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it_user476355 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr. Systems Engineer at Cardinal Glass
Vendor
I really like the way we can do the storage in cells. I would like serial number tracking to be improved.

What is most valuable?

I've been using HP for quite a few years, so my knowledge base of HP products is good. We like to standardize on them. We also have good relationships with HP vendors. That's the reason why we've been going with the HP ProLiants.

I really like the way we can do the storage in cells, for putting operating systems on them. The redundancy, as far as power supplies, hard drives, etc. Ease of use is key.

How has it helped my organization?

The business benefits - if we stick to one brand, you don't have to have as much people, as far as knowing different brands and stuff like that. 

Reliability - so we don't have to keep repairing them, we don't have downtime, which is key. Most of our plants are 24/7, so we've got to make sure that we don't have downtime. We used them in a Hyper-V environment, that adds in the uptime, as well.

What needs improvement?

Serial number tracking and trying to get that tied to my account. I have a terrible time with that with HP. I've got hundreds of servers around the country, and when I try to call in and keep the serial numbers straight and things like that. When I try to download drivers for them, the serial number doesn't come up, even though it's under extended coverage. I've not been happy with that part.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Reliability was the reason why we've had them for so many years - they've been reliable.

Buyer's Guide
HPE ProLiant DL Servers
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about HPE ProLiant DL Servers. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
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What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

 The pricing has been good on them.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

Dell was the primary competitor. We do have some plants that have Dell systems, but we probably are 90 - 95% HP, as far as company-wide. We've just been happy with the product, and there's not been a business reason to switch.

What other advice do I have?

For me, they key things are reliability, and ease of use. Then the pricing's good as well.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user485712 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Datacenter Specialist at a aerospace/defense firm with 10,001+ employees
Vendor
Good for applications that you use really heavy disk IO. I'm not a fan of their rails.

Valuable Features:

I like their scalability. The fact that where I have 24 drives in one of my servers, I can basically turn it into its own little storage tray if I want to, and then attach a server to it. It's really good for applications that you use really heavy disk IO.

Improvements to My Organization:

For us, we use the DLs more on a piece by piece basis, so when our clients come to us with a very specific demand that really doesn't fit well with our blades, which is our preference, then we go to the DLs, and then we scale it out for whatever they need.

Room for Improvement:

I'm not a fan of their rails. I hate how those things rack, as they're just not nice.

Initial Setup:

The server itself is quite good, easy to use. Configuration of it is a little bit tedious, you've got to be willing to spend a couple of hours just to get it set up before you can even start using it, because the reboots are ten - fifteen minutes long, and that'll kill you.

Cost and Licensing Advice:

The cost per compute. I pay as much for a ProLiant DL as I do for a Blade. It requires more power, more cooling, more space for essentially the same function, if I wanted to, with the exception of additional storage. So for me it really does come down to cost.

Other Solutions Considered:

We haven't looked at competitors in a very long time for those. We basically have stuck with HPE. It's a known name, so I don't want to give my customers something that might work, I want something that will work.

Other Advice:

Get on it with OneView, because it's that single pane of glass, you can manage your blades, your DLs, and your 3PAR, all using that one tool.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
HPE ProLiant DL Servers
January 2025
Learn what your peers think about HPE ProLiant DL Servers. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: January 2025.
831,265 professionals have used our research since 2012.
it_user470361 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Director of Technology at Resorts World Las Vegas
Vendor
It's dependable, and they keep maturing the product.

What is most valuable?

I've been a ProLiant customer for years, since the late '90s. The ProLiant series has been very innovative over the years, compared to some of the competition that are not so innovative. It's very dependable, and they keep maturing the product more and more. Especially now, I'm looking at the Hyper Converged 380, so they're re-inventing new ways to use that technology. That's a great thing right there, with the Hyper Converged space as well. The management of them is valuable. I specifically don't use them on a daily basis, I have my engineers that do since they can easily manage the servers.

How has it helped my organization?

It's more of a rack server, it's more of a commodity kind of device. I know what I'm buying when I buy from HPE. I get that reliable server, good service, good support, and it works.

What needs improvement?

This server is separate from the next one and I'd like it to be integrated so it becomes all-in-one.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It's very stable.

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

Over the years that I've been involved with a lot of different server manufacturers as far as rack managed servers, Cisco C-Series, IBM X-Series, and a lot of HPE. They're comparable in many ways but we choose a lot of HPE because we know we're getting a good, reliable product and at a good price point.

How was the initial setup?

It was very easy.

What about the implementation team?

I had HPE do it.

What other advice do I have?

Look at the Hyper Converged as everything's going to virtual, so look at the ProLiant in a Hyper Converged space.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
it_user251847 - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Information Officer at Poder Judicial
Vendor
Due to the fact that our software is web-enabled for both internal and external users, we needed a powerful and simple to use solution.

What is most valuable?

It’s very powerful, so we can offer good services for our network. It offers a very reliable framework for our judicial needs. Hyper-V software gave us more capacity to consistently meet our judges' needs. I think the most valuable feature, from my end, is that HP is a strong platform on which to host our services. It has good life-cycle performance and it will work continuously. In general, it’s a very good machine.

How has it helped my organization?

We’ve got 30,000 lawyers connecting every day, and we needed to serve them in an efficient manner. This is done by managing their dockets well and automating the process in a streamlined manner. By allowing our lawyers to automate the process, we are able to better serve their needs.

What needs improvement?

