Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers Reviews

We use it in the media industry.

Our customers have numerous benefits, including an array of features such as RAM quantity, CPU power, and storage capacity.

Our energy consumption was quite high five years ago when we were a service provider. Today, over the last two generations, our power consumption has decreased significantly. This reduction is highly beneficial for our operations.

The flexibility is commendable. Whenever we need to perform any task on our records or servers, the process is smooth and swift. In the twenty years of using Dell, we haven't encountered any troubles, problems, or issues, which speaks volumes about the reliability of their products.

The enduring stability and longevity offered by Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers stand out as their most invaluable feature. These qualities enable organizations to deploy and utilize the same server model for extended periods, bolstered by Dell's steadfast guarantee.

The pricing structure could be improved.

I have been using it for over ten years.

Stability is excellent overall. We've encountered only one issue, which pertained to a SAN rather than a server. This occurred due to a peak in energy, affecting the controller within the rack. Nonetheless, stability remains consistent for our servers.

Scalability is truly excellent, as we can start with a certain number of memory units, and when a customer requests additional memory or space, we can easily upgrade. This process is fast and straightforward, making it highly beneficial.

We've relied on tech support for at least twenty years, and every time we've reached out, we've received swift and effective solutions. I would rate it nine out of ten.

Positive

The advantage of Dell over other vendors lies in the fact that over the course of twenty years, we've consistently opted for solutions that include mission-critical assistance. However, we've only needed to utilize this assistance twice in two decades. This demonstrates the exceptional quality of Dell's hardware, which has been thoroughly tested and proven reliable—an essential feature and service for us.

Deploying was simple. We were assigned directly to the data center. As consultants, we began by working directly in the rack. We initiated the installation process, starting with the hypervisor, and everything proceeded smoothly.

Twenty years ago, we used to purchase directly from Dell. However, they later decided to sell only through partners in Italy. Consequently, when we transitioned to buying from partners, we also became partners ourselves. At present, the pricing seems a bit high for us. While we manage to procure products through competitive bidding, the list pricing remains challenging for us. This difficulty primarily arises when selling to customers, especially medium-sized ones requiring only two or three servers.

Overall, I would rate it nine out of ten.

We've never had any issues with using Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for everything we need. Essentially, they're our go-to brand for servers.

From what I've gathered, it seems that they're heading in the right direction by implementing silicon-based hardware updates, enhancing user access security, and optimizing the supply chain. These developments are sensible, especially for environments like data centers and research facilities, as they prioritize both security and efficiency.

I'm highly impressed by the energy efficiency of Dell PowerEdge Servers. Having worked with servers for a long time, I remember their high power consumption. However, the new Dell products have drastically reduced energy usage, which is not only remarkable but also makes them much quieter.

Primarily, what we value most is the stability of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers. We appreciate the confidence of deploying them in production, knowing they'll perform reliably without any issues.

There might be room for improvement, especially in the software aspect, such as firmware updates. While it's relatively straightforward now, it would be beneficial to have a solution that allows updating the server firmware without taking it offline.

I have been working with it for approximately fifteen years.

It provides excellent stability capabilities.

Scalability isn't particularly relevant to our use case.

Before switching to Dell, we used to rely on HPE servers. Unfortunately, we experienced increasing instability with their hardware over time, particularly noticeable in critical components like storage controllers, which are crucial in my line of work. 

We also encountered numerous issues with the mainboards. As a result, we had to explore alternatives from different vendors. Although we also tried Supermicro servers, which showcased some innovative features at the time, we found Dell to offer better stability overall. While Supermicro was aiming for rapid innovation, they struggled with stability issues in their servers.

We managed the deployment in-house, and it was remarkably straightforward. Setting up the racks and mounting the hardware, including the components inside the servers, was hassle-free. Overall, it was a seamless process.

I believe the return on investment with Dell servers is positive. While I may not have a precise answer, a strong indication for me is the ongoing satisfaction in receiving the necessary components and support from Dell.

Overall, I would rate it ten out of ten.

We use Dell PowerEdge servers for various purposes, including running databases on Windows platforms, blades, and chassis for high-performance computing. Our VMware environment relies on PowerEdge servers, particularly in the HPC setup, which involves complex networking and interconnects. 

