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reviewer298561 - PeerSpot reviewer
Technology & Product Director at Precise Imaging
User
Top 20
Great UI with failover protection and the ability to expand storage
Pros and Cons
  • "The failover protection and the ability to expand storage and nodes with no downtime are by far the best physical features we have benefited from."
  • "Our company was hoping for deduplication and encryption across HCI. That is currently not supported."

What is our primary use case?

HCI was set up to host our ERP web apps, domain controller, and phone system.  We are using this in production, staging, and development with around 40 virtual machines. We are using Linux and Windows with VMware as the ESXi host. 

Our main use of StarWind HCI is creating a super-smooth virtualized server setup. It blends tech magic, merging storage, networking, and more into one. We were always running into the issues of needing to add more storage and having to pull down our servers, notify customers of the downtime, etc., however, not anymore.

How has it helped my organization?

The solution offers failover protection and the ability to expand storage and nodes with no downtime.  Our customers who use our web apps benefit from nearly zero downtime due to hardware failure, hardware replacement, or upgrades. 

Now we are looking at replicating a similar cluster setup for our firewall, switches, and ISP so we can get nearly 0.00% downtime which I know is not possible, however, with the new HCI setup, it is possible to at least almost get there. 

Their support is by far the best enterprise-level support I have come across.

What is most valuable?

The failover protection and the ability to expand storage and nodes with no downtime are by far the best physical features we have benefited from. Once we requested help from sales, it was a very easy decision compared to VMware where you get lost among the mess of products and low-trained phone techs.

Their web UI is very basic and that is how it should be. The magic is what their HCI setup does behind the scenes for redundancy and the ability to expand storage without ever having to go offline since another node picks up the storage.

What needs improvement?

Our company was hoping for deduplication and encryption across HCI. That is currently not supported. They used to have it and was removed. Hopefully, both of these features will be coming in upcoming releases.  

A built-in DR that can be stretched with high latency would be very helpful as well. We were able to purchase VMware 8 for our hosts. It would be nice if they developed their own ESXi OS to compete with VMware as the other options out there are not great. VMware does what it needs, however, their support is not great.

Buyer's Guide
StarWind Virtual SAN
March 2025
Learn what your peers think about StarWind Virtual SAN. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for one week.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

We've had no downtime so far.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

You can scale as much as your company will need.

How are customer service and support?

Technical support is good. Somebody is always available 24/7.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

I did not use a different solution.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was very straightforward.

What about the implementation team?

We used StarWind in-house support as they do most of the setup before they send it to you.

What was our ROI?

We've witnessed downtime within two years.

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

I'd advise new users to have sales walk them through all the options and also ask them about purchasing the hardware for you.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I previously evaluated VMware.

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
reviewer1823307 - PeerSpot reviewer
Field Engineering Lead at Superior Support Resources, Inc.
User
Hardware agnostic and easy to set up with great support
Pros and Cons
  • "The top-notch support before, during, and after deployments are better than any other vendor I have come across."
  • "The only way I can see this product needing improvement is the consultation level of the StarWind sales and engineers."

What is our primary use case?

We are an SMB IT consulting company with an infrastructure department. 

Before 2019, we had been deploying HP StoreVirtual VSA in order to deliver a typical 2-node hyper-converged cluster. Since the publishing of EOL/EOS for HP StoreVirtual we had been looking for a suitable replacement. 

We looked at and deployed various solutions - from StorMagic, Open-E, NetApp, and EMC. StarWind was the easiest to deploy. It was very inexpensive, offered the best support, and was hardware agnostic. After several deployments, this has been the best 2-node hyper-converged solution accepted by all engineers on my team.

How has it helped my organization?

StarWind Virtual SAN has given us the ability to bring a stable and functional 3rd party 2-node hyper-converged solution to our SMB clients. 

The typical roadblock with SMBs is the cost. It is very difficult to convince an SMB of the value of redundancy, highly-available hardware configurations, up-time, and quality vendor support until an emergency happens and solutions are needed ASAP. 

With StarWind, we are able to present best practices to SMBs and since the price point is attractive, we can more efficiently convince SMB clients to make the investment in best practices before a disaster happens.

