Dell PowerEdge VRTX vs FlexPod XCS comparison

Dell Technologies and NetApp are both solutions in the Converged Infrastructure category. Dell Technologies is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.2, while NetApp is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.3. Dell Technologies holds a 19.4% mindshare in CI, compared to NetApp’s 9.2% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of Dell Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of NetApp users who would recommend it.

Dell PowerEdge VRTX

Read 20 Dell PowerEdge VRTX reviews

1,367 Views
1,271 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

FlexPod XCS

Read 295 FlexPod XCS reviews

1,703 Views
630 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Dell PowerEdge VRTX

FlexPod XCS

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 2, 2025

FlexPod XCS and Dell PowerEdge VRTX compete in the integrated IT solutions category. FlexPod appears to have the upper hand due to its robust scalability and integrated management across multiple vendors.

Features: FlexPod XCS focuses on integration, flexibility, and unified management, excelling in scalability for large-scale deployments. Dell PowerEdge VRTX is designed for affordability with a compact design, offering easy setup and efficient resource usage, ideal for small to mid-sized organizations.

Room for Improvement: FlexPod users seek more streamlined support processes, unified management interfaces, and enhanced cloud integration. Dell PowerEdge VRTX could improve by adding advanced networking features, scalability options, and support for emerging storage technologies.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: FlexPod XCS provides a consistent deployment experience across on-premises and hybrid cloud environments, supported by vendor collaborations, though multiple vendor support can be challenging. Dell PowerEdge VRTX is praised for simple setup and management with generally positive customer service, although response times may vary.

Pricing and ROI: FlexPod XCS is costlier but perceived as a worthwhile investment for its comprehensive features and favorable long-term ROI, especially in large deployments. Dell PowerEdge VRTX offers an affordable, practical solution for midsized enterprises, considered cost-effective compared to competitors.

To learn more, read our detailed Dell PowerEdge VRTX vs. FlexPod XCS Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerEdge VRTX vs. FlexPod XCS

July 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Dell PowerEdge VRTX

Ranking in Converged Infrastructure

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

FlexPod XCS

Ranking in Converged Infrastructure

6th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

295

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Converged Infrastructure category, the mindshare of Dell PowerEdge VRTX is 19.4%, down from 22.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of FlexPod XCS is 9.2%, down from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Converged Infrastructure

Featured Reviews

Sheikh Sakil Ahmed

Chief Executive Officer at Cogent Broadband

Has delivered reliable and dynamic server performance

This process is very good, with a processor that has 32 cores, which is sufficient to meet my qualifications and needs. It's quite a good server, and I've been using it for the last three years. I also use different types of dynamic solutions for network design like AutoCAD and SolarWind.

Read full review

John Kevin

Deputy IT Manager at MBBank

Enforces standardized setup procedures following Certified Validated Design (CVD) guidelines and offers greater flexibility and control over the system compared to traditional systems

The GUI setup follows the right setup, meaning we have to follow the CVDi.e. Certified Validated Design. Everything is clear, because you can build CI yourself, but without rules, it can be messy. With FlexPod, there are rules to follow, making it more standardized. This helps with troubleshooting and compatibility assessments, simplifying troubleshooting significantly. We also use FlexPod pre-validated architectures to validate the design. It is very, very important to us because we had a bad case in 2015 where separate items integrated poorly due to no version or firmware compatibility certification. Troubleshooting became a nightmare. So, standards are crucial for us, and everything entering production should be verified or at least documented for certification.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"While I cannot say Dell is better than HP or IBM, Dell has a strong presence here in Qatar. We can recommend Dell because of that strategic factor."

"With Dell PowerEdge VRTX, there are fewer points, and it is easier to troubleshoot and find your way around it."

"Dell PowerEdge VRTX's most valuable feature is its reliability. It offers a good experience for my IT teams."

"The most valuable feature is the combined management in one box."

"It is simple to use and it's user-friendly."

"It's a good solution when you don't need a lot of IT."

"We started off with a base because we started our infrastructure with Dell and we always propose or prefer Dell which is easier to manage the warranty than with different vendors."

"We now find that the solution is quite stable."

More Dell PowerEdge VRTX pros

"ONTAP is the core of FlexPod, so its most valuable features are: FlexClone, Snapshot, and SnapCenter."

"The most valuable feature of FlexPod is that it allows you to get the old compute storage and the network switch or the fabric of the network in one box. You can use pods to have a tiny cloud in the box, which is one of its best features."

"The most valuable feature is the ability to integrate different products into one validated design. That allows customers to understand and get the value out of the hardware, as it was designed."

"It is easy to add-on to the tool. If we need to add a new switch, a new server, or a new chassis for Blades, it is easy. It is not disruptive. You just do it."

"The solution can be innovative when it comes to compute storage and networking. FlexPod is very flexible and innovative. We can design it as we like."

"It takes all of the homework out of building the solution. The prearchitected design simplifies your deployment, gets you a quicker time to market, and a single point of support."

"The product is very stable and it does what it needs to do."

"It took a server room where we had 280 servers and another with 180 and condensed them from 15 racks down to three racks. It's helping us in the data center with all our environmentals... In addition, we're getting the ability of VMware, which is virtualization, so now we have redundancy on all of our boxes, instead of them being physical."

More FlexPod XCS pros

Cons

"There are some noises, and this module is quite annoying, with significant heat issues."