While the infrastructure can be intricate, the consistent performance of Dell servers makes maintenance easier. Coming from a Unix environment, I find the reliability of these servers comparable, if not better, and they require less time for repairs.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers have been stable and reliable over the last decade.

There is room for improvement in certain aspects of the deployment process as it is a bit complex.

I have been working with Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for ten years.

Evaluating the stability of Dell PowerEdge servers, we focus on security patching and follow-ups on vulnerabilities. While our team emphasizes security core aspects, our primary concern is a balance between green IT and cost efficiency. Power and heat consumption are challenges across all brands, mainly influenced by Intel chips. 

The server's reliability in storage is dependent on how storage is divided over multiple storage arrays. Although downtime is required for server replacement, the overall architecture provides a good overview and easy management of multiple servers. 

The stability of Dell PowerEdge servers is excellent, with minimal hardware defects in the last three years. The impact of server maintenance is reduced due to virtualization, allowing easy movement of VMs within the cluster. I would rate the stability as a nine out of ten.

Comparing Dell to Lenovo in our hybrid brand solution for HPC, Lenovo is sometimes a bit more expensive but can be easier to install with less driver complexity. 

Dell, on the other hand, can be cheaper. Dell's recent shift has resulted in a larger data center footprint, but the cost-driven nature of IT decisions often favors the most economical solution. While our return on investment with Dell is generally good, IT views these solutions as costs rather than revenue generators. Overall, the reliability is strong, but our focus remains on minimizing costs.

Deploying Dell servers feels like rocket science, but as a seasoned professional, it is generally straightforward and intuitive for me. I rarely use manuals and rely on my experience. Occasionally, finding the right person with multi-disciplinary knowledge can be a challenge, leading to minor delays. Overall, the experience is good, but there is room for improvement in certain aspects.

Overall, I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers as an eight out of ten.

My organization uses the product as a simple server.

We implemented the product for its simplicity and scalability. We wanted a simple system that we could scale up if needed. Currently, we only have a few servers. It's easy to change them. The components can be changed around.

The simplicity of the bars is valuable. We can pull out elements and change them ourselves. It saves us time. We do not open the machine much. It leads to less maintenance efforts. We can also use components of other brands. It is easy to use.

The product must provide more options to add GPUs to the machines. It's always a challenge. If we don't think about it when buying the machine, we cannot do it afterward.

I have been using the solution for 20 years. We use R730 and R630.

The support is good. The support was better ten years ago. Now, we have to do more things ourselves. Ten years ago, the team focused on solving the issues first instead of finding who was to blame.

Positive

We used HPE some time ago. The machines are the same, but the support provided by Dell is better.

The initial setup was easy.

The product's pricing is not good. It's always a winning factor for other solutions. It is not the most affordable tool.

I hope PowerEdge's Cyber Resilient Architecture approach is sufficient. Once, we had a problem because the rack was not updated. It's annoying that I didn't get informed by Dell that we had to update it. Communication should be better for security reasons.

I never thought about energy consumption, but we all must decrease our power consumption. It was never an issue for us, though. The tool is efficient for what we use it for. It is scalable till the end. The product lasts for seven years. We can use the machine for a long time.

The solution has helped reduce unplanned production downtime. We have a cluster. If one fails, the other one takes over. The OpenManage console has affected our IT staff’s productivity. We use it a lot. It's a good tool to access our service. The tool saves 25% of our time.

Overall, I rate the product an eight out of ten.

We are using the solution for our virtualization environments. We are using a VMware environment and some hypervisor environments, and we are using this for that purpose.

With virtualization, you have a lot of freedom to manage the environment. We have a lot of requests coming in, a lot of machines to build, as well as some dev servers, test servers, et cetera. There is also the protection of all the systems. Compared to the cloud, if you have your own bare metal in your own office, that's cheap. That's one of the real advantages.

We can manage and configure all the storage systems ourselves. We have a lot more liberty there. When we add more things like storage servers, we can manage the backup. We are on the safer side since we have our own infrastructure and we have a good backup mechanism. It's more easy and more convenient for a system admin to manage these environments. 

Poweredge has helped our organization. The model we're using is great. We had issues with an older model, however, this new one has been good. We have some production environments in our system. We shifted those to the new systems, and so far, I'm happy with the performance. 

The power is cyber resilience is good. So far, with the security upgrades, it's quite good. 

We have three or four servers and so far, it's going very well. 

