuable?

One of the valuable features of vSAN is it has a universal type of technology that allows you to deploy it on any server or hardware. Competitors, such as Nutanix, provides the AOS and can be deployed only on certified hardware. For vSAN, it does not require any kind of certified hardware.

Additionally, the dashboards and user interface provide a lot of details.

What needs improvement?

In a future release, they could add micro-segmentation or security level features integrated into vSAN.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution within the last 12 months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have never had any kind of hardware issues or problems. The solution is stable.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical was responsive and was helpful. There is a lot of documentation online if we need assistance.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was complex.

What about the implementation team?

We had assistance doing the implementation from the vSAN engineers.

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

This solution is expensive.

Nutanix provides us with Acropolis Operating System (AOS) along with its hardware, while VMware provides vSAN, vCenter, and vSphere which all have separate licenses and costs.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We have evaluated Nuranix and HPE.

What other advice do I have?

If you have storage, separate servers, or any kind of traditional architecture you can convert it to FCI with vSAN. It is a very simple and easy-to-use solution.

I rate VMware vSAN an eight 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
AVP at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Depending on your applications, it could be more cost-effective and easier to manage on HCI however you still need to compare it against traditional deployment case by case.,
Pros and Cons
  • "Being able to deploy multiple applications with virtual servers is the most valuable for us. The capacity of the system is quite constant so it's got some of the good features."
  • "I think it needs to be more cost-effective. I would also say that even though the capacity is good, there is also room for improvement there. Also, they could improve the security of the system."

What is our primary use case?

We use VMware vSAN in a private cloud. We deploy company (customers') applications using the application servers in VMware. We have about 10,000+ users using it.

How has it helped my organization?

[We deployed it for our customer]

What is most valuable?

Being able to deploy multiple applications with virtual servers is the most valuable for us. 

What needs improvement?

I think it needs to be more cost-effective if customers already have existing SAN to compare with.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have used VMware vSAN for four years. We are using version 6.5 of vSAN.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We have not had much of a problem so I would say it is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Good.

How are customer service and technical support?

We have good support and meet SLA.

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

We switched from traditional deployment to HCI in order to scale and ease management to cope with a large number of applications

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was easy and straightforward. We had no issues. It took us about a month for installation and configuration.

What about the implementation team?


What was our ROI?


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

N/A

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Customer also considered Nutanix.

What other advice do I have?

VMware vSAN may not be the right solution for everyone or for every solution. There might be more solutions that you want to consider depending on your issues of application deployment at hand.  So you have to look at your own factors and compare solutions thoroughly before you make a big decision. I would rate VMware vSAN at an eight on a scale of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
PeerSpot user
Engineer at a consumer goods company with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Simplifies storage, we no longer need to deal with Fibre Channel or external arrays
Pros and Cons
  • "The most valuable feature is the simplification of storage. We no longer need to deal with Fibre Channel and the external storage arrays."

    What is our primary use case?

    The primary use case is all of our VMware workloads. In terms of performance, it does alright with the general workloads. I've had some issues with the dupe clusters, but that's just the right-sizing overwriting the cache.

    How has it helped my organization?

    It has helped break down the silos, and we have not needed a separate storage team since the introduction of vSAN.

    What is most valuable?

    The most valuable feature is the simplification of storage. We no longer need to deal with Fibre Channel and the external storage arrays.

    What needs improvement?

    There are features that we could use that are coming out: File Services, data backup, and a better way to do Maintenance Mode with vSAN, which takes a while.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Three to five years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    So far, except for a couple glitches in past revisions, the stability has been alright. We had some issues with dedupe and compression in 6.2, where we had to delete all the storage off of it and recreate the storage groups. But besides that, it's been working well.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It scales really well. However, we're going to be in need of some, not external storage, but ways to expand storage without adding additional nodes to the cluster.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    We're an MCS customer with VMware so we get great support.

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

    For HCI, we didn't have anything else in place. For servers, this was our introduction to HCI. We have other products for VDI, but not for server workloads.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was very straightforward.

    What other advice do I have?

    If you're going to run vSAN, make sure that you stick to the HCL and that your firmware and your drivers match what's on the HCL before you implement it or go live with it.

    When selecting a vendor, for us, support is number one, the support that we can get from them. The other factor would be the forward-looking direction of the company.

    Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
    PeerSpot user
    Engineering Specialist at a logistics company with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    We can put our infrastructure in remote locations and get onsite-SAN performance
    Pros and Cons
    • "It allows us to put our infrastructure in remote locations and still get the same performance we get from our onsite SAN solutions."

      What is our primary use case?

      We use it for storage and redundancy.

      How has it helped my organization?

      It has changed the way we design our infrastructure. We're looking at a new infrastructure.

      Also, it allows us to put our infrastructure in remote locations and still get the same performance we get from our onsite SAN solutions.

      What is most valuable?

      I like the availability aspects of it.

      For how long have I used the solution?

      Less than one year.

      What do I think about the stability of the solution?

      The stability has been very good. I don't think we've had any real issues from what we have been setting up so far.

      What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

      It's very scalable. That is a really good feature of the product.

      How was the initial setup?

      The initial setup was pretty straightforward.

      What other advice do I have?

      I rate it at 10 out of 10 because it is just a really good product. I've used other products like it and it seems to be the most stable and easiest to configure.

      Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
      PeerSpot user
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