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it_user759894 - PeerSpot reviewer
Development and IT Manager at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Consultant
Performance is robust, but Dell EMC VxRail is easier to implement
Pros and Cons
  • "Our storage and IT are now at an enterprise level with all the necessary controls and restrictions being enacted."
  • "The storage efficiency is weak and needs to be improved."

What is our primary use case?

HPE Hyper Converged handles all the network setup for my servers and data.

My experience is in SMBs.

How has it helped my organization?

Before we bought the HPE Hyper Converged servers, we had scattered systems and servers. Our data was scattered. When the solution came into place, we were able to connect all our data and organize it in one place. Now, our storage and IT are at an enterprise level with all the necessary controls and restrictions being enacted.

We will also be using the HPE Hyper Converged solution for simulations going forward once we install SAP.

What is most valuable?

The performance is robust for HPE Hyper Converged. We have been underutilizing the storage. Though, we have almost consumed 70 percent of the storage, and I can access my data whenever I want without searching all over the place for it.

In comparison, the VxRail is better in resource utilization and performance. It is also faster. It automatically will detect anything and configure anything. Learning VxRail is easier, as everything is native and linked together.

What needs improvement?

The storage efficiency is weak and needs to be improved. However, I do not think HPE is planning to improve it at this time. They will probably look to EOL it, because HPE SimpliVity has resolved this issue, but at a higher price tag.

To resolve this issue with HPE Hyper Converged, I will buy a backup appliance, then I will shift my data which I am not using often to a backup appliance. This will be offline data and solve my issues.

Buyer's Guide
HPE Hyper Converged
October 2024
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For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution because combined with VMware, which is always stable. It is very robust. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

HPE Hyper Converged supports up to 60 nodes. It is scalable, but we have to use the HPE OneView solution and have it to pass through vCenter. This consumes 10 cores of CPUs, which compromises performance.

Dell EMC VxRail supports up to 32 nodes, but is more futuristic and easier to scale. If you want to scale up, you just plug the nodes, then the cluster will detect the new node and configure it.

How are customer service and support?

With Dell EMC, they own everything and create one solution altogether. They design it in the way where they know the weaknesses of every solution that they have. 

This is much better than HPE. For example, I remember during the last storage issue that I had. HPE technical guys weren't able to support it, so I had to go back to VMware. This creates a loop or weakness. 

When you buy from Dell EMC directly, you receive that one point of contact for service and support.

How was the initial setup?

The implementation took almost two days for us, even though HPE told us that it would take two hours.

When comparing VxRail vs HPE Hyper Converged, VxRail is easier to implement. You just initiate the start, then it automatically starts the configuration. It detects the nodes and everything else. Everything which is connected to the data center is set up within two to three hours (maximum). While I haven't done the set up, I have seen it done.

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

Pricing with Dell EMC is double the price which I paid for HPE. However, in the end, Dell EMC is double in performance. This is not an apple to apple comparison though, as I have a four node from Dell EMC and a three node.

I don't feel VxRail is that expensive.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

The competitors in the market are HPE SimpliVity, VxRail, and Nutanix. All these solutions are extremely pricey. 

I feel VxRail is one of the best solutions you might ever have because of the protection it offers. 

SimpliVity is good, and it's reliable. It supports one node.

HP 380 is not up to the level of VMware products. They have more features, such as duplication or compression. 

What other advice do I have?

My entire environment is actualized in VMware.

Before choosing a product, think why you are buying, the reason, and what you are looking to get from it. If you have too much data or you want to store data, seeking a hyperconverged storage will be costly. It will not be efficient for you. You should look into alternative storage solutions and ways of implementation before buying a hyperconverged solution. Make sure you are actually need those features.

The future is in hyperconverged solutions. They are much easier to manage and run. They are flawless. You can just log into VMware and have everything in front of you. However, it's costly compared to a traditional setup. 

A company should look at the data protection features, because in the end, the most valuable asset in any organization is its data. It should be protected as much as possible. Consider the way it works, with its space saving and space efficiency. Those are the key factors you should look at before deciding on a solution.

I would rate HPE Hyper Converged as seven out of ten.

I would rate VxRail as a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user567939 - PeerSpot reviewer
PreSales Specialist at ITF Svensk IT Funktion AB
Consultant
It's easy to manage, works over different locations, and is easy to provision.

What is most valuable?

