We are using the VxRail hyperconverged infrastructure to host some of our applications' virtual machines. We have customized this virtual machine and our applications serve different departments within the company.
Sales Manager at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Easily scalable thanks to HCI infrastructure; first layer of tech support has room for improvement
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature for me in this latest release has been the ability to add a compute or storage node. In the previous release, if I wanted to add only the compute mode, I need to buy a full node, including both compute and storage. That is no longer the case; I can upgrade whatever I want one based on my demand."
- "Some of the features of the hyperconverged infrastructure could be integrated with external storage. Right now, for example, if I have surveillance going, I need to purchase very cheap storage. So, an integration between the hyperconverged infrastructure and external storage would be good."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature for me in this latest release has been the ability to add a compute or storage node. In the previous release, if I wanted to add only the compute mode, I need to buy a full node, including both compute and storage. That is no longer the case. I can upgrade whatever I want one based on my demand.
What needs improvement?
It would be great to have a mechanism that identifies whether or not the configuration has been done well. Right now, we are doing that manually. A compliance check would be a helpful feature.
Some of the features of the hyperconverged infrastructure could be integrated with external storage. Right now, for example, if I have surveillance going, I need to purchase very cheap storage. So, an integration between the hyperconverged infrastructure and external storage would be good.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VxRail for almost three years now.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability and performance of VxRail are excellent.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VxRail is very scalable. This is one of the advantages of hyperconverged infrastructure: Whenever you need to scale, all you have to do is add a node. We use this product on a daily basis.
How are customer service and support?
The first layer of technical support is not well equipped to help you identify the root cause of issues. However, the second level is.
There is room for improvement with the first level of technical support.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was not complex, it was very straightforward. Deployment took us three to four days.
The maintenance we do on it now is mostly preventative.
We have two people working on VxRail.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing is reasonable considering the value of this product.
There are no additional licensing and support costs.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this product to other users.
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
ICT Business Solution Architect at Cloud Technology
A hyper-converged infrastructure that is easy to install
Pros and Cons
- "Cost-effective and easy to install."
- "Lacks integration of licenses so that it's an expensive solution."
What is our primary use case?
We are system integrators and IT providers.
What is most valuable?
The solution is cost-effective and easy to instal, it's just a plug and play. It also contains a ready VMware solution that I use to manage virtual machines. Finally, it is a hyper-converged infrastructure, so it's not a regular server.
What needs improvement?
A beneficial improvement they could make would be the integration of all the dealings with VMware to provide a license with VxRail so the customer can purchase it without the need to pay for an additional license for the VMware. If the license for VMware were to come together with the hardware at no additional cost, that would be great. Nutanix offers this package.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for four years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is flexible, scalable and easily integrated. We can add to it at any time and it'll give extra performance and extra CPU.
How are customer service and support?
Our engineers deal with any support issues we may have.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward and can take up to four days. Deployment requires a technician and an assistant engineer to plan everything and get it ready to host the services. Maintenance is required but we receive documentation regarding updates and framework feature updates. We have five system administrators working on this product.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Dell VxRail is flexible and reliable and scalable. It's easy to restore without the higher cost. We're not comfortable with the cost of VxRail and neither are our clients. As a result, we sometimes have to go to other brands because the price of VxRail is not competitive. Not that comfortable with some projects so the recommendation is Dell can do the same price as the normal server. I know it's marketing plan, especially for Middle East. It'll be much better and we will buy all the required servers from VxRail not, as you know, you'll go to all hyper-converged infrastructure.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We also offer Nutanix to our clients. What Nutanix offers is not available in Dell or HPE. Nutanix has its own management system similar to VMware and is also easy to configure. Through the system, the system administrator can manage and ensure all the virtual machines or virtual appliances that will host the services. If they could change the licensing structure so there is no additional license required, it would be a great feature that would strengthen Dell against their competitors.
What other advice do I have?