It's helped us reduce unplanned downtime. We have PowerEdge in collaboration with VMware. That's going well so far. We can utilize various features, like, B Motion, et cetera, to manage zero downtime. 

I'd need to research the product more. Maybe it needs a little bit more support. We have storage and would like to manage more backups without adding extra storage devices. Maybe it's already there. I need to look at it more. Some hypervisors don't seem to have any extra storage. However, it may already be there, and I haven't found it yet.

I've used the solution for almost two years. 

It's great. It's stable so far. I have not experienced any issues with stability, so I would definitely say it's good.

From a scalability point of view, we are using the servers in cluster mode. It's great so far. We can migrate workloads and do whatever we want to do, including updates, with zero downtime.

Dell support is great, with us, at least. We have direct contact with Dell, so whenever we have a question, they are always there. 

Everyone is great. They really care about their customers. They have offices in Pakistan, the Netherlands, and Germany. They really try to understand the Pakistani market. 

Positive

We did not previously use a different server. I've always used Dell. 

We've reduced downtime. The cost is also a big factor. When you have good servers in-house with power backups, you are able to save quite a lot of money compared to the cloud. 

We have a customer relationship with Dell. We have a good account manager that can help in terms of pricing. 

Three or four months ago, we ordered a new Dell PowerEdge. I do not recall evaluating other options. 

We have more control and are saving money as compared to the cloud, which helps with long-term planning. The last Dell PowerEdge is in our local office. I've given our team the servers to do with them as they want. 

I'd rate the solution nine out of ten. 

I can't wait to learn more about their technology. 

Foreign Language:(German)

Leicht zu verwalten und konfigurieren, mit einer guten Vor-Ort-Widerstandsfähigkeit.

Was ist unser Hauptanwendungsfall?

Wir verwenden die Lösung für unsere Virtualisierungsumgebungen. Wir verwenden eine VMware-Umgebung und einige Hypervisor-Umgebungen, und zu diesem Zweck setzen wir diese Lösung ein.

Inwiefern wurde meine Organisation dadurch unterstützt?

Mit der Virtualisierung hat man sehr viel Freiheit bei der Verwaltung der Umgebung. Es kommen viele Anfragen herein, viele Maschinen müssen gebaut werden, sowie einige Entwicklungsserver, Testserver und so weiter. Auch der Schutz aller Systeme ist wichtig. Im Vergleich zur Cloud ist ein eigenes Bare-Metal-System im eigenen Büro günstiger. Das ist wirklich ein großer Vorteil.

Was ist am wertvollsten?

Wir können alle Speichersysteme selbst verwalten und konfigurieren. Dadurch haben wir viel mehr Freiheiten. Wenn wir weitere Dinge wie Speicherserver hinzufügen, können wir die Datensicherung verwalten. Wir sind auf der sicheren Seite, da wir unsere eigene Infrastruktur haben und über einen guten Sicherungsmechanismus verfügen. Es ist einfacher und bequemer für einen Systemadministrator, diese Umgebungen zu verwalten.

Poweredge ist für unsere Organisation sehr hilfreich. Das Modell, das wir verwenden, ist großartig. Wir hatten Probleme mit einem älteren Modell, aber dieses neue Modell ist gut. Wir haben einige Produktionsumgebungen in unserem System. Diese haben wir auf die neuen Systeme umgestellt, und bisher bin ich mit der Leistung zufrieden.

Die Widerstandsfähigkeit gegenüber Cyberangriffen ist gut. Soweit, mit den Sicherheits-Upgrades, ist es ziemlich gut.

Wir haben drei oder vier Server, und bis jetzt läuft es sehr gut.

Es hat uns geholfen, ungeplante Ausfallzeiten zu reduzieren. Wir verwenden PowerEdge in Zusammenarbeit mit VMware. Das klappt bisher sehr gut. Wir können verschiedene Funktionen wie zum Beispiel B Motion usw. nutzen, um Ausfallzeiten zu vermeiden.

Was muss verbessert werden?

Ich müsste das Produkt genauer erforschen. Vielleicht braucht es ein bisschen mehr Support. Wir haben einen Speicherplatz und würden gerne mehr Backups ohne zusätzliche Speichergeräte verwalten. Vielleicht gibt es das schon. Ich muss mehr darüber nachforschen. Einige Hypervisoren scheinen keinen zusätzlichen Speicherplatz zu haben. Vielleicht gibt es sie aber auch schon, und ich habe sie nur noch nicht gefunden.

