DataCore SANsymphony vs FlexPod XCS comparison

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97% willing to recommend
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96% willing to recommend
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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between DataCore SANsymphony and FlexPod XCS based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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To learn more, read our detailed Storage Software Report (Updated: March 2024).
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Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"The features I have found most valuable are the active-active, or so-called grid technology, and the integration into our VMware-vCenter.""The interface is user-friendly.""CDP is an important feature for avoiding data loss in the event of ransomware attacks. You need more storage capacity, however, you get the possibility to return at any time and use the data saved up to that point. The recovery is much faster than with a classic restore.""It is a stable solution.""Mirroring is the most valuable feature because I can provide a high-level of service and optimize the use of obsolete storage.""I found the solution to be very stable.""The ability to pool the storage to leverage thin-provisioning is a huge saving in space and costs.""The most useful feature of SANsymphony is that it's able to manage any brand of block storage."

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"The most valuable feature of the solution is the flexibility in configuration and the setup.""I have never seen a more resilient HA product out there then NetApp's solution. If I want to know that I'm putting my workload on a solution, from a storage perspective, that is going to be up 100% of the time, I'm going to choose NetApp.""The tool's most valuable features are the flexibility and ability to adapt to redundancy.""It can scale, compute, and storage independently by what we need.""This sounds dumb, but it just works. I don't want to have to deal with support, and I don't need to because, again, it has just worked.""Availability is the most valuable part of this solution. We have not had any trouble since we installed it.""It has simplified our support.""With FlexPod, it is about the synergy of the server, the storage, and the whole management layer. Together, it is really about minimizing staff. You don't have to hire more people. You can work with the minimum level of resources and the availability is really good. We have had very little downtime."

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Cons
"If it could integrate to a cloud gateway, then we could carry it directly to storage, instead of having middleware in between the storage and the cloud.""One limitation of this solution is that it's Windows-based, e.g. one requirement to install DataCore SANsymphony SDS is putting it on a Windows server machine. It relies on Windows and that is a limitation because there are some customers who are looking for non Windows systems.""The cost is becoming prohibitive since they moved to a subscription model.""When I sometimes reboot for maintenance, the connectivity from the iSCSI initiator host could be improved.""For customers or technicians who don't speak and understand English, it would be great to have other language support, all the more so given the number of countries in which SanSymphony is used.""I would like to see SMPA (Shared Multi-Port Array) technology developed with the aim of allowing a configuration identical to other storage arrays.""Unified storage (all block, objects, and files) should be in a single storage pool with unified storage concepts, hence providing the user with whatever they want.""I would like to see reporting added, such as a monthly connectivity report."

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"I would think more cloud integration, a lot more flexibility with adapting to different things.""They could improve their technical support team. They need to have a specific phone number for you to call in for the FlexPod solution. Some of the partner support knows if it is for FlexPod, they will get you to the right department.""I had one problem at the site where I had an aggregate that would not shrink after I had deleted some stuff. It took a few tries to get the right guy on the call. We do have a NetApp SAM with our company, and it really took getting to him to get the solution fixed.""I have noticed a lot of customers, they will kick it over the fence. It is FlexPod; it is that mystery animal. The room for improvement is to better present it to those users, so they will not have to be afraid of it.""I would like to see more CVDs and more published designs around a multi-hypervisor approach within a single pod.""Sometimes, it can take awhile for support cases to get to the right people, especially if it's not a P1 case.""FlexPod XCS' pricing could be cheaper. You need to find the right person for support.""They just announced that they are going to move it along with Intersight from Cisco. That can be a private or public cloud, which is one of the areas where it can grow more and has a lot of potential."