I always recommend VxRail because of their scalability and flexibility, but sometimes the cost creates a barrier with the client. All of our clients who have chosen VxRail are happy with it, it's just the cost that's an issue.
I rate the solution nine out of 10.
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: Integrator
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VxRail
October 2024
Learn what your peers think about VxRail. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2024.
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Senior Infrastructure Solutions Specialist at Equinox International
Stable, durable, cost-effective, and affordable with remarkable cover points feature
Pros and Cons
- "The cover points feature in VxRail is remarkable. It's unique. It has an intervention failover system as well as an automatic failover system, reaching clusters existing in VxRail. This makes all files act as a single file with a large and huge resource, and, of course, with customized administration, configuration, and resources. It provides automatic failover for redundancy and data recovery."
- "VxRail is very cost-effective and affordable in the long term. It is more recommended when it comes to financial life, but it may depend upon the license. VxRail comes with VMware licensing, which may not be that cost-effective as compared to others. With VMware, it's an auto check competition. VMware is an expensive solution, especially for Nutanix. Nutanix have their own hypervisor called Acronis, which is very cost-effective against the VMware. Nutanix is cheaper for the hardware but not for the software. If you ask the Nutanix partners to deploy Nutanix over Cisco servers or Dell EMC servers, the cost will be higher. Nutanix wants to compete financially. Therefore, they propose their software over the Supermicro server, which is a very cheap Chinese server. In fact, I don't like their terms of service. HyperFlex has the highest price, and it is very expensive. I don't know why. It may be because this is a UCS system, which comes from Cisco and is already expensive. When it comes to HyperFlex, they need the labor to deploy Hyper-V, Citrix, or any other hypervisor."
- "If they can provide deduplication compression through the traditional hard drives, as Cisco does in the HyperFlex system, it will be very cost-effective, especially when it comes to archiving workload. VxRail doesn't allow the mixing of old flash clusters and hyper clusters. When I'm starting with an old flash cluster and it comes to archiving workload, I will also need to attend the new cluster. So, I either manage two different clusters, or I pay and upload my work with the archiving mobile hard drive, which is not cost-effective at all. The main key is to allow mixing between two types of clustering, like Nutanix, or allow deduplication of completion over the period of shared hard drive on SAV. It will be much better."
What is most valuable?
The cover points feature in VxRail is remarkable. It's unique. It has an intervention failover system as well as an automatic failover system, reaching clusters existing in VxRail. This makes all files act as a single file with a large and huge resource, and, of course, with customized administration, configuration, and resources. It provides automatic failover for redundancy and data recovery.
What needs improvement?
If they can provide deduplication compression through the traditional hard drives, as Cisco does in the HyperFlex system, it will be very cost-effective, especially when it comes to archiving workload.
VxRail doesn't allow the mixing of old flash clusters and hyper clusters. When I'm starting with an old flash cluster and it comes to archiving workload, I will also need to attend the new cluster. So, I either manage two different clusters, or I pay and upload my work with the archiving mobile hard drive, which is not cost-effective at all. The main key is to allow mixing between two types of clustering, like Nutanix, or allow deduplication of completion over the period of shared hard drive on SAV. It will be much better.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for four to five years. I have used three generations of Dell servers.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is very stable and durable. It only depends on vSAN, which is the number one software that defines storage.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Currently, more than 500 users are using VxRail in our company. It's capable of delivering for all types of workloads. Technically, it depends on the hyper-converged instructions. This means that you have 100% assurance of its compatibility with all of its components. It should also carry all types of workload dispersing, that is, from the normal traditional virtual machines to high-performance computing, such as HEP workload, heavy database, artificial intelligence, and business analytics.
How are customer service and technical support?
They provide good support. You can reach them, especially if your system is at ESRS, EMC functional support. You can just chat with one of their technicians. They collect the logs and discover the issue. It takes almost a couple of hours from opening the ticket to resolve it. They are very good.