Wie lange verwende ich die Lösung schon?

Ich verwende die Lösung seit fast zwei Jahren.

Was halte ich von der Stabilität der Lösung?

Es ist großartig. Bis jetzt läuft es stabil. Ich habe keine Probleme mit der Stabilität, so würde ich definitiv sagen, es ist gut.

Was halte ich von der Skalierbarkeit der Lösung?

Aus Sicht der Skalierbarkeit verwenden wir die Server im Clustermodus. Bis jetzt läuft das sehr gut. Wir können unsere Workloads migrieren und alles tun, was wir tun wollen, einschließlich Updates, und das ohne Ausfallzeiten.

Wie funktioniert der Kundendienst und der Support?

Der Support von Dell ist großartig, zumindest bei uns. Wir haben direkten Kontakt mit Dell, und wenn wir eine Frage haben, sind sie immer da.

Alle sind großartig. Sie kümmern sich wirklich um ihre Kunden. Sie haben Büros in Pakistan, den Niederlanden und Deutschland. Sie versuchen wirklich, den pakistanischen Markt zu verstehen.

Wie bewerten Sie den Kundendienst und den Support?

Positiv

Welche Lösung habe ich zuvor verwendet und warum habe ich gewechselt?

Wir haben vorher keinen anderen Server verwendet. Ich habe immer Dell verwendet.

Wie hoch war der ROI?

Wir haben die Ausfallzeiten reduziert. Die Kosten spielen ebenfalls eine große Rolle. Wenn Sie gute Server vor Ort mit Stromunterstützung haben, können Sie im Vergleich zur Cloud erheblich Geld sparen.

Welche Erfahrungen habe ich mit den Preisen, den Einrichtungskosten und der Lizenzierung gemacht?

Wir haben eine Kundenbeziehung zu Dell. Wir haben einen guten Kundenbetreuer, der uns bei der Preisgestaltung helfen kann.

Welche anderen Lösungen habe ich geprüft?

Vor drei oder vier Monaten haben wir einen neuen Dell PowerEdge bestellt. Ich kann mich nicht daran erinnern, andere Lösungen geprüft zu haben.

Was kann ich sonst noch raten?

Wir haben mehr Kontrolle und sparen im Vergleich zur Cloud Geld, was uns bei der langfristigen Planung hilft. Der letzte Dell PowerEdge steht in unserem lokalen Büro. Ich habe unserem Team die Server zur Verfügung gestellt, so dass sie damit machen können, was sie wollen.

Ich würde die Lösung mit neun von zehn Punkten bewerten.

Ich kann es kaum erwarten, mehr über ihre Technologie zu erfahren.

We use Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for our storage.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are always ahead of the curve when it comes to speed and performance, and therefore, they are more than adequately positioned to deal with the demands of changing infrastructure and changing demands from the business.

The cyber-resilient architecture of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers allows us to customize the information for individual users rather than being limited to a single generic account.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are continually evolving to achieve optimal energy efficiency and performance, utilizing the latest processors from both AMD and Intel.

Dell's OpenManage Console for lifecycle management is user-friendly. We have utilized a centralized console for both overall management and individualized control. The process, from initial setup to complete patching of firmware and drivers, is remarkably straightforward. Furthermore, its integration with the cloud eliminates the need for manual driver downloads or ISO installations. Since it operates entirely through the cloud, the process is exceptionally uncomplicated.

OpenManage Console helps our IT staff to be more productive.

The OpenManage Console reduces the time required for us to deploy new data centers by 25 percent because we can perform all tasks from the central console on a subscription basis.

The native OS security features have helped protect our environment from attacks.

The Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers exhibit high uptime. Once they are up and running, they remain operational, making them easy to maintain and manage in terms of driver patching. We observed these advantages immediately.

The impact of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers on our IT infrastructure and its ability to handle the demands of a remote or distributed workforce is good. This is because we can manage all of them from a central source. The presence of iDRAC means that we don't have to visit sites unnecessarily; everything can be managed efficiently.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers help in reducing unplanned production downtime by 100 TB. The maintenance we perform is very efficient. We plan for it, and the average failure rate is quite low. Therefore, we don't experience too many failures.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are user-friendly. The setup is easy and the overall experience with Dell from sales to support is absolutely wonderful.