What is most valuable?

The top-notch support before, during, and after deployments are better than any other vendor I have come across. There is very little wait and very little pain to get an engineer who is very knowledgeable about this product to assist us.

The fact that it is hardware agnostic gives us the capability to customize the solution according to the client's needs and budget.

We are in the middle of converting our own infrastructure to StarWind Virtual SAN since we are so satisfied with the ease and function of the environments where this product is deployed.

What needs improvement?

The only way I can see this product needing improvement is the consultation level of the StarWind sales and engineers. For example, the method of management of the StarWind environments that have been deployed has been a downloaded management console program. This downloaded program which needs to be installed on the network of the environment was the suggestion of the deployment engineers. 

I would like to see more consultation on a web UI management console.

For how long have I used the solution?

Our first deployment was in 2019.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

No deployments have ended badly. All are still running without issues. It is very stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is hardware agnostic. Storage can be added if licensing is increased. It offers above-average scalability. 

How are customer service and support?

Customer service is the best part of this product. The customer service and support I have received are unmatched by any other vendor.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We used HP StoreVirtual. The switch was needed as it came to its end-of-life and end-of-support.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is very straightforward. Anything complex is done by the StarWind personnel.

What about the implementation team?

Our implementation was a hybrid of vendor-team and in-house. The vendor team has a very high level of expertise.

What was our ROI?

The ROI is for our clients. There is less downtime, less troubleshooting, fewer issues, and fast speeds. 

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

The setup is simple and the cost is attractive.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also evaluated Open-E, StorMagic, NetAPP, and EMC.

What other advice do I have?

I'd advise users to initiate lots of communication with their support staff. Their responses are quick and sufficient.

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
Buyer's Guide
StarWind Virtual SAN
March 2025
Learn what your peers think about StarWind Virtual SAN. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: March 2025.
848,716 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Wires382 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at WYATT EARLY HARRIS WHEELER LLP
User
Top 20
Great support, easy to administer, and offers zero loss of performance
Pros and Cons
  • "The product only requires two VMWare ESXi host servers versus three host servers for VMware's comparable solution."
  • "I struggled when bit figuring out how to go about doing the evaluation."

What is our primary use case?

I am using it to replace an end-of-life NetApp SAN after moving about half of our storage to the cloud. It is reducing the cost when it comes time to replace existing on-site storage (this was part of the cost justification of moving systems to the cloud but quotes provided by several vendors and consultants for replacement systems were actually more than what we paid for the EOL system six years ago). I was greatly relieved that I was able to deliver on my promise to reduce storage costs by half with StarWind vSAN.

How has it helped my organization?

We were able to reduce our on-site storage costs by roughly half what we paid for the previous NetApp SAN six years ago (with no noticeable loss of performance or loss of High Availability). This allowed us to help cost justify the investment we had already made in cloud and Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings with existing vendors without breaking the bank when it came time to replace our end-of-life NetApp SAN. Since only two VMWare ESXi host servers are required, it's allowing us to use local storage; we should also be able to replace the system again the next go around for a similar cost. 

What is most valuable?

The product only requires two VMWare ESXi host servers versus three host servers for VMware's comparable solution.  

We have detected zero loss of performance and we still have High Availability in place. vSAN has run smoothly with zero issues whatsoever so far.  

It's easy to administer.  

Support has been great with knowledgeable, helpful, and professional engineers responding quickly.  

I had initial concerns there might be a language barrier yet have had zero issues in this area. Communication has been great with both sales and service before and after the sale.

What needs improvement?

I struggled when bit figuring out how to go about doing the evaluation. It would have been helpful to have been able to watch a video or two showing a quick track way to do an evaluation including the easiest approach to take, benchmark tools to use, and step-by-step instructions on how to go about it.  

I asked for assistance and was sent information on some tools to use but I struggled with understanding the best way to use them. Having a live person suggest the best, most meaningful way to go about the evaluation based on my individual situation, would have been helpful too. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for three months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is rock solid. There is no downtime so far and I have no performance issues.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The scalability seems solid. You could add nodes if needed.