The hardware replacement takes 24 hours. They have their own stock here in Egypt.
How was the initial setup?
It is easy to install and implement the VxRail clusters. The initial setup was a piece of cake for us.
What about the implementation team?
We manage the storage, compute, and virtual machines as well as networking through the perfect channel.
We do all kinds of deployments. We check whether the customer wants to deploy it on-premises, cloud, or integrate with the public cloud to tier and replicate.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
VxRail is very cost-effective and affordable in the long term. It is more recommended when it comes to financial life, but it may depend upon the license. VxRail comes with VMware licensing, which may not be that cost-effective as compared to others. With VMware, it's an auto check competition. VMware is an expensive solution, especially for Nutanix. Nutanix have their own hypervisor called Acronis, which is very cost-effective against the VMware.
Nutanix is cheaper for the hardware but not for the software. If you ask the Nutanix partners to deploy Nutanix over Cisco servers or Dell EMC servers, the cost will be higher. Nutanix wants to compete financially. Therefore, they propose their software over the Supermicro server, which is a very cheap Chinese server. In fact, I don't like their terms of service.
HyperFlex has the highest price, and it is very expensive. I don't know why. It may be because this is a UCS system, which comes from Cisco and is already expensive. When it comes to HyperFlex, they need the labor to deploy Hyper-V, Citrix, or any other hypervisor.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I also deal with HyperFlex and Nutanix. In fact, I prefer VxRail.
When comparing with HyperFlex, VxRail is much alike HyperFlex. It is very cost-effective, and it doesn't have too many conditions like HyperFlex. When you start with building clusters in HyperFlex, you stick to the selected nodes forever. It is not the same in VxRail. You start with pNode in VxRail, and then you add eNode, sNode, etc.
HyperFlex has its own limitations. They say we can create up to 64 nodes, but, in fact, there are only 52 storage and 52 nodes compute with no mixing between two workloads. On the other hand, in VxRail, you can really create up to 64 nodes, which means the double amount of nodes to carry more servers, more computing in the clusters.
There are too many concerns about HyperFlex, especially related to performance. HyperFlex source the deduplication compression. You don't have the option to enable or disable the deduplication compression, which means that deduplication ends the performance. In VxRail, you can enable or disable the deduplication compression. So, you can gain a net performance against the storage, and you can move the storage against the performance. You can balance the full configuration.
When it comes to the software, Nutanix is great. The main concern is that Nutanix doesn't have its own hardware, and it is integrated with different types of servers to deploy its own system. Nutanix just has a contract with Noble, Supermicro, or HP to develop its own system, which is okay for some types of users. However, many types of users request and prefer the full software or hardware that comes from a single vendor so that they can achieve the maximum and ultimate support.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate VxRail an eight out of ten. They should allow the deduplication compression over the hard drives and mixing of the hyper and the old flash clusters.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: partner
Lead Service Engineer at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
It is very stable and easy to scale out
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature is its high performance."
- "There are still some features which aren't built into Cisco, like virtualized networking, that use its applications. However, these can be purchased through another product as an additional licensing cost to us."
What is our primary use case?
We use it to consolidate our data center footprint.
How has it helped my organization?
Hyper-converged solutions seem a lot easier to manage, especially with the single pane of glass view into all the management pieces of it.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature is its high performance.
The single pane of glass manager is a lot easier than having multiple systems to manage.
Being able to call one vendor instead of multiple vendors is a lot easier.
What needs improvement?
There are still some features which aren't built into Cisco, like virtualized networking, that use its applications. However, these can be purchased through another product as an additional licensing cost to us.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is very stable. We've had no issues. The only thing that we have had to replace is the disk.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is very easy to scale out.
How are customer service and technical support?
We have used technical support for disk replacement.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We had legacy ESX infrastructure previously. It really came down to consolidating our data center, which is what drove our solution switch.
