NetApp FAS Series Reviews

Name: NetApp FAS Series
Brand: NetApp
Rating: 4.4 (104 reviews)

Vendor: NetApp

4.4 out of 5

104 reviews
96% willing to recommend

2,372 followers

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What is NetApp FAS Series?

NetApp FAS series is an enterprise-level storage system that provides a wide variety of data management services, including data protection, block and file storage, and data management.

Get the NetApp FAS Series Buyer's Guide and find out what your peers are saying about NetApp FAS Series, Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain), HPE StoreOnce and more!

NetApp FAS Series is the #1 ranked solution in top Modular SAN (Storage Area Network) solutions, #3 ranked solution in top NAS solutions, and #4 ranked solution in top Deduplication Software. PeerSpot users give NetApp FAS Series an average rating of 8.8 out of 10. Based on the analysis of the 104 most recent NetApp FAS Series reviews, the overall sentiment is positive, with a sentiment score of 7.1. NetApp FAS Series is most commonly compared to Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain): NetApp FAS Series vs Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain). NetApp FAS Series is popular among the midsize enterprise segment, accounting for 66% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a educational organization, accounting for 62% of all views.

Helped 830,574 peers since 2012

Featured reviews

Paweł Jabłoński

IT Infrastructure Manager at Bricoman Wilanów

We use this solution. I configured and updated it. Of course, I was also a user of applications that store data on that storage. We already have an SSD solution. So, rather than planning to go with an SSD solution, we are focusing on expanding it. If a company wants to deploy something new, it should choose a product with SSD, and NVMe disks. Overall, I rate the solution a six out of ten.

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Arnaud Salmon

Presales Engineer at SFR

We have lots of competitors, so I have to address the storage needs of our prospects and customers. And while sometimes we are not chosen by NetApp. So if we want to try to get the deal when someone else is answering with NetApp, I have to go with WAP, potentially Huawei, and then sometimes Pure Storage. Most of the time, if I don't sell some NetApp, it's Huawei. Huawei is a little bit easier to use than NetApp. Then it can be really very aggressive about the costs. So sometimes we have some customers that really don't look so much at the technical points and the performance or the function generality and want some cost. So, sometimes, it's a bit easier with NetApp. Then, we offer solutions with business continuity similar to what Huawei provides—network clusters and related solutions, making the offerings closely aligned.

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Mustapha CHILAH

Directeur Adjoint Des Systèmes d'Informations& Transition at Mairie de Lunel

The product does improve our performance. It is scalable enough. For scalability, we've found that even if you have a three-year-old service... the way NetApp works, we must buy new equipment every five or six years. It's as if there's planned obsolescence... we don't have the option to upgrade the solution over a long period. So, for scalability, I'd give it an eight out of ten. There was one instance where we needed to add disks, but the filer was full. We ran out of space to physically add them. We had to buy extra equipment to support adding more disks to the filer when it reached maximum capacity.

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NetApp FAS Series mindshare

Product category:

As of January 2025, the mindshare of NetApp FAS Series in the Deduplication Software category stands at 3.2%, up from 3.1% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Deduplication Software

PeerAnalyst reports

Type	Title	Date
Category	Deduplication Software	Jan 11, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Jan 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	NetApp FAS Series vs Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain)	Jan 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	NetApp FAS Series vs HPE StoreOnce	Jan 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	NetApp FAS Series vs Dell Avamar	Jan 11, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain)	4.3	29.2%	88%	75 interviews Add to research
HPE StoreOnce	4.2	19.3%	94%	106 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

NetApp FAS Series offers powerful features like high availability, flexibility, and reliability. It supports multiple protocols, ensuring seamless data management and easy integration with cloud environments. Features such as SnapMirror, deduplication, and snapshots enhance storage efficiency and data protection. Users appreciate its ability to handle VMware and cloud integrations, NAS functions, and ease of management. Its performance is robust, scalable, and ideal for enterprise-level applications with excellent support and documentation.

"The ONTAP tools make managing VMware easier."
"It gives us the performance we need and the reliability we need to make sure that our systems have the uptime that our internal customers demand."
"It's enabled us to allow admins across the IT organization to more easily manage their own subset of data within our organization."

Room for Improvement

NetApp FAS Series requires enhancements in performance, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. Users report issues with documentation and desire improved integration with third-party technologies. The transition to Clustered Data ONTAP presents challenges, specifically in migration and backward compatibility. Better monitoring tools and a unified management interface are needed. Pricing and support are concerns, with calls for streamlined installation and enhanced features like in-line deduplication. Users emphasize the need for more comprehensive automation and faster response times in support services.

"It's hard to find in-person training that fits our schedule in our area. They offer a lot of online training, but we need somewhere to go because we can't really get away from the office."
"When we were going through all the MFA hardening and the anti-ransomware setup, I gave some feedback to our executive. The MFA process for getting that set up on the AFF systems was cumbersome compared to some of our other systems."
"A big problem with physical appliances is that updating them can be a bit burdensome."

ROI

NetApp FAS Series offers a favorable ROI, particularly in VMware environments. Users appreciate its data storage efficiency, reduced operational costs, and consolidation capabilities. The Allflash FAS version significantly improves storage efficiency ratios. Companies value its cost-effectiveness and reliability. Some users find it difficult to quantify ROI numerically, yet they report positive investment outcomes. Many mention long-term satisfaction and savings in power, cooling, and space, underscoring its viability and lasting impact.

