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reviewer1570641 - PeerSpot reviewer
Data Centre and HCI Solutions Lead at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Great performance, easy to scale, fairly stable, and very useful for scale-out upgrades
Pros and Cons
  • "There are so many features, but if I have to choose, I would go for scale-out upgrades and performance. Scale-out upgrades are very valuable. Typically, when customers engage in virtualization, they're committing themselves to run many virtual machines on a fewer number of hosts. They'll have five or six hosts, and they will run all their virtualization on vSphere. They could be having anywhere from 50 to 100 or even more virtual machines. Once all these go into production, getting downtime or getting planned maintenance windows is extremely difficult. It is something that typically businesses will frown upon. With VxRail, you can just go ahead and add a node without disrupting the existing environment, which works very well. That's why scale-out upgrades are a key feature. Its performance is also valuable. It delivers a very high number of IOPS for a hybrid configuration or an all-flash configuration. The processors that are available in the Xeon family are very powerful. They are multi-core with typically 2 gigahertz, 2.4 gigahertz, or higher frequency, so the performance is very much appreciated."
  • "It would be nice if its installation can be simplified, but it is currently not too bad. They can provide deduplication and compression in hybrid configurations. To the best of my knowledge, these features are not there, and it would be nice if these are added. Some of its competitors already have these features, so it will help VxRail to have a better feature set and compete more effectively."

What is our primary use case?

It is used for server virtualization. Most of my work is around server virtualization. There has been a lot of interest lately in virtual desktop interfaces but not much is happening there. Most of the customers come for server virtualization. They generally have three-tier architecture running VMware vSphere, and they are looking to upgrade their technology for different reasons, such as performance or hardware being the end of life. Our customers are mostly using the new versions of this solution.

What is most valuable?

There are so many features, but if I have to choose, I would go for scale-out upgrades and performance.

Scale-out upgrades are very valuable. Typically, when customers engage in virtualization, they're committing themselves to run many virtual machines on a fewer number of hosts. They'll have five or six hosts, and they will run all their virtualization on vSphere. They could be having anywhere from 50 to 100 or even more virtual machines. Once all these go into production, getting downtime or getting planned maintenance windows is extremely difficult. It is something that typically businesses will frown upon. With VxRail, you can just go ahead and add a node without disrupting the existing environment, which works very well. That's why scale-out upgrades are a key feature.

Its performance is also valuable. It delivers a very high number of IOPS for a hybrid configuration or an all-flash configuration. The processors that are available in the Xeon family are very powerful. They are multi-core with typically 2 gigahertz, 2.4 gigahertz, or higher frequency, so the performance is very much appreciated.

What needs improvement?

It would be nice if its installation can be simplified, but it is currently not too bad.

They can provide deduplication and compression in hybrid configurations. To the best of my knowledge, these features are not there, and it would be nice if these are added. Some of its competitors already have these features, so it will help VxRail to have a better feature set and compete more effectively.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been off and on working with VxRail for more than three years.

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VxRail
December 2024
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is fairly stable. There are no showstoppers as such.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

It is easy to scale, but typically, it involves adding more nodes. So, there is an investment from the customer side. They have to have the budget for it, and then scalability is not an issue.

We are focused on all segments. Some of our customers start off with something as small as a three-node cluster, and we also have large enterprise customers who start off with 10 or 12 nodes.

How are customer service and support?

I don't interact with their technical support.

How was the initial setup?

Its installation can be a little complex, but it is not bad. If you plan it well and stay in touch with the customer about requirements, it is not difficult. For an implementation project, it is a standard practice for us to work very closely with the customer. It is definitely not as complicated as deploying a three-tier architecture with SAN storage, SAN switches, and those kinds of things.

In terms of maintenance, it usually requires version upgrades. When a VxRail cluster is already in production and in use, these things are discussed very deeply with the customer, and whether to go for an upgrade or skip it is decided based on the consultation with the customer. It depends on a whole lot of things, and the customer is the key in deciding such things. You have to consider the following:

  • What is the business cycle at that point in time?
  • What is the workload on the virtual machine?
  • Is this the right time to carry out the upgrade?
  • Is the upgrade really necessary?
  • Is the upgrade going to impact any of their applications?

What other advice do I have?

I would definitely recommend VxRail. If you have a heavy investment in VMware software infrastructure, it is definitely useful.

I would rate VxRail an 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
BT Area Champion/Trainer at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees
Real User
Scalable, simple to use, and has good support
Pros and Cons
  • "The support has been excellent, especially if you compare it to IBM."
  • "The licensing is a bit too costly."

What is our primary use case?

We primarily use the solution for hyper-converged infrastructure.