We honestly don’t have any problems. It’s a well-built machine, and there are no problems with the servers.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It’s pretty stable. We are using the DL-380 line, and we have 14 servers that go into three racks for two data centers.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It’s scalable, and it doesn’t take that much effort to do so. When you prioritize simplicity, it’s much easier to scale quickly and you don’t need to buy much more.

How are customer service and technical support?

It was never a big problem for us. When a part breaks, it doesn’t take long for us to replace the part. It was easy for us to switch in third-party servers temporarily while waiting for the spare part to arrive from HP, and it would work just fine.

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

We were using Compac. In the public sector, when you buy, you do it through a public process. You can’t choose, you write the specifications of your needs, and then vendors offer their products. We do our buying through our RFP process.

How was the initial setup?

Very easy. It’s always an easy thing for us to install, as our staff has good knowledge.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also looked at Dell and Lenovo. We always look at multiple vendors to compare pricing, which, for the public sector, is extremely important. With HP, the prices weren’t too different from other vendors, but for us it was the right choice when considering the total cost.

What other advice do I have?

We have a private-cloud data center, but we also host publicly for some customers. The software that we’re offering to our buyers is web-enabled for both internal and external users. So the servers needed to be powerful and simple to use.

For me, in the public sector, it was never that concerning for us to get the latest release of servers. Our users were satisfied with using older servers that served their needs just fine, and it saved us a lot of money as we didn’t have to pay the premium for the newest servers.

HP has been very good for us. I would recommend buying exactly what you need and the same line of the hardware to be consistent.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Business application analyst at CFI
Real User
Top 5
It's a robust, scalable solution
Pros and Cons
  • "I recommend HP ProLiant. It's a robust and scalable product."
  • "We have had issues with ProLiant's intelligent provisioning. Sometimes, the drivers do not come up, so we have to install them manually."

What is our primary use case?

We use ProLiant servers to host our solution. We have around 150 users. 

What needs improvement?

We have had issues with ProLiant's intelligent provisioning. Sometimes, the drivers do not come up, so we have to install them manually. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We started using ProLiant a few months ago.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

HPE ProLiant is stable. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

HPE ProLiant is scalable. 

How was the initial setup?

The setup can be complex or straightforward, depending on the server model. One person can complete the deployment in about four days. 

What other advice do I have?

I rate HP ProLiant DL servers eight out of 10. I recommend HP ProLiant. It's a robust and scalable product. If you're having problems with the drivers, you can go to the HP forums and get some help. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Head of IT Infrastructure at AMK Microfinance
Real User
The pricing is reasonable and technical support is very helpful
Pros and Cons
  • "Technical support are mostly helpful."
  • "The hardware was frequently faulty and sometimes broke down."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution for the DR site and run it on the infrastructure system.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability of the product is the same as the Cisco solution and we have the same number of people working with it.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support are mostly helpful.

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

The pricing is reasonable. We pay approximately 30 to 35K, which is cheap.

What other advice do I have?

The product is lower quality than its competitors in terms of performance. The hardware  was frequently faulty and sometimes broke down. 

I would therefore give it an overall rating of eight out of 10.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1063335 - PeerSpot reviewer
CS Core planning manager at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Real User
Multiple application support, reliable, and good performance
Pros and Cons
  • "HPE ProLiant DL Servers have good performance and they support different types of applications."
  • "The support lifecycle for the product for the Telco application should be better."

What is our primary use case?

We use HPE ProLiant DL Servers as part of our management solution and for some specific applications.

How has it helped my organization?

This solution has improved how our organization functions because it enhances the service delivery, as part of the managed solution.

What is most valuable?

HPE ProLiant DL Servers have good performance and they support different types of applications.

What needs improvement?

The support lifecycle for the product for the Telco application should be better.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using HPE ProLiant DL Servers for approximately one year.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

HPE ProLiant DL Servers have been stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

In my experience, HPE ProLiant DL Servers are scalable.

We have approximately 45 users using the solution in my organization. We plan to increase usage.

What about the implementation team?

We use a system integrator for support.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate HPE ProLiant DL Servers a nine out of ten.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Technical Account Manager at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Real User
Fast backup speeds, easy to learn, and simple installation
Pros and Cons
  • "The speed of the backups and having the system be immune to ransomware are the main advantages."
  • "When it comes to security there can always be room for improvement. If there was an option to build security into the system it would be an advantage."

What is our primary use case?

Our customers are having additional VMware environments which we are converting into one because of the backup advantage. We can do the complete backup of VM within approximately eight to ten seconds.

What is most valuable?

The speed of the backups and having the system be immune to ransomware are the main advantages. Additionally, It is very user-friendly, repairable, flexible, and anybody can easily learn it.

What needs improvement?

When it comes to security there can always be room for improvement. If there was an option to build security into the system it would be an advantage.

The solution could improve by providing local support here in Sri Lanka, we do not have a local office.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for approximately five years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable.

We have approximately 500 customers using this solution.

How are customer service and technical support?

The support structure from HPE is excellent. When comparing the support to Dell and Huawei, they cannot match the level of support HPE provides. I have experienced great response times and the engineers are very talented with precise information. When they give a solution to a problem we do not have to question if it will resolve the issue.

HPE frequently checks its competitors' capabilities to ensure they deliver the best service. This is something valuable this is why they are one of the best.

How was the initial setup?

The installation is easy. The hardware installation takes approximately 20 minutes and the Windows installation takes another 20 minutes.

What about the implementation team?

We have support engineers for the maintenance and implementation of the solution.

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

HPE ProLiant DL Servers are one of the best-selling solutions in this industry. There is not a license required for this solution.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate HPE ProLiant DL Servers a nine 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
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Updated: January 2025
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Buyer's Guide
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