How was the initial setup?
We had Dell EMC Professional Services come in and install it, then do the handover and some training,
What about the implementation team?
We worked with Dell EMC directly. Our experience with them was great.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We looked at Cisco and HPE. A lot of what drove of our decision is because VxRail is VMware integrated, so it was easy to manage and learn.
What other advice do I have?
We are happy with the product.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Information Technology Infrastructure Manager at Pun Hlaing Hospital
Good integration, straightforward installation, and feature rich
Pros and Cons
- "I have found that the admin deployment, monitoring off-premises, and the many services important features. Additionally, the solution has good integration."
- "The solution is okay to scale vertically but a bit difficult to expend horizontally. For example, increasing RAM."
What is our primary use case?
We are using this solution for our business-critical application.
How has it helped my organization?
VxRail solution provides hassles free deployment for small IT team. It also provided High Availability and Scalability for future extensions.
What is most valuable?
I have found that the professional deployment services from Dell EMC, monitoring Services likes Secure Remote services , and the many others services such as patch updates. Additionally, the deployment team has demonstrated the best practice approach for the appliances.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for one month.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is quite efficient for scaling horizontal but will a bit difficult to expand vertical where on the certified engineer can authorized. For example, increasing RAM and storage.
How was the initial setup?
The installation was straightforward and took approximately five days to implement the whole stack.
What about the implementation team?
We used Dell EMC team together with local vendor team to implement the solution and we have two engineers to do the maintenance. Their knowledge and skills are outstanding.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is a license required for this solution.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others. This solution is for people who want to simplify the whole virtual data center. Initially, if you want to use virtual data center, you need to buy hardware and the license separately. After combining everything together, if anything happened to each product, you need to do a lot of troubleshooting and communicate with different parties . With this solution, it is quite straightforward. You can have a deployment team come and install it for you within a week if you provide the correct configuration. This will save you a lot of time.
I rate VxRail an eight out of ten.
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.
Arquiteto de infraestrutura at Raizen
Good pricing, very good performance, and doesn't use too many resources
Pros and Cons
- "The pricing is very, very good."
- "I can't speak to any missing features or weak aspects of the system just yet. We haven't had a chance to really dig in."
What is our primary use case?
Our goal is to deploy a new CITRIX environment - migration from actual legacy model (hardware) to this new solution.
How has it helped my organization?
Still waiting deliverance - delayed due SARs-COV2 restrictions.
What is most valuable?
The solution is good in terms of being resilient with resources. For example, it can process memory well.
We are packaging it with an HCI solution from VMware which pairs well with VxRail. It improves the solution.
The pricing is very, very good.
The overall performance is going to be elevated, giving the customers a better experience.
What needs improvement?
I can't speak to any missing features or weak aspects of the system just yet. We haven't had a chance to really dig in.
For how long have I used the solution?
Currently we're still in the process of implementation .
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable. We haven't really worked on it yet, however.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We plan to scale the solution to 3,000 users and therefore we have a good idea of how much it can scale for us. We are pretty happy with it's potential to scale.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support has been very good. We're very satisfied with the level of support they give us.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We previously used an older version of the solution. We switched so that we could change the load solution.
How was the initial setup?
The solution hasn't really arrived yet. We're still in the process of the implementation strategy. We're working with our reseller in order to implement everything.
We're not sure how long deployment will take us in the end. That's yet to be seen.
We are going to deploy the solution in perhaps three months, we expect. At this point, we're going to plan the installation, plan the rollout of our actual solution between HPE Blade and the old solution. We're going to install VxRail, deploy Citrix environment, and so on.
What about the implementation team?
We're getting our reseller to also implement the solution for us. Dell EMC offers installations and we've opted to let them handle it.
What was our ROI?
I wasn't involved in the negotiation of terms, therefore it's hard to discuss the ROI we expect.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We've found the pricing to be pretty good.