The most valuable feature is the integration with ESXi, where they provide their custom ISOs, ensuring that all the drivers are installed.

I would appreciate the capability to carry out live updates without the need to take the system offline.

I have been using Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for 20 years.

Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers have been stable, which is why I have been using them for 20 years.

The Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers are scalable across the entire product range, ranging from one U to multiple U configurations and from single sockets to multiple sockets to cater to various markets.

The technical support is excellent, and they consistently possess extensive knowledge about the products.

Positive

We previously utilized Cisco Servers but transitioned to Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers due to their cost-effectiveness and reliability. These systems have slight differences; while one serves as Unified Communications, the other is stand-alone and is more manageable.

The initial setup is straightforward. I created a document explaining how to perform the task, and it was quite straightforward for individuals who are not familiar with PowerEdge systems. There weren't any complexities in the setup process; it's essentially a repetitive procedure. Once we've configured one PowerEdge server, the process is the same for all of them, as the product line doesn't substantially differ from a setup standpoint when utilizing PowerEdge servers.

Starting from the moment when ESXi is installed, the deployment takes approximately half a day to finish.

I have implemented the solution in-house and have also utilized Insight UK as our integrator at my previous job.

I am satisfied with the pricing of the Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers and would rate the cost as seven out of ten, with ten being the best.

We chose Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers and Microsoft due to their lower cost and user-friendly nature.

I would rate Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers an eight out of ten.

The integration of the app workloads with PowerEdge Rack Servers depends on the key factor of the operating system.

Using a public cloud instead of Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers can potentially be more costly. The latency of any on-premises device will always be greater than that of the cloud.

I highly recommend Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers as long as they meet the organization's requirements for their use case. Users should first figure out their use case and ensure that their goals align with the available options.

I'm using the server for Exchange and it gives me good performance.

I like the iDRAC feature.

I have also seen long life from each part and haven't had to call support, as far as I remember. I use competitors like HPE and we need spare parts every year. I have been using this server for 10 years and haven't faced any problems with the hardware or performance.

The BIOS interface could be improved; it is very poor. PowerEdge is very good overall, but if you compare the BIOS interface with HPE, it is not very good. HPE's is very advanced but Dell's is very simple.

I have been using Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for about 10 years.

The stability is about a seven out of 10.

It is scalable, but we are not planning to get more PowerEdge servers. We are planning to go with hyper-converged. We are looking to extend our environment and deploy a new DR site.

We have multiple locations and about 400 users.

Their support is excellent, but here I'm referring to all our Dell products, because I haven't had to contact them about PowerEdge.

Positive

I didn't have a previous solution, but I work with HPE servers at the same time. There is no major difference between them in performance or specifications. I prefer Dell for its warranty, which is very good here in Egypt. I am able to extend my warranty for one or two years.

For me, the setup was easy.

The only maintenance is cleaning it and adding hard disks.

I did it, as a system admin, with my team of three people: technical support and our help desk team.

Dell is somewhat more expensive than HPE.

In terms of money, if I compare a cloud system and an on-premises server like PowerEdge, if I rent the same type of product in the cloud for 10 years, it will cost more than if I get a PowerEdge server for five years.

If you invest in your network, it will be advantageous. 

We use PowerEdge for the virtualization of servers, and it gives us the ability to move server images on and off of the platform very quickly.

The PowerEdge Rack Servers are a go-to for handling high-performance workloads. I've had positive experiences with the amount of computing that it can provide per blade. Currently, the blade that I'm familiar with is the MX740c, which has dual processors and a total of 24 core processors. There are eight of these blades in the MX7000.

It also provides the ability for networking on the backside, which connects to the mezzanine. I currently use the MX5108, which provides four 25 gigabits-per-second connections to each blade. Each 5108 can provide you with a 100 gig uplink to your core. I currently have the MX5108 connected in two fabrics, A fabric, and B fabric. Both A fabric and B fabric are peered using a VLTI.

Then, I have the VLTI from the two blades connecting and uplinking to our distribution core. The distribution core is using a leaf spine. With that, it gives me 400 gigabits of uplink and downlink onto the chassis.