It's a four-node cluster that has internal storage and the solution has combined all four nodes via vSAN. vSAN is software, a software-defined storage software from which we can combine our four-node storage and other resources into one virtual storage tool. It's a software-defined model.

We are using it for surrounding applications, not for core applications. For core applications, we are using Power Systems and IBM Cloud Storage.

What is most valuable?

The product is a very good software-defined solution.

The product has been simplified so that it's very easy to use.

VxRail is a good product and since Dell acquired VMware and went hyper-converged infrastructure, it's been great. It's a very robust solution.

The main thing is that vSAN software is built-in, inside the hypervisor. It's an excellent way of doing things and it's common sense. If we are talking about other hypervisors, such as, let's say, Cisco HyperFlex, HP SimpliVity, and Nutanix, the difference is where vSAN is built on the VMware. You don't need to create a VM for vSAN. It's built-in, in its hypervisor.

When VMware was acquired by Dell, the hardware and software were combined together, which has been very good.

The support has been excellent, especially if you compare it to IBM.

The solution is very good for smaller entities, such as small or medium-sized organizations.

You can scale the solution quite well.

From a security point of view, the solution is pretty good.

What needs improvement?

The licensing is a bit too costly. They should work on lessening the overall price.

For how long have I used the solution?

I've been using the solution for the last two years or so. It hasn't been for that long.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is very good for small and medium-sized organizations. 

The product can scale. When we go for an upgrade, all the upgraded software is combined in a one-bundle unit.

We've just extended our solution. We have four-node clusters, and recently we acquired more resources. We just extended this cluster to eight nodes. We are waiting for the delivery of the equipment. We already replaced some of it.

How are customer service and technical support?

We've had a good experience with technical support.

The support mechanism of Dell EMC offers a very quick response. They give us the attention we need when we say there's an issue. The engineer will come online immediately and provide support. We've been quite satisfied with their level of service overall.

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

The solution is expensive and it could be a bit more reasonably priced for its customers. We hope it's something that will get worked on.

What other advice do I have?

VxRail is the product of Dell, with both hardware and software combined together. It's a very good product.

We bought this VxRail for our VMware-certified applications. Those applications only run on VMware-certified systems. That's why we procured VxRail. Otherwise, we have Hyper-V as well, Microsoft Hyper-V. Hyper-V is an American-based company, which always offers hyper-converged infrastructure solutions. On Edge we are using Hyper-V, It is also a software-defined box.

We have our own private Cloud as well for converged infrastructure. We have the Lenovo Blade series and the external storage is connected to the chassis which we are using for our surrounding applications. This is our private Cloud. It is also on Microsoft Hyper-V.

We aren't using the latest version of the solution. We are using the version before.

Overall, I would rate the solution at a nine out of ten. We've been very happy with it.

Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
VxRail
December 2024
Learn what your peers think about VxRail. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2024.
831,265 professionals have used our research since 2012.
reviewer1852092 - PeerSpot reviewer
SE Infrastructure at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Real User
Data infrastructure solution that offers high performance at a reasonable price
Pros and Cons
  • "VxRail has improved our organization by providing our admin team with an easy-to-use interface."
  • "The upgrade packages require a lot of bandwidth. This could be reduced for an improved experience."

What is our primary use case?

Our customers who have the old infrastructure and are looking for high-performance and modern infrastructure, use VxRail. 

How has it helped my organization?

VxRail has improved our organization by providing our admin team with an easy-to-use interface. 

What needs improvement?

The upgrade packages require a lot of bandwidth. This could be reduced for an improved experience.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using this solution for four years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

This is a stable solution. 

How are customer service and support?

The technical support for this solution is great. I would rate it a ten out of ten. 

How would you rate customer service and support?

Positive

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

We used a different open-source product but it was not easy to manage which is why we switched.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup is straightforward. The time it takes to set up depends on the size of the cluster. For a mid-size cluster of 12 nodes, it usually takes one to two days.

What was our ROI?

We have seen a return on the investment due to how easy this solution is to use and the time it frees up for our staff. 

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

Its pricing is reasonable compared to other products.

What other advice do I have?

I would rate this solution an eight out of ten. 

Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

Private Cloud

If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
PeerSpot user
Senior Systems Engineer at Dimension Data
MSP
Top 5
Quick implementation, highly scalable, but slow upgrading
Pros and Cons
  • "The implementation was quick, we used a checklist and it took approximately one hour."
  • "We used an integrator team for the implementation of the solution. The one person who takes care of the maintenance of VxRail, such as upgrading the software. The upgrading takes too long. We have many nodes which takes a long time, they need to improve the speed of the upgrades"

What is our primary use case?

We are using VxRail for our internal applications and databases.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VxRail for approximately three years.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have found VxRail software can scale very well.