How are customer service and support?

Support is fantastic. It is quick, responsive, knowledgeable, and professional. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We have a NetApp SAN. We switched as our storage was downsized by about half due to moving systems to the cloud and the SAN was EOL.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was straightforward. A couple of hours on a remote support session with an engineer and we were up and running.

What about the implementation team?

The solution was implemented in-house.

What was our ROI?

I'm not sure how to quantify ROI.

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

The setup cost was included with the price - so that was great! Buy from them directly rather than going through a reseller and you get 20% off.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated NetApp, Dell, SAN, and NAS solutions. All were way too costly.

What other advice do I have?

Sales and support have been great to work with and the solution is solid without breaking the bank.

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
Luca Bertellini - PeerSpot reviewer
Cardio Solution Architect EMEA at General Electric
Real User
Great features with excellent support and very good pricing
Pros and Cons
  • "The license price is one of the cheapest in the market."
  • "I would like an automated installation/configuration despite the fact that their service is very collaborative, a customer should be able to deploy the solution by themselves."

What is our primary use case?

The primary use case we had was covering with StarWind vSAN was to provide customers with a redundant solution that was able to guarantee flexibility. In terms of physical storage, we can aggregate in order to provide a redundant, replicated solution. At the same time, we were looking to keep the total cost of ownership as low as possible as the customer may have multiple venues to cover with the same schema of the system. 

With StarWind vSAN we were able to set a simple 2-node cluster leveraging the internal disks to create a replicated vSAN - eliminating any SPOF at a reasonable price.

How has it helped my organization?

StarWind, compared to other competitors in the market and in the same range of price, allows us to design system plans with the resilience of enterprise-grade storage, however, we are able to use smaller storage even at the consumer level. This makes us more competitive as the total price of the offered solution was comparable to a usual non-HA system yet with all the resilience features that StarWind is bringing with its product. This combination of low price with enterprise-grade HA features is key in the market.

What is most valuable?

There are tons of valuable features that StarWind vSAN brings to the table. It is very difficult to choose one to be raised as a role model.

The unique capability to create a vSAN on a 2-node cluster while all the other competitors will require users to have at least an external witness to set the Virtual SAN.

The service team is very collaborative and skilled and followed us from the implementation to the go-live of the system constantly.

The license price is one of the cheapest in the market.

What needs improvement?

The price is the key aspect (yet not at the expense of reliability and stability). It is not so easy to find an aspect where StarWind can improve their offering or any additional feature they can include for the price they ask. 

I know that StarWind can scale out easily, however, I wasn't in the position to test that. I would like an automated installation/configuration despite the fact that their service is very collaborative, a customer should be able to deploy the solution by themselves. 

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for more than one year.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to test the scalability aspect.

How was the initial setup?

As it was driven by StarWind reps, it was running very smoothly.

What about the implementation team?

There's nothing to finger point on the StarWind team. They were great.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We also evaluated StorMagic, VMware vSAN, and Datacore.

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
PeerSpot user
IT Supervisor at Area Agency on Aging Region 9, Inc.
Real User
Cost-effective with top-tier support and offers a highly available environment
Pros and Cons
  • "They offer top-tier support."
  • "Currently, the StarWind management console is a bit clunky to navigate and isn't the most user-intuitive interface."

What is our primary use case?

We use the solution to create a highly available server cluster. 

I currently have two physical servers running 25 virtual machines in a highly available cluster. StarWind Virtual SAN enables this without any extra hardware and any kind of hardware vendor locking. 

We use the vSAN product to run a production cluster but also a secondary cluster that houses low-level and testing servers. StarWind vSAN is used to cluster everything together into a solid hyper-converged structure that requires less hardware, less energy, and far less maintenance.

How has it helped my organization?

I have been able to do more with less hardware. StarWind vSAN allows us to create a hyper-converged server cluster on a friendly budget without being locked into a specific hardware vendor. 

The product, server, and support are top tier. Their proactive support is on top of every little anomaly in the vSAN. The product is fairly simple to get running and operates with little overhead. 