You can't have computed performance without using more power. That said, when I consider the power consumption and performance of the MX740c, depending on how much memory I install on each blade, I get the best bang for my buck. I'm not going to say that it's inexpensive or that it's sufficient. It depends on how hard I am processing, what I am running, how much memory I use, and again, what blades I purchase with the chassis. Overall, it's very flexible, and it depends on what I want to make of it.

With respect to its performance when it comes to running the latest high-demand applications, depending on my selection of hardware, it should be able to run nearly anything I would want. If I want to run Oracle servers on the PowerEdge blades, for example, then I can do that. They'll run it.

Recently, I've seen my use case migrate from the M1000 chassis to the MX7000 chassis. The improvement that I saw was increasing the uplink bandwidth from the M1000, which I was able to get a maximum of 160 gigabits a second, and now my maximum is 400 gigabits a second. I could have selected different switches, but the MX5108 is adequate to provide the uplink bandwidth that I need from the chassis.

Overall, I've seen an improvement in the network bandwidth, as well as an improvement in the speed of the blades and the processors.

The PowerEdge has also helped to reduce data processing time in the company, which makes things run better because it's faster to move data onto the blades. It is also faster when it comes to the deployment of computed images. It's hard to pinpoint how much time we have saved because it also depends on the network infrastructure that's in place. In my experience over the last couple of years, migrating from the M1000 to the MX7000 has moved the deployment of images from a few minutes to several seconds.

The MX7000 gives us the most concentrated amount of computing in the smallest area possible. It also has the ability to provide a large amount of bandwidth to the blades. This is important because it gives the user the ability to move as much data on and off of the blade platforms as quickly as possible.

The iDRAC telemetry is very useful for monitoring the system and providing analytics. You can use commands from the CLI, you can use scripting, you can use the REST interface, or you can use the point-and-click GUI. It's very flexible. I prefer using scripts because I monitor many blades and many chassis. I can script a lot of my monitoring requirements. 

The accelerated GPU feature helps to support demanding workloads that we run. For instance, they provide better performance for remote desktop sessions.

The blades are hot-swappable and in a virtual environment, being able to upgrade your hardware platform easily to better and faster hardware is a benefit.

On the MX7000 platform, they should continue to release better and faster blades.

I have been working with Dell PowerEdge Rack Servers for the past couple of years.

Stability-wise, this product is solid. We have very little downtime.

I need to make sure that the images that are running on the blades are reliable, and it provides that. Beyond that, I'm happy with the performance.

Scalability is up to the engineer. It is easily scalable depending on what native architecture you use to connect it all together.

I have been in contact with technical support a lot. Sometimes I run into little anomalies that I need an explanation or workaround or fix for, and by bringing it to their attention, they usually get their developers on it and come back with a solution rather quickly.

I would rate the technical support a ten out of ten. We have really good Dell support.

Positive

I have worked with other solutions from other vendors, and I like Dell Power Solutions. I worked with them years ago and then went to a different vendor, on a different job course, and in this particular job I've come back to Dell.

I've got to say that Dell hardware and support are very good, and I'm happy with it.

The initial setup is straightforward. For somebody with experience with Dell products, to begin with, it's simple. It's no more complicated than deploying the M1000, which was the predecessor chassis to the MX7000.

I can deploy and network an MX7000 chassis and have all the blades loaded with ESXi within a day. I make use of a lot of my own scripts and usually, I employ a script to mount the ISO images that'll be installed on all the blades through a shell script, and then the script also reboots the blades, and the blades mount the ISO image and install VMware. All of that happens quickly.

After that, I simply put in the network parameters for the ESXi hosts, add the host to the V-center, and then they're ready to go. I already have some predetermined configurations that I use for the network blades, the MX5108s. I use those as a template for all four blades on the back of the MX7000, and simply paste them in. I can usually have all four blades configured within 30 minutes to an hour.

The pricing is very competitive.

When you compare against public cloud solutions, having the compute onsite is always going to be faster. However, that really depends on how big of a pipe your institution or your data center has to the cloud. If you have more bandwidth to the cloud and back, perhaps latency will be less but I don't see how it can be faster than having the compute on site.

This product has built-in security features, although that's up to the system engineers and network engineers to properly upgrade their firmware. They need to follow Dell's baseline release for the chassis to ensure that the firmware and software for the baseline of the blades and the network cards meet the baseline requirements. If you can match those requirements then the security will follow. It's easier to manage when you're baseline is all matched.

Overall, this is a good product but there is always room for improvement.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.