"The licensing can be difficult to understand."

"The scalability could be better."

"We've had general issues related to the solution being difficult."

"The nodes should be synced with the server so that the solution can be used from the cloud when any or all nodes are down."

"Dell PowerEdge VRTX can improve by providing support for M2 drives."

"The scalability is limited with one chassis and the amount of storage it will give you, but it is mainly used for small offices."

"When we first started with this product, we had some difficulty with it."

More Dell PowerEdge VRTX cons

"We dislike going online with the robot stuff. Many times, it has delayed our reaching out to a real support engineer."

"On the NetApp side, there are definitely things to improve in terms of software updates."

"I would also like to feel more support. NetApp has been pretty good, for the most part, but Cisco has more work to do. I've had very good experience with NetApp. Instead of having to call three different areas and saying, "I'm a FlexPod customer." It would be nice if it could be just one that gets routed. I know it would require three large companies to work together, but that's what would make this product a ten. They could definitely use with making it more user-friendly."

"If there were going to be any improvements, they should probably be UI improvements, overall. It can get a little kludgy sometimes when trying to figure out what to do."

"I would like to see the following: Support for multiple vendors' hardware; support for SAN with Cisco 9000 switches; automated deployment and configuration with respect to CVD."

"FlexPod XCS needs to improve its pricing."

"I would like to see improvements in the documentation. I understanding how things are coming together and a lot of that is from the UCS side."

"I would like to see programmability into a SaaS-based offering, as I know Cisco's going in a lot of directions with their Intersight application."

More FlexPod XCS cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"On the scale of pricing, where one is cheap and ten is expensive, I would rate it as a three. I am familiar with the overall cost, which involves licenses from Dell and VMware, among others, making it a combination of various license types."

"We are renewing the support and we are purchasing the license for the software."

"The tool's pricing is fine."

"We bought a license for seven years."

"The solution is less expensive than competitors."

"The solution price of Dell PowerEdge VRTX could be reduced. However, when comparing the price of Dell PowerEdge VRTX to other solutions, such as HP and Lenovo, it was the best price for what they offer."

"Fully configured, it costs about $50,000 or $55,000. I did purchase a used one or refurbished one. I have been very happy with it so far. Even if it is an older unit, it doesn't look like its age, and I would say it has been a great choice so far for me. Obviously, I would have thought twice if I had to pay for a brand new one because it is still an older technology with the risk of being discontinued. I talked to Dell, and they're still selling it, but they're not promoting it. They're promoting another line of products right now for hyper-converged, which are much more expensive."

"This product is more reasonably-priced than similar solutions by HPE."

"We have saved 50 percent on new service deployments."

"We definitely saw a lot of operational cost savings using FlexPod. As far as capital outlay goes, that was a little bit too much for us to swallow and we weren't able to recognize enough savings in that area to afford it."

"Cost is the primary factor behind why I would not give this product a perfect rating."

"We purchased the solution through CDW. They are a partner and knowledgeable."

"Our licensing costs are about $50,000 per year."

"As a startup, for the amount of budget we have and the amount we spend, we are getting what we expected."

"We immediately saw a return on investment due to the fact that replacing our legacy storage arrays with the new AFFs reduced the footprint and maintenance costs. Overall, we saw an almost immediate ROI."

"In terms of the cost, the last bill I saw was about $3.5 million, from the latest contract. That might have been for a five-year contract."

More FlexPod XCS pricing and cost advice

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Comparison Review

it_user244362

Managing Consultant with 51-200 employees

Aug 30, 2015

Nutanix vs. VMware EVO:RAIL vs. FlexPod

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…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

19%

Computer Software Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

Government

Manufacturing Company

20%

Educational Organization

15%

Performing Arts

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell PowerEdge VRTX?

The system is very intuitive.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell PowerEdge VRTX?

The cost of Dell PowerEdge VRTX is high, making it difficult for small and medium businesses to bear. I would rate the pricing as seven out of ten.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell PowerEdge VRTX?

It would be much better for customers if Dell could provide firmware updates even after the end of the product's life, enabling them to manage and keep their hardware for a longer time.

See all answers

What do you like most about FlexPod?

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.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for FlexPod?

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, C...

See all answers

What needs improvement with FlexPod?

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 cont...

See all answers

Comparisons

HPE ConvergedSystem vs Dell PowerEdge VRTX

Compared 72% of the time

IBM PureSystems vs Dell PowerEdge VRTX

Compared 15% of the time

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Dell PowerFlex vs FlexPod XCS

Compared 23% of the time

Oracle Private Cloud Appliance vs FlexPod XCS

Compared 11% of the time

HPE Hyper Converged vs FlexPod XCS

Compared 10% of the time

HPE ConvergedSystem vs FlexPod XCS

Compared 8% of the time

VxRail vs FlexPod XCS

Compared 8% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerEdge VRTX

August 2025

Download Dell PowerEdge VRTX product report

Buyer's Guide

FlexPod XCS

August 2025

Download FlexPod XCS product report

Overview

PowerEdge VRTX modular infrastructure platform integrates servers, storage, networking and management together in a single compact chassis.

Dell Technologies

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.

NetApp

Sample Customers

University of Dundee, GE Healthcare Japan

University of Sao Paulo, WD-40, The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerEdge VRTX vs. FlexPod XCS

July 2025

Free Report: Dell PowerEdge VRTX vs. FlexPod XCS

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