2019-03-12T07:53:00Z

What Is The Biggest Difference Between NetApp HCI and Nutanix?

One of the most popular comparisons on IT Central Station is NetApp HCI vs Nutanix.

People like you are trying to decide which one is best for their company. Can you help them out?

What is the biggest difference between NetApp HCI and Nutanix? Which of these two solutions would you recommend to a colleague evaluating hyper-converged solutions and why?

Thanks for helping your peers make the best decision!

Miriam Tover - PeerSpot reviewer
Service Delivery Manager at PeerSpot
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8
PeerSpot user
8 Answers
it_user951444 - PeerSpot reviewer
Solutions Architect at SCC
Real User
2019-03-13T12:56:02Z
Mar 13, 2019

The biggest difference is the ability to scale compute and storage independently. NetApp can scale up the storage without the need for extra CPU (and hence VMware licenses for ESX). Nutanix does have a storage node, but it has limitations. Another key difference is the NetApp uses an inbuilt method for the central storage plane and doesn't use VSAN which saves on licensing. Cost wise, Nutanix is almost always more expensive than alternative solutions.

Product comparison that may be of interest to you
AG
Business Development Manager at Integrated Networks
Reseller
2019-03-26T09:40:05Z
Mar 26, 2019

NetApp is all flash based on SolidFire Storage . support only VMware
but Nutanix can work with VMware , Hyper-V, Nutanix AHV . Also it can be Hybrid Or All Flash.

PR
Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Reseller
2019-03-25T00:59:40Z
Mar 25, 2019

If your prime consideration is initial cost then Nutanix with it's ability to provide a non-Flash solution is going to be the answer.
The NetApp HCI solution with separate compute and storage nodes enables scaling in either resource type without needing to include the other. This could reduce TCO over a period of time as requirements change. As the storage is non-virtualised more CPU resources are made available to service user workloads. Native connectivity to hyperscalers and design guides for Private Cloud and an expanding hypervisor landscape.

DO
Cloud Solutions Sales at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
2019-10-31T11:16:08Z
Oct 31, 2019

Ahmed Gomaa, I am sorry, but this is plain wrong.

NetApp HCI supports not only VMware, HyperV, and KVM but has also the unique ability to connect physical hosts without performance penalty or license overhead.

The biggest difference in terms of architecture is that Nutanix needs a Controler Virtual Machine on every host, beeing a legacy HCI architecture. NetApp HCI is references as "disaggregated HCI" as compute nodes serve only compute and storage nodes serve only storage. This allows us to scale compute and storage independently, so no HCI tax wasted.

THE biggest difference in terms of performance is that IOPs are guaranteed in the storage subsystem of NetApp HCI. This is a game-changer for a datacenter as it enables private cloud admins to guarantee SLAs - not just bet on them.

For small environments without the need for VMware Nutanix may be a good choice. But data locality (data needs to reside on the hosts it is read from (kills this solution in my perspective for larger deployments). Even with a prism - making the administration of multiple Nutanix clusters nice and shiny - there are still several clusters in place. With NetApp, HCI there is no need for this. You can consolidate workloads on a massive scale.

The biggest difference in terms of hybrid multi-cloud is that NetApp HCI can speak natively with ONTAP systems via SnapMirror and it integrates directly into all hyperscalers. Ultimately the management of containers can be done within one pane of glass - regardless of where the containers live - OnPrem on HCI, GCS, AWS, Azure.

For me the HCI market is like the automotive market 60 years ago: Germans invented the car, but US-made is cool. Nutanix "invented" HCI, but NetApp wtook it that one step further.

