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IBM FlashSystem vs IBM XIV comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 2, 2025

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

IBM FlashSystem
Ranking in Modular SAN (Storage Area Network)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
112
Ranking in other categories
NAS (5th), All-Flash Storage (13th)
IBM XIV
Ranking in Modular SAN (Storage Area Network)
10th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.4
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Modular SAN (Storage Area Network) category, the mindshare of IBM FlashSystem is 18.5%, up from 16.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM XIV is 1.2%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Modular SAN (Storage Area Network)
 

Featured Reviews

OmarIsmail1 - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers high performance and dependable support for fast storage needs
The most valuable feature of IBM FlashSystem is its robust back code. When integrated properly into the environment and configured according to the guidelines, it provides a very solid infrastructure that does the job on demand. Additionally, IBM FlashSystem offers competitive pricing and reliable performance. The hardware is dependable, ensuring that it functions effectively when the setup is done correctly.
Ajith Kandaramage - PeerSpot reviewer
Good value for money but issues with modular scaling
IBM XIV's most valuable features are NVME, especially when it comes to de-duplication, compression, and responsiveness I've been using IBM XIV for two and a half years. IBM XIV is stable. IBM XIV's scalability is adequate for our requirements, but because it's modular, you can't scale to larger…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The storage system is one of the best in the world."
"We've found the solution to be very stable so far."
"It's very easy to manage."
"The price-performance ratio is most valuable."
"The valuable feature is autoscalling."
"I like most of the features. Its speed, performance, and availability are valuable. We are implementing the data reduction technology the most."
"The GUI is very easy and performance is also good."
"The solution is very easy to configure and use."
"Installation is amazingly easy."
"IBM XIV's most valuable features are NVME, especially when it comes to de-duplication, compression, and responsiveness."
"Hands down, this is the easiest storage platform on the market to manage."
"The performance and robustness of the systems are very good."
"As it spreads, a chuck of 1MB across the board means using all available spindles on the backend."
"Very easy to produce reporting data (Snaps). Very easy and fast for provisioning devices and Remote mirroring."
 

Cons

"With regards to the IBM V7000 storage system, where we have multiple tiers of storage, a heat map would show I/O distribution across the tiers of storage."
"It could be easier to implement."
"The solution's infrastructure technology level could be PCI Express 5 instead of PCI Express 4 for the next version."
"The technical support in my region is satisfactory but it could improve. Support is very important for customers and downtime is very critical for us. We would like onsite or complete technical support which can help us to minimize our downtime or if problems occur."
"There is room for improvement in the troubleshooting part, specifically related to IBM Spectrum for Insight. Customers are uncomfortable with remote access, which affects automated remote support."
"The GUI needs some improvement."
"There is room for improvement in the troubleshooting part, specifically related to IBM Spectrum for Insight."
"The solution is not easy to implement. It takes a lot of time to study the product and it's a little complicated in general."
"Until the drive is replaced, the pool_resizing is locked."
"This product was not a good fit for our organization as we have a ton of latency sensitive applications and XIV was not able to keep up with IO + latency demand."
"IBM XIV's scalability is adequate for our requirements, but because it's modular, you can't scale to larger requirements."
"I would rather have a web GUI served directly from the unit, and a CLI accessible directly through SSH."
"The change form synchronous mirroring to asynchronous (and vice versa) without reconfiguration from scratch would be helpful."
"I encountered stability (performance) issues during enclosure or disk rebuild. Also some power supply issues due to malfunctions of ​circuits. Sometimes "internal" Snap sessions hang and consume pool capacity."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is cost-efficient."
"My customers got the IBM FlashSystem bundle offer. It was a one-time purchase for three years of service. The price would depend on the storage size and could reach between $25,000 to $55,000."
"For a yearly license, it is about $100,000. There are no additional costs. The entire system is included."
"Our customers would like IMB FlashSystem to be less expensive."
"The integration is already included in the license cost of IBM FlashSystem. The integration is very easy. You get the IBM storage core with all software, firmware, and upgrades. EMC provides the features in the box, but they are not free for customers. There is a licensing cost for features. We have yearly licensing, but IBM has also provided a new option where you pay as you go. They provide a big box, and I pay, for example, for 10 terabytes. If I exceed 10 terabytes, IBM will charge for the new storage after 10 terabytes. It is a good opportunity in the market for using the storage as a cloud and paying as you go."
"There are no licensing fees, it is a one-time purchase of the IBM FlashSystem."
"The total storage capacity vs price is still quite high for the IBM Flash Array."
"The price depends of the technology that our customers need. The price can come at a lower cost but this may increase as storage is added."
"We have a five-year total cost of ownership where we pay an initial amount and then annually for maintenance."
"Licensing is straightforward."
"No-license-required policy, unlike others where you need a license for everything. Just pay once and forget about licenses."
"If you are going to use the product behind an SVC, IBM will price the units lower, since you are likely not to use any of the advanced copy services."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM FlashSystem?
Many factors affect purchasing directly from IBM, often involving a multi-step process. Customers, especially in banking, often use the latest devices as they are upgrading, indicating they do not ...
What needs improvement with IBM FlashSystem?
The deduplication technology in IBM FlashSystem needs significant improvement. Other vendors like NetApp ( /products/netapp-41749-reviews ) offer better deduplication technology, which is noticeabl...
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Also Known As

IBM Storwize
XIV
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Celero, Friedhelm Loh Group, Clarks, Mingkang Natregro Health Food Group, Sofia, Etisalat Fights Fraud, UF Health Shands Hospital, Generali, Elecon Engineering Company Limited, Ventiv , Technology, CPFL Energia, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., SciQuest, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, Paddy Power, Kelsey-Seybold Clinic, Interconnect Services, Severstal IP-Only AB, PVU Group GmbH
Celero, NaviSite, Technische Universit_t Mªnchen, Netflix Inc., Muhr und Bender KG, Pelephone Communications
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM FlashSystem vs. IBM XIV and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.