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "In my case, the licensing per terabytes is very high and it must be licensed for each extra functionality."
  • "The pricing and licensing are better with DataCore."
  • "The cost is at the same level as other storage solutions and it is easy to understand the licensing."
  • "Make sure you are made aware of the annual subscription cost when purchasing."
  • "Pricing has improved but it is still expensive."
  • "This product has a good ratio between quality and price. In many cases, it's less expensive to work with DataCore than other storage systems."
  • "This solution allows the use of off-the-shelf hardware and charges by the TB of storage."
  • "The solution is cost effective."
  • More DataCore SANsymphony Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "Pricing and licensing is very affordable from a FlexPod perspective."
  • "It seems very cost effective once it's in place, and it's easy to expand and easy to add capacity without a lot of extra money."
  • "If your company really needs to be up 100% of the time, and you need to do a private data center, I don't know if I could realistically actually recommend another blueprint."
  • "Anytime that you are buying any storage make sure you understand storage. Do not just buy storage based on what somebody sells you in terms of IO or throughput."
  • "Buy storage based on the solutions you need, the technologies you need, and what will make your life a lot easier down the road."
  • "As a whole, it is inexpensive, and it uses the least amount of parts."
  • "Storage is very expensive. To buy MIC cards and additional storage either on-prem or in the cloud, the IT department does not have money for it, so you need a more niche product or a more flexible way to store your data. That is the benefit that you get from this product."
  • "We purchased the solution through CDW. They are a partner and knowledgeable."
  • More FlexPod XCS Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Comparison Review
    Anonymous User
    Originally posted at www.storagegaga.com/dont-get-too-drunk-on-hyper-converged/ I hate the fact that I am bursting the big bubble brewing about Hyper Convergence (HC). I urge all to look past the hot air and hype frenzy that are going on, because in the end, the HC platforms have to be aligned and congruent to the organization’s data architecture and business plans. The announcement of Gartner’s latest Magic Quadrant on Integrated Systems (read hyper convergence) has put Nutanix as the leader of the pack as of August 2015. Clearly, many of us get caught up because it is the “greatest feeling in the world”. However, this faux feeling is not reality because there are many factors that made the pack leaders in the Magic Quadrant (MQ). First of all, the MQ is about market perception. There is no doubt that the pack leaders in the Leaders Quadrant have earned their right to be there. Each company’s revenue, market share, gross margin, company’s profitability have helped put each as leaders in the pack. However, it is also measured by branding, marketing, market perception and acceptance and other intangible factors. Secondly, VMware EVO: Rail has split the market when EMC has 3 HC solutions in VCE, ScaleIO and EVO: Rail. Cisco wanted to do their own HC piece in Whiptail (between the 2014 MQ and 2015 MQ reports), and closed down Whiptail when their new CEO came on board. NetApp chose EVO: Rail and also has the ever popular FlexPod. That is why you see that in… Read more →
    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Good sizing is the basis for a stable and high-performance environment. It is important to plan in sufficient reserves. It can make sense to license a higher number of TB if this puts you in a better… more »
    Top Answer:It's difficult to say if something is missing in this solution. Maybe we'd like to manage the raid on the disk directly in SanSymphony. We essentially use RAID5 for our SAS disk and SSD, and now we… more »
    Top Answer:The system is designed for easy scaling. Because we define everything clearly. So when we plug the system in, we apply the profile, and it scales easily.
    Top Answer:The pricing is not cheaper, but stability is more important for us now. We focus on business gains, not static numbers. Following XCS rules ensures a stable environment, which is crucial. For me… more »
    Top Answer:FlexPod should focus more on automation. Integrating an automation tool with FlexPod would enable customers to leverage automation capabilities. More automation would be helpful. Currently, we… more »
    Ranking
    2nd
    out of 6 in Storage Software
    Views
    294
    Comparisons
    161
    Reviews
    16
    Average Words per Review
    623
    Rating
    9.6
    2nd
    Views
    891
    Comparisons
    421
    Reviews
    15
    Average Words per Review
    905
    Rating
    8.6
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    DataCore Virtual SAN
    Learn More
    Overview

    Experience peace of mind with DataCore SANsymphony, the ultimate software-defined storage solution alleviating storage management challenges. Say goodbye to the complexities of managing different storage tiers and disruptions with SANsymphony's block-level storage virtualization technology, empowering you to automate capacity provisioning and data placement across diverse storage environments including SAN, DAS, HCI, and JBOD. Break down silos, control data placement, meet business continuity objectives, boost performance, and seamlessly expand or refresh hardware with SANsymphony. Benefit from features like asynchronous replication for disaster recovery, minimizing data loss, accelerating application responsiveness, and integrating new technology non-disruptively. Trusted by industry leaders like NASA, Thorntons, Inc., and TUI Cruises, DataCore SANsymphony guarantees unparalleled flexibility, scalability, and reliability, ensuring uninterrupted data access and application availability while reducing storage costs and inefficiencies.

    FlexPod XCS is the secure platform your applications need from edge to cloud. Easily manage your suite of cloud-native, edge, and enterprise apps. Integrate advanced cloud services without compromising performance, security, reliability, or scale.

    Sample Customers
    Volkswagen , Maimonides Medical Center, NASA, Thorntons, Inc., TUI, ISCO Industries, Pee Dee Electric Cooperative, United Financial Credit Union, Derby Supply Chain Solutions, Mission Community Hospital, Bellarmine College Preparatory, Colby-Sawyer College, Mount Sinai Health System, The Royal Institute of International Affairs, Quorn Foods, Bitburger, University of Birmingham, Stadtverwaltung Heidelberg, NetEnt to name a few.
    University of Sao Paulo, WD-40, The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Non Profit27%
    Government11%
    Computer Software Company8%
    Comms Service Provider5%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company25%
    Comms Service Provider7%
    Government6%
    Financial Services Firm6%
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm14%
    Energy/Utilities Company9%
    Computer Software Company9%
    Manufacturing Company9%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Manufacturing Company17%
    Computer Software Company14%
    Government8%
    Educational Organization8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business50%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise34%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business44%
    Midsize Enterprise15%
    Large Enterprise41%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business12%
    Midsize Enterprise23%
    Large Enterprise65%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise12%
    Large Enterprise68%
    Buyer's Guide
    Storage Software
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about NetApp, DataCore, Dell Technologies and others in Storage Software. Updated: March 2024.
    768,578 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    DataCore SANsymphony is ranked 2nd in Storage Software with 54 reviews while FlexPod XCS is ranked 2nd in Converged Infrastructure with 295 reviews. DataCore SANsymphony is rated 9.2, while FlexPod XCS is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of DataCore SANsymphony writes "Robust with good replication and access protection ". On the other hand, the top reviewer of FlexPod XCS writes "Integrates everything so you are using fewer tools". DataCore SANsymphony is most compared with VMware vSAN, HPE SimpliVity, StorMagic SvSAN, Red Hat Ceph Storage and NetApp ONTAP, whereas FlexPod XCS is most compared with Dell PowerFlex, Oracle Exadata, Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI), VxRail and Dell VxBlock System.

    We monitor all Storage Software reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.