DataCore SANsymphony vs StarWind Virtual SAN comparison

DataCore and StarWind are both solutions in the Software Defined Storage (SDS) category. DataCore is ranked #5 with an average rating of 9.4, while StarWind is ranked #1 with an average rating of 9.5. DataCore holds a 7.9% mindshare in SDS, compared to StarWind’s 8.8% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of DataCore users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of StarWind users who would recommend it.

DataCore SANsymphony

Read 56 DataCore SANsymphony reviews

1,717 Views
924 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

StarWind Virtual SAN

Read 191 StarWind Virtual SAN reviews

3,193 Views
1,163 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

DataCore SANsymphony

StarWind Virtual SAN

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

DataCore SANsymphony and StarWind Virtual SAN compete in the storage solutions category. DataCore has the upper hand in features with its advanced auto-tiering and synchronous mirroring, while StarWind leads in deployment simplicity.

Features: DataCore SANsymphony offers high availability, flexible hardware utilization, and auto-tiering to efficiently manage different storage tiers. It enables synchronous mirroring for robust redundancy and data protection. StarWind Virtual SAN provides active-active high availability, easy installation, and flexibility in deployment, making it cost-effective for various hardware configurations. It offers fast setup and strong integration capabilities, ensuring minimal downtime and reliable performance.

Room for Improvement: DataCore SANsymphony needs better integrated reporting tools, enhancements in enterprise support, and improved manageability. StarWind Virtual SAN could enhance its documentation, performance reporting, and management interface. It would benefit from more comprehensive monitoring capabilities to aid deployment and management processes efficiently.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: DataCore SANsymphony is praised for exceptional technical support and rapid response times, which make deployment smoother despite its complex setup. StarWind Virtual SAN is valued for its straightforward deployment and minimal setup complexity, paired with a capable support team known for high responsiveness and expertise.

Pricing and ROI: DataCore SANsymphony provides a strong ROI with flexibility in hardware upgrades without altering licensing, though the subscription can become costly over time. StarWind Virtual SAN is recognized for cost-effectiveness, especially for SMBs, with simple pricing and excellent value, allowing affordable scaling as storage needs expand.

To learn more, read our detailed DataCore SANsymphony vs. StarWind Virtual SAN Report (Updated: February 2025).

Buyer's Guide

DataCore SANsymphony vs. StarWind Virtual SAN

February 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

ROI

Sentiment score

7.2

DataCore SANsymphony offers quick ROI through improved security, reduced costs, high availability, and flexible hardware management.

Sentiment score

7.4

StarWind Virtual SAN offers high performance and cost savings, enhancing flexibility with reduced downtime and maintenance expenses.

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

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.

Kyle Buxton

Manager, Field Support at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

8.2

DataCore SANsymphony's exemplary customer service is praised for fast, knowledgeable support and proactive assistance via multiple channels.

Sentiment score

8.4

StarWind Virtual SAN's customer service excels with prompt, knowledgeable support, proactive solutions, and effective communication in technical scenarios.

They always help me quickly and with great knowledge, which is essential for central storage.

Thomas Grötz

System Engineer at Bechtle

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

When we set it up, they validate our settings and configurations to ensure we don't miss anything.

Kyle Buxton

Manager, Field Support at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

8.4

DataCore SANsymphony is praised for its scalability and flexibility, though some mention concerns for large-scale deployments.

Sentiment score

7.8

StarWind Virtual SAN offers scalable, adaptable storage expansion for any size, supporting growth with minimal downtime and high performance.

There are no limits to scalability, which is essential for central storage.

Thomas Grötz

System Engineer at Bechtle

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

I believe that scalability should be further improved, especially considering the possibility that environments may grow exponentially.

WJHG

Soporte IT at Sildan Security

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

8.4

DataCore SANsymphony offers robust stability and reliability, with continuous availability and effective handling of power surges and maintenance.

Sentiment score

8.6

StarWind Virtual SAN is highly stable and dependable, ensuring continuous uptime even during server or hardware failures.

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Room For Improvement

DataCore SANsymphony needs better iSCSI connectivity, intuitive interface, Veeam integration, clearer pricing, and enhanced non-Windows support.

StarWind Virtual SAN improvements focus on clarity, automation, integration, performance monitoring, deduplication, encryption, scalability, and user-friendly management.

there should be improvements in how to get and filter logs

Thomas Grötz

System Engineer at Bechtle

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

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.

WJHG

Soporte IT at Sildan Security

Having more visibility on what's actually happening when an error occurs would be beneficial.

Kyle Buxton

Manager, Field Support at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Setup Cost

DataCore SANsymphony offers good price-performance, but high licensing costs and additional hardware impact overall cost-efficiency.

StarWind Virtual SAN is cost-effective with straightforward licensing, suitable for diverse environments, and highly valued for support.

The cost changed from a perpetual license to a subscription model.

Thomas Grötz

System Engineer at Bechtle

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Valuable Features

DataCore SANsymphony enhances storage management with high availability, seamless migration, and versatile integration for superior data handling.

StarWind Virtual SAN provides easy installation, excellent support, high availability, cost-efficiency, and flexibility with user-friendly management and fast replication.

Customers can extend storage with flexibility, as one is not obligated to purchase hard disks or controllers from the same storage vendor.