We have approximately 100 users using this solution. We are planning to increase our usage.

How was the initial setup?

The implementation was quick, we used a checklist and it took approximately one hour.

What about the implementation team?

We used an integrator team for the implementation of the solution. The one person who takes care of the maintenance of VxRail, such as upgrading the software. The upgrading takes too long. We have many nodes which takes a long time, they need to improve the speed of the upgrades

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

We pay for annual support from VxRail.

What other advice do I have?

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate VxRail a seven 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.
PeerSpot user
Information Technology Infrastructure Manager at Pun Hlaing Hospital
Real User
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.
PeerSpot user
Senior Consultant at global brands
Real User
Perfect, easy to manage, very scalable, and very stable
Pros and Cons
  • "The simplicity and manageability of VxRail are most valuable. We have a very good experience with this product. Its stability and scalability are also very good."
  • "The most important thing that I want to be included in this solution is the VMware license. Its deployment time can be quicker so that instead of 40 minutes, it takes 10 minutes."

What is our primary use case?

We have deployed it in our lab in our organization for POCs. We have its latest version.

I am responsible for presales and solution architecture for HCI VxRail. It is suitable for any business, such as financial, telecom, education, etc. 

What is most valuable?

The simplicity and manageability of VxRail are most valuable. We have a very good experience with this product. Its stability and scalability are also very good.

What needs improvement?

The most important thing that I want to be included in this solution is the VMware license. 

Its deployment time can be quicker so that instead of 40 minutes, it takes 10 minutes.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VxRail for four years. 

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It is the most stable solution I have come across.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

I have scaled it many times, and its scalability is very good. You can scale out and scale up as much as you need, which is a great thing.

It is suitable for small, medium, and large businesses. We have almost 500 users.

How are customer service and technical support?

I have contacted them many times. The best thing about their support is that there is single support for software, hardware, and networking.

How was the initial setup?

It is very straightforward, but it would be great if it can be done in 10 minutes rather than 40 minutes.

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

It has a yearly subscription. It can be for one year, three years, or five years.

What other advice do I have?

I would 100% recommend this solution to others. I am very happy with this product.

I would rate VxRail a ten 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
reviewer1420599 - PeerSpot reviewer
Director of Information & Technology Services at a non-profit with 10,001+ employees
Real User
High performance, overall useful features, and excellent support
Pros and Cons
  • "The solution is stable and reliable. This is one of the main reasons why we purchased this solution."
  • "The initial setup was not that easy, it was a medium difficulty level."

What is most valuable?

VxRail has high performance and overall good features.

For how long have I used the solution?

I have been using VxRail for approximately six months.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The solution is stable and reliable. This is one of the main reasons why we purchased this solution.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The solution is scalable. 

We have 100 users using this solution in my organization.

How are customer service and technical support?

The technical support is very good, DELL is known for their great support.

How was the initial setup?

The initial setup was not that easy, it was a medium difficulty level.

What about the implementation team?

We use a system integrator for the implementation.

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

We made a one-time purchase of the solution and the price is expensive.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

I have evaluated Nutanix.

What other advice do I have?

Those who are thinking about implementing this solution should shop around because Nutanix is cheaper and provides a similar service.

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.
PeerSpot user
reviewer1425435 - PeerSpot reviewer
Infrastructure Specialist at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Real User
A good solution for solving performance problems in the VDI environment
Pros and Cons
  • "VxRail performs well in the VDI environment."
  • "I wish for the performance environment to be improved."

What is our primary use case?

I don't know which version we are using. 

I use VxRail as a VDI solution in my environment. 

What is most valuable?

We use the solution to solve our performance problems in the environment. In spite of the great expense, I needed to deploy a good alternate solution for our VDI clients, as there was a need to address the slow pace of the VDI and other deployment issues. 

What needs improvement?

I wish for the performance environment to be improved. 

For how long have I used the solution?

We have been using VxRail for approximately one month.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

The stability is fine. 

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

We may need more nodes next year. At the present time, the solution is fine as we support only 200 users. However, I will need to have these capabilities for approximately 1,500 users, although I cannot specify the exact number. 

How are customer service and technical support?

For the moment, the support is okay. 

How was the initial setup?

I am not in a position to assess the difficulty or duration of the deployment as this is done with our partner, who sends it to us only after the implementation and deployment are completed. 

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

The solution is very expensive. 

What other advice do I have?

We support 200 users.

VxRail performs well in the VDI environment. We feel it to be a good solution.

I rate VxRail as a ten 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.
PeerSpot user
Buyer's Guide
Download our free VxRail Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
Updated: December 2024
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Buyer's Guide
Download our free VxRail Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.