Pricing

The NetApp FAS Series is often considered expensive, yet many users find its pricing justified by its performance and features. Licensing is generally fair, covering most functionalities with additional options for advanced features. Pricing varies based on configuration, capacity, and required features. Although some users seek more aggressive pricing, NetApp's discount structures help accommodate differing budgets. Associated support costs can be high, but the long-term investment often balances initial expenses.

"NetApp FAS Series is a reasonably high-priced solution, partially because we select the configuration that duplicates the entire system."
"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with ten being expensive. We pay a one-time purchase price."
"NetApp FAS Series' pricing is competitive."

Popular Use Cases

NetApp FAS Series is primarily used for enterprise storage, including NAS and SAN environments, supporting various protocols like CIFS, NFS, and iSCSI. Organizations utilize it for applications such as VMware, SQL Server, and databases, offering data management, backup, and disaster recovery capabilities. It provides stable performance, supports virtualization, unified storage, and handles unstructured data efficiently, making it suitable for industries like healthcare, media, and finance for centralized and reliable data storage.

Service and Support

NetApp FAS Series has received praise for responsive and knowledgeable customer service and technical support. Users appreciate the auto-support feature and the knowledgeable first-tier support. However, some have faced delays in response time and experienced challenges with tiered support. Premium support receives better feedback, offering quick resolution and proactive management. Some users note room for improvement, particularly with outsourced support. Generally, the technical team is considered competent, supportive, and effective in addressing issues.

Deployment

Most found NetApp FAS Series's initial setup straightforward with effective planning and documentation aiding the process. Some encountered complexity, especially with more intricate configurations or when shifting from different systems, but support from NetApp or partners often simplified these challenges. Newcomers may require guidance, yet experienced users found the system intuitive and manageable, especially with familiarity. Migrating between NetApp systems typically proved easier than transitions from non-NetApp storage solutions.

Scalability

NetApp FAS Series offers high scalability with clustered ONTAP allowing seamless scaling both horizontally and vertically. Users appreciate its ease of expansion through additional nodes and shelves. While effective for medium and large enterprises, cost considerations and technical configurations, such as additional cabling, can impose challenges. Performance is generally satisfactory for diverse use cases, although budget constraints may affect scalability. Planned obsolescence and compatibility with models occasionally limit potential scalability.

Stability

NetApp FAS Series exhibits strong stability with minimal downtime. Users report reliable performance and effective redundancy, keeping systems operational. Occasional bugs and hardware issues are generally resolved promptly. Many users experience extended periods without reboots or crashes. While a small number faced challenges, these were mostly configuration-related or external factors. NetApp FAS Series consistently maintains high stability ratings, supporting continuous operations for years without significant problems.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our NetApp FAS Series Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.

Review data by company size

By reviewers

By visitors reading reviews

Top industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

62%

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Financial Services Firm

Government

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

Media Company

Healthcare Company

University

Retailer

Energy/Utilities Company

Insurance Company

Real Estate/Law Firm

Wholesaler/Distributor

Hospitality Company

Transportation Company

Recreational Facilities/Services Company

Compare NetApp FAS Series with alternative products

Learn more about NetApp FAS Series

NetApp FAS is designed to be highly scalable, allowing your organization to grow storage capacity on demand. NetApp FAS also supports multiple protocols, including NFS, SMB, iSCSI, and Fibre Channel, as well as various storage architectures, including SAN (Storage Area Network) and NAS (Network-Attached Storage).

The FAS series has multiple data protection and data management features, including snapshots, cloning, replication, and deduplication, to help secure your data and manage it more efficiently. The system integrates with other NetApp products and solutions, to create a unified data management platform. The system can be deployed on-premise, on multi-cloud environments, or hybrid.

NetApp FAS Series Benefits and Features

NetApp FAS series provides its users with several key benefits and features, including:

Scalability: NetApp FAS series is easy to scale, allowing organizations to rapidly grow their storage capacity according to demand.

Security: Protect and manage your data with various data protection and data management tools, including snapshots, cloning, replication, and deduplication.

Seamless integration: Integrate with other NetApp products and solutions to ensure a unified data management platform across on-premise, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments.

Reduced costs: Consolidation of multiple storage boxes greatly reduces the data center footprint. From a management point of view, with NetApp FAS you manage a single storage box instead of multiple storage boxes.
Compatibility: Forward and backward compatibility ensures that you don’t have to trade in existing controllers. New controllers can always integrate with previously released controllers.

Multi-protocol support: Support for multiple protocols, including NFS, SMB, iSCSI, and Fibre Channel.

High performance and availability: The solution has high input and output per second performance and ensures that critical data remains accessible in the event of a hardware failure.
Intuitive interface: The FAS series has a user-friendly interface and management dashboard, making it easy to manage your storage systems. With unified management, you can quickly run a single protocol on your entire system
Data cloning and replication: Easily clone databases of any size. Clones occupy a very, very small footprint on the storage until they are severed from the main database. Replications carried out by the system are fast and require very little bandwidth.

Reviews from Real Users

NetApp FAS Series stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Several major ones are its speed, reliability, and a wide variety of features.

Adriano S., IT project and infrastructure service manager, writes, “The replication feature is noteworthy because it's faster than most and it uses little bandwidth. Then there's the friendly interface that the equipment offers. With this interface, it is very easy to manage.”

Temitope O., a NetApp product manager at Hiperdist Ltd, says, “I like the unified management feature because sometimes you end up running a single protocol on the entire system. You rather have a system for a particular protocol and another system for other protocols, especially in a big environment like mine.”

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NetApp FAS Series customers

Children's Hospital Central California, Plex Systems, PDF PNI Digital Media, Denver Broncos, PDF KSM Legal, Clayton Companies, Virginia Community College