It makes setting up a high available environment easy and very manageable. Everyone from sales to support are very engaged and proud of the product.

What is most valuable?

The most valuable aspects are the support and the high availability.

They offer top-tier support. The support staff is knowledgeable and very willing to help. The proactive support option is unlike any support I've ever dealt with. If anything gets out of sorts, the team is on top of it with an email.

Achieving a highly available environment can be hard to execute and lead to a hardware vendor lockin. StarWind is hardware agnostic and supports as few as two hosts to create a fully functional, hyper-converged, highly available server cluster at a fraction of the cost of other vendors.

What needs improvement?

A good area of improvement would be at the level at which StarWind vSAN is managed. Currently, the StarWind management console is a bit clunky to navigate and isn't the most user intuitive interface. It gets the job done, however, following guides and documentation is highly advised to make sure things are being set up correctly. 

Another area of improvement would be the ability to manage your entire setup using StarWind software. Hyper-V, for example, still needs to be managed using a manager and failover cluster. Combining these into the StarWind product would be a game changer.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've used the solution for five years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is very stable. It's been running for five years with nearly no problems in the software itself.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

You can start with just two nodes and scale from there. It's very helpful.

How are customer service and support?

The technical support is A+.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We did not use a different solution previously.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. The support helps with the initial setup. I had to rebuild a cluster once and support also assisted with that process.

What about the implementation team?

We handled the setup in-house with the manufacturer.

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

The product offers a very straightforward cost model versus its competitors.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did also evaluate VMware, Nutanix, and Scale.

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
PeerSpot user
Director of IT at BLDD ARCHITECTS INC
Real User
Top 20
The techs are supportive, understanding and really care about your implementation.

What is our primary use case?

Started with a trial and then moved to the paid version. I have a 3 node cluster, (20) 1TB spinning drives, RAID 0, (3) 800 GB SSD drives, RAID 5 and 18GB RAM cache per node. Using 10G Infiniband for the iSCSI & SYNC network loops. This is to support local disks of VMware Horizon View full clone desktops.

How has it helped my organization?

  • Very fast (replaced EMC SAN). Ultra reliable. I had many, many problems with one of the hosts (ended up being a motherboard) and I never lost a thing. Once you get used to it, it is fairly easy to manage, and the tech support is stellar.
  • I would love to give it more RAM. Even marginal increases in RAM yield dramatic results. No more boot storms.
  • Because of the way VMware has shuffled license "classes" over the years we got ripped off not getting the native VMware vSAN. It seems that maybe for our use case StarWind VSAN is even better and compared to re-negotiating VMware licenses cheaper.

What is most valuable?

Performance, reliability, I love the management console (once I got used to it). It works and it works well. Maybe not exactly a feature but tech support is beyond great. It is fantastic. The techs are supportive, understanding and really care about your implementation. I feel they really want to see you succeed. I'm so pleased with the tech support that I consider it better than any feature.

What needs improvement?

  • The documentation is sub-par. The pre-sales documentation and information is sub-par.
  • StarWind is not cheap. It is not hard to set up but not a cakewalk either. Having tech support set you up is certainly a good value. I would say the performance cost ratio is great, if not fantastic. Be sure to plan well and ask lots of questions.
  • Next release needs to include complete documentation. Even if it's download only or even optional.

For how long have I used the solution?

One to three years.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

As I mentioned earlier in my review - one of my nodes had a sick motherboard. it would reboot for no good reason and the most inopportune times. With StarWind HA enabled it wouldn't miss a beat. VM's vMotioned across, storage was stable and when the host came back everything was always OK. Not the ideal way to test stability but it passed the test nonetheless.

I am planning on adding another node to the cluster in the coming weeks. It will be compute only and we will be adding (2) Infiniband switches to support that additional host. Note: only need a switch on the iSCSI side. The sync side will not be involved.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

Seems that 2 node to 3 node is relatively easy. And 3 nodes or less and you don't need a 10G switch for your fabric. Gives you some options. Beyond that I'm not real sure.

How are customer service and technical support?