For the license option, we're buying a five-year solution. It's a full box. We buy the hardware and software solution for five years. Therefore, there's that VMware solution, licensing for five years, and the hardware valid five years of warranty. At this moment, there are no other fees.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated two other options before choosing this product. The first was Nutanix and SimpliVity from HP.
What other advice do I have?
We're a customer of Dell.
We have knowledge about the VMware solution. With VxRail, we will be increasing our knowledge. Therefore, we're expecting to improve our internal solutions and the overall solutions for our internal consumers.
While we haven't implemented it yet, we're expecting it will improve our environment a lot. We're excited to be working with it.
Overall, from what I have seen so far, I'd rate the solution at an eight out of ten.
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.
Manager of Solutions Architecture at Trace3 Inc
Integrates well with automation tools, and improves ease of manageability
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of this solution is the automation and integration points with other automation tools."
- "Having a native replication would be an improvement."
What is our primary use case?
The primary use for this solution is storage refresh, where you want to take advantage of the HCI functionality and/or bringing in another tier of storage.
How has it helped my organization?
This solution has improved our organization in the following ways:
- Easier to manage: reduced management points, consolidated alerts, automation.
- Capacity planning: manage growth with one purchase as well as plan my depreciation of assets easier.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of this solution is the automation and integration points with other automation tools.
What needs improvement?
Having a native replication would be an improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for three years.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Co Founder at a tech services company with 1-10 employees
Great for a large company, easy to deploy, and easy to scale up
Pros and Cons
- "VxRail is easy to deploy and easy to scale up."
- "You have to buy a new server if you want to scale up."
What is our primary use case?
We work with Dell's Italian partner, so we go where the market goes. When Dell merged with EMC, we did several courses, and I got a certification with VxRail. We usually work with companies that have projects. We are solution architects. We don't work with software, programs, databases, or custom software.
What is most valuable?
VxRail is easy to deploy and easy to scale up, but you have to buy a new server if you want to scale up—not just a classic solution like RAM, CPU, or more disk. The solution would be good for a great company that is dynamic and wants to go up very fast.
What needs improvement?
When you converge the solution, you have to be very careful because the great scalability comes at an important cost. If you want to use three nodes with a standard license, for example, and you want to converge the solution with three nodes, you have chosen the wrong product because you have to buy a new server if you want to scale up.
In my opinion, the lack of improvement is from a commercial point of view, not from a technical point of view.
It also lacks a single easy remote server for disaster recovery.
For how long have I used the solution?
We started using VxRail three years ago.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is great because it is based on VMware, so it's the same panel and same code.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VxRail has great scalability.
How are customer service and support?
Dell's EMC technical support is very good.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup process is pretty straightforward. Technically speaking, there could be some complications, but Dell's support is very good.
In the course for VxRail, they tell you that it's a single click to deploy. From a technical viewpoint, that isn't true because you have to build the rack system. If the system is projected well, then you have a single click to deploy it with a single panel of glass.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price could be lower. If the price were dropped, the products could sell more easily.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Compared to Nutanix, we are not as aggressive in the market, but VxRail is a good product with good design. If VxRail is to compete with Nutanix, it needs a single easy remote server for disaster recovery, but that depends on vSAN, which the design of VxRail is based on. The core of vSAN is not designed for this, maybe because vSAN customers are higher level.
What other advice do I have?
I would give this solution a 9 out of 10.
VxRail isn't for a small company. If you need less than five servers, you could technically use it, but there are probably other solutions that are cheaper. A classic solution for a small customer is cheaper than other convergence solutions.
In my mind, the hyper-convergence solution is a requirement only for a great company. If you are a small Italian company that isn't going to scale up for a few years, it's very difficult to afford the price, and you might have a problem with technical knowledge as well because your normal technicians won't be able to assist in other convergence solutions if you have an issue. In this case, we prefer traditional systems over VxRail to give the client the correct stability and simple management.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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