Dell PowerVault NX3000

They are just Windows Storage Server 2008 boxes.

Could be a reasonable option depending on what you are trying to do.
 
really I need central storage for users documents and iSCSI for a couple of server storage areas (nothing massive)
 
I am not sure those are meant to be iSCSI targets. That is a "Optional upgrade" so I doubt it would allow multiple hosts to for things like clustering.. What do you need iSCSI for?

Depending on your situation a Dell MD3000i or other SAN might be more appropriate.
 
If you need iSCSI i would highly recommend the Dell EqualLogic boxes.
they are awesome with a no bullshit licensing scheme, you get all the features with a one time purchase and its easily expandable.

they are a lot more $$ tho.
 
iSCSI is no tthe main reason for this, I may want to use it for a little bit VMWare ESXi The main need for this would be for file storage and My docs redirection. We currently have lots of files on lots of servers and no dedicated file server. I was under the impression that WSS had no CAL licensing system? It was a one off buy and use.
 
Jay_oasis said:
iSCSI is no tthe main reason for this, I may want to use it for a little bit VMWare ESXi The main need for this would be for file storage and My docs redirection. We currently have lots of files on lots of servers and no dedicated file server. I was under the impression that WSS had no CAL licensing system? It was a one off buy and use.
Click to expand...

It is but I was specifically referencing the EQL box in comparison to other SANs.

If you just need network storage the NX boxes would work fine and just get the iSCSI addon for your ESX stuff.
 
I would LOVE an EQL box (and I may still get one for a SQL cluster we have to build) but for general storage and Citrix XEN / VMWare I think maybe the NX is about as high as I can go price wise (still not cheap!)
 
IIRC, the iSCSI target is now included with WSS rather than being a paid for option. Really annoying that WSS is still OEM-only though... and it's the only way to get the MS iSCSI target.

I assume you are going with Dell because you need on site support etc. You might be able to get better value from a Supermicro box or similar if you are prepared to build and support it yourself, or can find a supplier who will give you an onsite warranty. Then you don't have to pay Dell drive tax, and can maybe afford 10GbE.

For iSCSI, don't put the targets on the same spindles as your file shares unless you don't need much performance.

As alternative to WSS, you may want to consider Windows + Starwind, or HP VSA as a VM based iSCSI target.

Or, you may want to run your file server as another one of your VMs and front end a Dell MD3220i - a bit cheaper than the EQL stuff.

I run Starwind on W2k8r2 inside a VM, with 10GbE to my hyper-v nodes, and get very good performance, but it may not be the cheapest option, particularly if you need both file & block.
 
Get a MD3220/3200i depending on whether you want 2.5" or 3.5" drives? You can find a fully loaded MD3000i on eBay with warranty for ~$7k if you want something cheaper. I'm looking at picking up a MD3220i half filled with drives, dual controllers, and the snapshot license for about $12-13k. After that, all you need then is a couple 5424/5448 switches and you're set.
 
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