Tech support is fantastic. As I mentioned I consider StarWind tech support one of the main features. And if the poo poo hits the fan they will back you up and get you going quickly.  I did have issues with quotations from customer support. But we worked it out in the end.  

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

We used a conventional hardware SAN. EMC VNXe. It was end of life and I even tried replacing it - EMC could not make it work right. It kept dropping connections. I kept running the old VNXe and discovered StarWind VSAN. Glad I did.

How was the initial setup?

It was complex and had many steps and procedures but if you don't start with the FREE version they walk you through each step and procedure. I did it the hard way of course. 

What about the implementation team?

I am the team. I did it in house. Then when we moved over to the paid version tech support helped me correct anything that was missing or wrong. 

What was our ROI?

I don't know.

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

Be very clear in what you want. I was misquoted what I needed and ended up having to go back to the boss two times. And was running crippled while doing that. It was not pretty. Make sure they know what you have and what you want. Especially sizes. --This really only applies if you do the FREE method first.  

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I thought about another SAN but just didn't want to go down that road. The cost to upgrade my VMware licenses to get vSAN from them just didn't seem worth it. 

What other advice do I have?

I think StarWind is a serious contendender. Especially if you don't have the right VMware licenses. But even then - I'm running a 3 node cluster and don't need a separate "witness" box. If you're an SMB and doing VMware you need to consider StarWind as your SAN solution. 

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
AntonChernomazov - PeerSpot reviewer
AntonChernomazovSAO Dept. Head at LLC BIT
Real User

Starwind's support team is fantastic. It's real. But product setup is so simple, than I never turned to them at this step. Even with previous (6th) version.

Works with 11-50 employees
Real User
Easy to add SSDs or memory with exceptional support
Pros and Cons
  • "The failover redundancy is why we bought this product and it has never let us down."
  • "Scaling the product is fairly easy except for the computing aspect. It would entail another appliance. While not a show stopper, it isn't as easy as dropping in a few extra SSDs."

What is our primary use case?

We needed a redundant solution that would be able to switch automatically to the backup side if necessary. 

Once StarWind was installed and configured the failover becomes automatic. 

However, it is also easy to do it on the fly manually (even during production hours). This allows you to almost completely eliminate maintenance windows as you can put all of the VMs on one appliance and run maintenance on the remaining appliance. This saves time and money not having to have someone come in off-hours to do said tasks.

How has it helped my organization?

It is so easy now to create VMs that have failover if one of the StarWind appliances fails. This nearly 100% uptime has allowed our organization to pretty much eliminate downtime during production hours. In fact, since we deployed StarWind we have had zero downtime during production hours. This peace of mind is priceless.  

We now have automatic failover thanks to StarWind Virtual SAN, on-prem backups, and cloud backups. This has also improved our DR strategy allowing us to recover more easily.

What is most valuable?

The failover redundancy is why we bought this product and it has never let us down. 

The ease of adding SSDs or memory is a valuable feature too.  

However, the most valuable part of this whole process has been the support.  They are available 24/7. If they notice something wrong, I will get an email, even if it is in the middle of the night or on a weekend or holiday.  

The SLA is about four hours, however, I can't remember a time when it took longer than 30 minutes to get a response. Scheduling them for maintenance or configuration issues is also a breeze.

What needs improvement?

Scaling the product is fairly easy except for the computing aspect. It would entail another appliance. While not a show stopper, it isn't as easy as dropping in a few extra SSDs.  

When planning to purchase and deploy a StarWind system they monitor your resources for a week and build your StarWind appliance accordingly. It would be smart for the end user to really take into account the anticipated company growth and add on more computing initially. That would be a more streamlined approach.

For how long have I used the solution?

We have had StarWind for a little over two years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is incredibly stable.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The compute part of it should be more easily scalable.  

How are customer service and support?

Customer service and support is the strongest part of this company. I have zero issues with them and wish other vendors would use them as a model.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We did not use any other solution. StarWind was our first.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was fairly complex, however, StarWind support walked us through every step and made it a breeze.

What about the implementation team?

We used StarWind support for setup with one IT person in-house. 

What was our ROI?