The customers we have think it's a valuable product because of its ease of management, and its ability to work over different locations, and so on. The ease of management helps our customers’ business because they don't need to do so much with it. It just works. It's easy to provision, and so on.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see price points when there are larger solutions. If we have a solution where we’re going up against a couple hundreds of TBs, the price point is often too high.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a very stable solution, absolutely. When you're doing network RAID and so on, it's very stable because if one node goes down, it's still protected.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is very scalable. You can scale up from two nodes to almost infinite nodes.

How was the initial setup?

It is not difficult at all to deploy. You just plug and play, sort of. It's not very consultant-friendly.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Our customers would be looking at the top competitors like EMC and Dell. They chose StoreVisual because it’s a better product. I don't know much about the others. I only work with HPE.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
HPE Hyper Converged
October 2024
Learn what your peers think about HPE Hyper Converged. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2024.
814,763 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Directors at Eglobe infra solutions
Reseller
A solution that improves profit margins to achieve breakthrough results
Pros and Cons
  • "It provides unmatched performance, productivity and reliability."
  • "This solution is very costly."

What is our primary use case?

We like that HPE Hyper Converged requires only information about the solution.

It provides unmatched performance, productivity and reliability, and its HPC technologies and workflow provide downtime and increase the technology. It is an investment that improves profit margins to achieve breakthrough results.

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has optimized utilization and efficiency that simplifies the administrations for the cluster and close and supercomputers. It is also beneficial to maintain the HPC workload.

What is most valuable?

We like the fact that it is reliable.

What needs improvement?

This solution is very costly.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using this solution for about three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is a stable solution. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability is fair. 

How are customer service and support?

We have had no issues with the technical support. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate this solution eight out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
PeerSpot user
Tomas Sajauka - PeerSpot reviewer
Systems Engineer-Consultant at Blue Bridge Bond, UAB
Real User
Top 5
Stable and manageable solution
Pros and Cons
  • "No concerns or issues with stability."
  • "Installation and setup could be easier."

What is our primary use case?

My primary use case is as an all-in-one solution for SMB.

What is most valuable?

The features I've found most valuable are manageability, integrated backup solution SimpliVity, and deep integration.

What needs improvement?

An area for improvement would be the ease of installation and setup.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been working with this solution for a number of years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

I have not heard of any concerns or issues with stability.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is fairly good.

How was the initial setup?

Installation takes anywhere from a few days to weeks.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution eight out of ten.

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
PeerSpot user
Consultant at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Consultant
Saves us time but it is too expensive to scale
Pros and Cons
  • "What I really like about this program, is that it needs little space and it works really fast, so it saves us time."
  • "The solution is not very stable."

What is our primary use case?

Our primary use case of this solution is to keep all our data storage in one solution. 

What is most valuable?

What I really like about this program, is that it needs little space and it works really fast, so it saves us time. 

What needs improvement?

I would really like to see an improvement in the stability. We've experienced a few issues with the stability, because HP brings out a new version every month, and that's very complicated. For instance, we see firmware from the host, vSphere itself, and then there are many steps you have to do in a very short time. I would prefer fewer updates because we as customers, who don't have IT experience, aren't familiar with these steps and it is really difficult for us.

In the next version, I would like to see an easier upgrade procedure that doesn't take much time and that is easier to understand. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for about one year now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is not very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I believe the solution is scalable, but the license gets more expensive if you add more users. And then you also need more hardware from HP when you scale. You need the license from vSphere, from VMware, and then it costs a lot. That makes us wonder if it is really the best solution for us. I, therefore, think it is just too expensive to scale. 

How are customer service and technical support?

I am not very impressed by the technical support. The problem is that HP came out years ago and it was independent. But then HP bought out DVT so we had to learn how to work on the new equipment and how it works. That was not easy and the support was medium. You have to do it a lot for yourself.

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

The solution is expensive - not only the hardware costs but server costs too. And the more you scale, the more expensive it gets. 

What other advice do I have?

My advice to others would be to clearly know what you want. Do you want more disk space? More storage? What is your goal with this program? In a hyper-converged environment you have many applications that need more storage and then it gets expensive. Also if you want to scale and if you have to do backups and make snapshots. If you need regular storage, you simply use a disc in and it's easier. 

I rate this solution a five or six out of ten.

Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner.
PeerSpot user
it_user759894 - PeerSpot reviewer
Development and IT Manager at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Consultant
A very robust solution, which is easy to manage. It has increased our operational efficiency.
Pros and Cons
  • "The HA, which means I have a copy of the VMs always available, and the moment a VM is down, the system tries to power it on again."
  • "Data protection and optimization: It is really weak. They do not offer deduplication or compression."