SS
System Engineer with 201-500 employees
Reseller
2019-03-14T07:21:18Z
Mar 14, 2019

NetApp are enables to NetApp's customers (Already customers) to reuse their legacy hardware while moving the legacy hardware to DR and using SnapMirror techonology for replication while they will use at Primary site using NetApp HCI . It's reducing to need to buy solution for two sites

In the other hand , Nutanix have solutions based Hybrid, those are reduce costs , not every customer is need an All flash solution.
Also , in Nutanix the customer can choose with which hypervisor the would like to run their environment (AHV , VMWARE KVM , Hyper-V etc..)

it_user902001 - PeerSpot reviewer
Consultant at a tech company with 51-200 employees
User
2019-03-14T02:54:20Z
Mar 14, 2019

Wihout any doubt go for nutanix HCI

Find out what your peers are saying about Nutanix, VMware, Dell Technologies and others in HCI. Updated: May 2023.
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User
2019-03-13T13:25:07Z
Mar 13, 2019

My only difference is that Nutanix was still developing features with their software BUT what was there fir what we were accessing was very good. I cannot comment on cost as everyone uses their own vendor pools. You need to test both interfaces in your environment or in the vendors test environment and determine if the solution overall will fit your Architecture and Growth plans.
Don't forget the learning curve to adapt and the ongoing maintenance costs. Finally Support... call into the support line and see if their response or professionalism with will for you.
Nothing worse than calling for support and it the company has 9-5 offering lol.

AG
Business Development Manager at Integrated Networks
Reseller
2019-03-13T10:03:17Z
Mar 13, 2019

it depends on your needs
NetApp Is Very Good , but expensive as it's All Flash , based on SolidFire Storage . It will support only VMware
but Nutanix can be ALL Flash or Hybrid , also can work with Hyper-v , VMware or Nutanix AHV

Related Questions
EZ
User at gobernación de cundinamarca
May 4, 2023
Hello community,  I am currently researching Hyper-Converged solutions. Which solution performs better: Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure or VMware vSAN? Which solution do you prefer and why? Thank you for your help.
2 out of 4 answers
Yves Sandfort - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO & Majority Shareholder at Comdivision Consulting GmbH
May 2, 2023
In the early days, Nutanix had the better solution, by now especially when you use a vSphere hypervisor I would go with vSAN for better integration and with ReadyNodes no complex config anymore. Also, I had several customers who complained that Nutanix got very expensive on the first renewal vs. massive initial discounts, however, I can't judge if that is true.
QJ
Enterprise Solutions Specialist - System Engineer at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
May 2, 2023
Both can get you the performance you might want, however, you should also consider what else you get with the solution. For Nutanix, you're stuck on Acropolis if you start with that. It would be best to run either VMware or Hyper-V on top of that so migration isn't a gym show, plus the renewal cost will be very high. vSAN is a fine option, just ensure it is designed well with enough nodes to tolerate any amount of disk failure. Both options have their unique value but the most important thing is the data. You'll need data protection solutions like Veeam, Nakivo, or Zerto.  For an all-in-one high-performance solution with built-in data protection consider HPE SimpliVity with VMware. You'll also likely buy fewer nodes than the others with SimpliVity.
NC
Content Manager at PeerSpot (formerly IT Central Station)
Dec 18, 2022
Have you had many issues with this product? Was their technical support responsive and effective?
See 2 answers
DG
Tech blogger
Dec 18, 2022
NCI is one of the best out there. For any software, no matter how good it is, technical support makes it or breaks it for me. You may have an amazing product but if there is not anyone to help you use it, what can you do with it? Luckily, NCI's support is highly rated by customers for a reason. They are very helpful and always answer our inquiries in a timely manner. I have worked with competitor solutions of NCI and their support was not as responsive as NCI's. Every time my company has contacted the technical team of NCI, we were given detailed solutions, so I rate it very highly in this matter.
Beth Safire - PeerSpot reviewer
Tech Blogger
Dec 18, 2022
NCI's support may be the best technical support from any company that I have contacted, ever. We have not had many issues with the product, as it works quite well, and our specialists have learned its specifics by now. However, in a few instances, we needed support from NCI. Every time we contacted them, they explained to us in great detail what caused the issue, how to fix it, and how to potentially avoid it happening again. They are absolutely reliable and will either explain the issue themselves or connect you with a team member that specializes in your issue.
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