IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe Reviews

The prices are high. Except for this, there is nothing I don't like in FlashSystem. Before IBM Flash, I was using NetApp 2020. You can't easily do what you want to do with NetApp. It takes more time to take snapshots, it takes more time to do deduplication. 

FlashSystem is better than the old system. I recommend it to my friends who ask what to pick.

I have been using IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe for about three years.

FlashSystem doesn't have any limitations. 

IBM's support is not good. I experienced a big problem where I opened the console IBM Storage and would see that something was broken. I called the call centers, and I said, "I have a problem. My drive is not working." They want me to give them the serial number, I gave it to them and they told me "I cannot find your product. Your product is not here."

It was unbelievable. I had purchased it a week prior. I was the first person in Turkey to buy it. They said they couldn't help me. I ended up fixing it myself. 

Before buying IBM Flash, I tested many flash storage solutions. For example, I tested Pure Storage for about one and a half months, Huawei Storage, and Dell Storage. I tested and compared the performance results. 

I also tested Iometer. When we run the Imeter on NetApp, the performance result is not the same. It immediately goes down and suddenly, goes up. It's not stable. But when we were testing Pure Storage, we found it to be very good. It's stable. It goes on the same line. When I tested Dell Storage and removed the controller or hard drive manually I saw the performance go down. Dell goes down, and Huawei goes down. When I did the same test on Pure Storage,  the performance was near the same. Because of this, I would recommend Pure Storage. I plan to buy it when I have the budget for it. 

I would rate IBM FlashSystem a seven out of ten. The performance is good but the support is not. It's easy to use, has good stability, and many features. 

The solution provides unique and user-friendly technology.

The solution's compression or deduplication features over volume need improvement. Also, the scalability of its box setup could be better.

We have been using the solution since 2012.

It is a very stable solution.

The solution is scalable. I rate its scalability a nine out of ten. It is suitable for medium to enterprise customers.

The solution's technical support team is proactive, although their services are costly.

Positive

The solution is easy to install. It took us around two to five hours to complete the initial configuration. Afterwards, it took us three days to migrate the data.

The implementation team for the solution involved three executives from the vendor's support team, along with me as an architect for POC.

The solution's price is competitive with other products like Dell and Huawei. Also, the customers have to pay one time cost for it.

I advise others to use the solution if they require good system performance and scalability. The product is excellent; I rate it a nine out of ten.

I use it for a wide range of use cases such as databases and web applications.

What I like about the product are its high availability, maximum efficiency in performance, and its ability to handle a high level of I/O operations. This makes it very effective in reducing operational issues and ensuring smooth, reliable data processing.

I would like to see IBM products become more affordable because they can be quite expensive, which limits their accessibility to a broader customer base.

I have been using IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe for a couple of years.

It is a stable product.

IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is fairly scalable. Approximately 25 people use it at my company. 

The technical support is good.

The setup can be complex, but with training and experience in the technology, it becomes easier to manage. Overall, it is considered complex for newcomers. The maintenance is done by our engineers.

The product is very expensive.

My advice to new users is to be aware that the product can be slow for general purposes. It is designed with specific use cases in mind, so ensure it aligns with your specific needs and purpose before using it. Overall, I would rate IBM FlashSystem 9100 NVMe as a seven out of ten.

We primarily use the solution for the database.

The high performance and high availability improved our overall processes.

The visualization, flash copy, and HyperSwap are the solution's most valuable features. The visualization in particular is stellar. It's very, very easy to use.

Other vendors have included a block and file system. IBM doesn't include a file system. And yet, it's very necessary for all organizations' networks to have file systems. We have other systems for the file system, however, ideally, we would like to have one system with all the features we need instead of having different solutions for certain aspects.

Although I had been using the solution previously, I stopped using the solution about six months ago.

The solution is very stable. It's reliable. We never had a problem with bugs or glitches. It never froze on us.

The system is very scalable. It's actually too much for our entire organization. We don't need the level of scalability offered.

At the time of the implementation, the FlashSystem had over 5,000 users.

Technical support is very good. Overall, I'd rate it nine out of ten. They could guarantee the time it would take to provide answers, however, so that we know when to expect results and aren't waiting on them to respond.

In terms of replacing parts, it would be nice if they could say something like "this will take us two days or two hours". It would help us manage expectations for turnaround.

The initial setup is very easy and very quick. It's not too complex. We found it to be rather straightforward.

The advantage of FlashSystem is the stellar visualization of data integration. We deployed the solution very quickly due to the fact that, when the system was implemented, the migration was transparent. The tools make everything very clear for the user.

IBM FlashSystem is an excellent product. That said, I don't recommend it to vendors due to the fact that IBM doesn't have a file system. For the operator, it's difficult to work with different types of storage. Again, we need to have one solution, one software that encapsulates everything, and right now, IBM is missing the file system.

On a scale from one to ten, I would rate the solution at a nine.

We are a solution provider and this is one of the storage systems that we resell to our clients.

The most valuable feature is the speed.

The pricing should be more competitive.

I have been working with this product for about five years.

This is a stable product.

I think that this FlashSystem is scalable. Our customers for this product are usually medium-sized companies with between 200 and 300 users.

The technical support is good.

The initial setup is straightforward and it usually takes about a day to deploy.

The price of the FlashSystem 9100 NVMe is reasonable.

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.