How has it helped my organization?

Before deploying the product, we did not have any enterprise IT infrastructure. Now, with the HC380 deployment, we succeeded in building all the required servers, organizing the data and protecting it, which has increased our operational efficiency and level. 

Now, we have flexibility thanks to HPE HC380 and VMware.

What is most valuable?

  1. The ease of use and management. 
  2. The speed: It is extremely fast. 
  3. The price per value compared to other solutions, like Nutanix and SimpliVity. (We made the deal before approval of HPE SimpliVity deal). 
  4. The HA, which means I have a copy of the VMs always available, and the moment a VM is down, the system tries to power it on again. 

The drawback: I do not have deduplication, compression, and DR features, which were later addressed through HPE SimpliVity acquisition.

What needs improvement?

Data protection and optimization: It is really weak. They do not offer deduplication or compression. Also, we do not have a real backup solution. It is just snapshots, which is forcing us to do automatic backups of the extremely important data on different servers. Thus, if I can have a deal with HPE to have an upgrade to SimpliVity with our current agreement, it would work well. We are in negotiations and we hope to reach happy ending soon.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Not yet at all. It is very stable and robust. The only problem HC380 has is the data backup and management (deduplication, compression, and WAN optimization).

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have not faced this as we have not scaled up yet. We might scale up as we are planning to implement SAP S/4HANA.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have proactive support from HPE. Their support is really good and the moment you need them, you can find them.

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

Not at all. Previously, we did not have a hyper-converged solution.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup took almost two days as we were the first to implement this solution in the region and none of the team had experience, although they were trained. They were always in contact with HPE support.

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

HPE pricing is good. It was much cheaper than their competitors. It does not have any hidden costs as the other competitors. I just have to pay for the support after my three year support contract finishes.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Yes, Nutanix and SimpliVity. 

Nutanix pricing was slightly more expensive. After three years, I have to pay support three times more than what I will pay for HPE. 

For SimpliVity, buying two servers of SimpliVity would cost me twice as much as buying three servers of HPE HC380 at that time of purchase. Now, the gap has been reduced, that is why I am in discussions with them.

What other advice do I have?

It is a very robust solution and easy to manage. If you do not have the budget limitation constraints, my advice is to go for HPE SimpliVity as it is the most complete solution until now, if I am not mistaken.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user683301 - PeerSpot reviewer
Team Leader Infrastructure Team at Entel
Real User
The provisioning is fast.
Pros and Cons
  • "The provisioning is very fast. It’s not a problem for us to achieve the goals of the client."
  • "I would like to see a more intuitive, user-friendly UI."

How has it helped my organization?

The time to deploy is very fast.

What is most valuable?

The provisioning is very fast. It’s not a problem for us to achieve the goals of the client.

What needs improvement?

I would like to see a more intuitive, user-friendly UI.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is stable 95% of the time, and the rest is due to human error.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We haven't developed a scalability platform yet.

How are customer service and technical support?

I would give technical support a rating of 10/10. We call for typical issues. Even for those of us who have taken the courses and are certified, we sometimes have issues that we need help with.

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

We knew we had to invest in a new solution because we needed more stability and faster connections. We didn’t have a solution previous to this one. In my country, we don't have many choices to select companies to provide us with hardware. HPE is in my country. We also had Dell, but we don't trust Dell. We had so many issues with Dell. So now it's all HPE.

How was the initial setup?

The installation was very complex.

What other advice do I have?

Take a course first, even if you are an engineer. At least take a course for the administration of this product. This can be very complex to use.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Director of Technology at WinSoft IT, C.A.
Real User
Easy to manage, great tools and very reasonably priced
Pros and Cons
  • "Reasonably priced and easy to manage for small to medium size companies that don't have an IT department."
  • "Scalability requires using additional nodes."

What is our primary use case?

We are partners with HPE.

What is most valuable?

The solution is reasonably priced and easy to manage for the smaller to medium size business companies where they don't need an IT department. HPE is a great company with a great product. All the tools that we use on a daily basis are great. We can use configuration tools that HPE provides for sizing the solutions to our clients, and they have several tools to gather information from our data centers which don't cost. 

What needs improvement?

The downside of the solution is the scalability because they grow using nodes, but it's not desegregate. If you want to add more computers or more space, you need to add another node. It's the only negative in the solution. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using HPE products for the past 20 years. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate this product a 10 out of 10.

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