Thomas Grötz

System Engineer at Bechtle

For more quotes and insights, download the DataCore SANsymphony report

StarWind Virtual SAN helps us keep customer satisfaction and provides the solutions we need without having to hire many IT specialists.

Kyle Buxton

Manager, Field Support at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees

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.

WJHG

Soporte IT at Sildan Security

For more quotes and insights, download the StarWind Virtual SAN report

Categories and Ranking

DataCore SANsymphony

Ranking in Software Defined Storage (SDS)

5th

Ranking in HCI

7th

Average Rating

9.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Storage Software (2nd), Storage Performance (2nd)

StarWind Virtual SAN

Ranking in Software Defined Storage (SDS)

1st

Ranking in HCI

4th

Average Rating

9.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

191

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Software Defined Storage (SDS) category, the mindshare of DataCore SANsymphony is 7.9%, up from 5.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of StarWind Virtual SAN is 8.8%, up from 8.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Software Defined Storage (SDS)

Featured Reviews

TempreviewerD

Architecte Principal at Orange

Robust with good replication and access protection

The solution is constantly evolving. Recently, deduplication and compression have been further improved to meet customer needs, and updates are easily implemented without stopping production. The update assistant checks the state of health before using good practices, during checks that the data is still presented for service continuity, and afterward, if the actions carried out are indeed active. Technical support is truly available even without a production incident. This is really essential right now.

Read full review

WJHG

Soporte IT at Sildan Security

Seamless integrations, high availability, and offers a free version

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.

Read full review

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

21%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

17%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for DataCore SANsymphony SDS?

The cost changed from a perpetual license to a subscription model, and it seems reasonable. I am technical personnel and not deeply involved in sales, but the pricing appears fine.

See all answers

What do you like most about DataCore SANsymphony?

The dashboard is very intuitive, and there are a lot of counters to diagnose what happens during a short period (like when a backup is in progress).

See all answers

What needs improvement with DataCore SANsymphony?

In my opinion, there should be improvements in how to get and filter logs. However, this is not a frequent need because they have great support that offers quick and knowledgeable assistance. Other...

See all answers

What do you like most about StarWind Virtual SAN?

It is easy to use and can monitor system synchronization and check Storage status. StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN) combines flash and disks of the cluster and forms a virtual shared storage “pool” acce...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for StarWind Virtual SAN?

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 req...

See all answers

What needs improvement with StarWind Virtual SAN?

See all answers

Comparisons

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HPE SimpliVity vs DataCore SANsymphony

Compared 10% of the time

Microsoft Storage Spaces Direct vs DataCore SANsymphony

Compared 10% of the time

Pure Storage FlashArray vs DataCore SANsymphony

Compared 7% of the time

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VMware vSAN vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 25% of the time

Microsoft Storage Spaces Direct vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 18% of the time

StorMagic SvSAN vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 17% of the time

Red Hat Ceph Storage vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 11% of the time

HPE SimpliVity vs StarWind Virtual SAN

Compared 6% of the time

More StarWind Virtual SAN Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

DataCore SANsymphony

March 2025

Download DataCore SANsymphony product report

Buyer's Guide

StarWind Virtual SAN

March 2025

Download StarWind Virtual SAN product report

Also Known As

DataCore Virtual SAN

StarWind SAN & NAS

Overview

Experience peace of mind with DataCore SANsymphony, the ultimate software-defined storage solution alleviating storage management challenges. Say goodbye to the complexities of managing different storage tiers and disruptions with SANsymphony's block-level storage virtualization technology, empowering you to automate capacity provisioning and data placement across diverse storage environments including SAN, DAS, HCI, and JBOD. Break down silos, control data placement, meet business continuity objectives, boost performance, and seamlessly expand or refresh hardware with SANsymphony. Benefit from features like asynchronous replication for disaster recovery, minimizing data loss, accelerating application responsiveness, and integrating new technology non-disruptively. Trusted by industry leaders like NASA, Thorntons, Inc., and TUI Cruises, DataCore SANsymphony guarantees unparalleled flexibility, scalability, and reliability, ensuring uninterrupted data access and application availability while reducing storage costs and inefficiencies.

DataCore

StarWind Virtual SAN provides high availability and fault tolerance for virtualized environments without the need for dedicated SAN hardware. It allows for real-time replication between servers, shared storage for Hyper-V clusters, and enables vMotion and High Availability features for VMware vSphere. The solution reduces costs and leverages existing hardware while providing a scalable and reliable infrastructure. Valuable features include ease of use, scalability, top-tier support, hardware agnosticism, and the ability to use off-the-shelf standard servers to increase storage space. StarWind VSAN has helped organizations improve performance, data availability, and data security while reducing downtime and providing cost-saving storage options.

StarWind

Sample Customers

Volkswagen , Maimonides Medical Center, NASA, Thorntons, Inc., TUI, ISCO Industries, Pee Dee Electric Cooperative, United Financial Credit Union, Derby Supply Chain Solutions, Mission Community Hospital, Bellarmine College Preparatory, Colby-Sawyer College, Mount Sinai Health System, The Royal Institute of International Affairs, Quorn Foods, Bitburger, University of Birmingham, Stadtverwaltung Heidelberg, NetEnt to name a few.

Baker Tilly BVI, CMS Internet, Board Harpeth Hall School

Buyer's Guide

DataCore SANsymphony vs. StarWind Virtual SAN

February 2025

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