Since installing StarWind, we have not had any downtime. The ROI from not having even one downtime event is immeasurable. 

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

StarWind is by far going to be your best value for money.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We evaluated Dell and Nutanix.

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
Spencer Lines - PeerSpot reviewer
Information Systems Manager at HALL'S CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION
Real User
Excellent support, lowers energy costs, and never fails
Pros and Cons
  • "We are running Hyper-V on twin servers in failover, and being able to manage servers from anywhere I need to, virtually, has been a game changer."
  • "I'd love to see more clarification for us folks who are smart enough to do some damage yet not smart enough to use CLI."

What is our primary use case?

We had several aging servers that needed to be replaced, including a server from 2008 and one that was an old Microsoft Small Business Server from 2011. 

When we ended up needing to replace everything when they had all reached end of life, we had some hard choices to make. We could have replaced all of those old bulky servers with a new pile of power-hungry and massive machines, or replace them all and virtualize everything and put them on two single-unit rack-mounted servers. We ended up going with StarWind Virtual SAN, and have never looked back.

How has it helped my organization?

Want to talk about speed, performance, and reliability? We literally went from having four or five very large and powerful boxes to the two sister servers that were provided by StarWind, and we set them up to have much better performance. Even more importantly, we found support that is world-class. I have never worked with such an impressive and well-balanced crew as the techs that I have had the pleasure of working with over these years. They are absolutely mind-blowing in every aspect that I've had them help me out with, from preinstallation to rollout to maintenance. 

What is most valuable?

We are running Hyper-V on twin servers in failover, and being able to manage servers from anywhere I need to, virtually, has been a game changer. 

The most valuable feature has been their support and willingness to help me with issues that, frankly, were not their responsibility. Every time I've called or emailed them, they have jumped in anyway and helped me find success in figuring out the issues I was having. They even kept the ticket open until I asked them to close it, which is nice.

What needs improvement?

Every solution has plusses and minuses, and for someone like me, who has very little experience spending my time in CLI, I appreciate a good GUI. This is the one place I would love to see the experience of StarWind improved. I wish there were more of an explanation or set of instructions that could point me in the right direction when I wanted to increase the size of one of our VMs. I did end up being able to shut the machine down and increase the size of its virtual HDD, however, in the end, I missed the mark and allocated too much space - and in a production environment, that space comes at a premium. I'd love to see more clarification for us folks who are smart enough to do some damage yet not smart enough to use CLI. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We have had our StarWind Virtual SAN for almost five years now.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

Our StarWind Servers have only ever "gone down" when I have been applying an update to the server's software. They have been rock solid and have better than six nines on their stability.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

So far, we've been able to add storage and new servers year after year and have never run into an issue.  

How are customer service and support?

Their customer service and support have been world-class. There is no other company I've ever worked with that had the level of support and dedication that I've been able to experience with StarWind.

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We did not have a "solution" like this before. We previously had a hodgepodge of parts, servers, and service providers, which is nothing compared to what we have now.

How was the initial setup?

The setup was amazing. The hardware arrived, we plugged it in, and StarWind connected to them and was off to the races getting our servers converted and up and running within a week. I've never seen anything similar since then.

What about the implementation team?

We used a combination of in-house IT/IS and StarWind support to get these set up and running. In the end, we were all happy with the speed and technical expertise that went into our setup and the dedicated technicians who stuck with us throughout the entire setup and implementation.

What was our ROI?

The ROI is impossible to know. That said, in terms of reliability and performance, it has paid for itself within the first two years of ownership in electrical costs. They have, in the five years we've had them, paid for themselves in that aspect of cost alone. There is not even a comparison in terms of cost per watt and performance that we have observed.

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

The solution has given us the best results that I have ever seen in any environment.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

We did eliminate several other solutions. That said, it has been too long to remember which ones. I remember worrying that StarWind's performance was going to be one of those too-good-to-be-true situations. It wasn't. The hype lived up to the performance and reliability.

What other advice do I have?

If you are on the fence about them, jump off and land on their side where you never have to look back.

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
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Updated: March 2025
Buyer's Guide
Download our free StarWind Virtual SAN Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.