Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) Reviews

My main use case for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is to move file servers from Windows file server VMs to the Nutanix Files.

It's a centralized place for management. With all our virtual machines and Kubernetes in there, it's a single place to manage all of our resources, instead of having to jump around to different places. These features benefit my company by helping us resolve issues if we have any. Being familiar with the platforms, we know where to check for alerts or errors. Support is the same. We go to the same place for everything. 

I haven't directly worked with Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) enough to suggest improvements. A centralized file share permissions console might be useful for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS). Getting in and directly managing permissions instead of using the snap-in from Windows itself might be something to consider, but that's a small thing.

I have been using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for about six months.

I assess the stability and reliability of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) as good. We get alerts if something does go wrong, and if it does, we've got redundancy or some failover plan in place, so our users aren't without their data; they can always access it.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has been able to scale with the growing needs of my company. We can add or remove storage as needed.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) as a whole is fantastic. It's super easy to get hold of someone. The people I get paired with to work on tickets are always super knowledgeable. If there's something we don't understand or have questions about, they can always explain it.

Positive

Our experience was great.

We used a VAR to get the cluster initially set up for us. We then took it and installed it. We applied licensing, initially on a trial basis, and then applied the full ones later. The process was pretty smooth.

I have seen a return on investment in terms of ease of use and manageability. It's beneficial to bring storage to a platform that we were already in every day.

I'm sure there's a cost component to it. It's never something I worry about, but I'm sure it's there. By being able to use the storage-focused Nutanix hardware, we can get that cost-effective advantage. I would assume Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has helped to reduce the total cost of ownership by 25%, but I'm not certain.

It's competitive and attractive for moving things to it and then prioritizing those newly freed up resources for something else.

We considered sticking with our regular virtual machines running Windows Server 2022 as a file server. We're trying to get more integrated into Nutanix and create a single pane of management, so going with Nutanix was something that would leverage it and build the ecosystem.

With Nutanix Unified Storage, we don't have to manage the Windows operating system. We can just have it run on Nutanix that we already have or have already purchased. It just runs it directly instead of having to manage Windows updates or security concerns with Windows itself.

My impression of the cybersecurity features of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) when dealing with unstructured data, such as ransomware threats, is positive. If we can integrate with backups and some of the integrated Nutanix data protection policies and things, that's a plus for us. We've got an external backup solution that I don't know if we've used for Files yet. 

I would rate Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) a ten out of ten. It's pretty good, and there are no issues. We haven't been able to get in there and explore it enough. We don't find anything missing in it.

The main use case for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is for storage.

The features I appreciate the most about Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) are the compatibility with the market. My clients express satisfaction with the environment and the product. 

The efficiency and the product are very good. It's a fast product with no latency. The facility to use Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) benefits our company greatly, as both ourselves and the end client find it to be a wonderful product.

My experience with using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for data-intensive workloads in a hybrid cloud environment is limited as I don't have a hybrid environment. For massive storage, this process is normal. All storage has some latency; when changing from old storage to new storage, you have this little latency, however, it's fast, though I really can't compare with another product.

My impression of the cybersecurity features of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) when dealing with unstructured data such as ransomware threats is good. I normally use additional prevention software and backup services to protect data from loss or ransomware threats to avoid any future problems.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) helps my clients reduce their total cost of ownership as it's a good product for this; the zero-cost licensing is a great part. The customer appreciates that it's zero cost, and in reality, it's really good.

I do not know if Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) can potentially reduce in costs. Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) itself is satisfactory; I don't have any comments about improvements. 

There is potential to push this product more since it's not common in the market. They could increase their marketing efforts. 

I have been using or have experience with Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for maybe a half year or one year ago.

The stability and reliability of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) are very good. We do not have the necessity to increase the product, but I see the performance is satisfactory.

I do not know at the moment how Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) scales with the growing needs of a company. All my clients have this product just for file server or similar purposes, and we do not need to scale this part.

Customer service and technical support are great. We work with the partnership here with Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS). We always have good attention, and when I raise a ticket or just a question, I get a quick answer. I would give the customer service and technical support a ten out of ten.

Positive

I work with other solutions such as the Acropolis or the hypervisor, and this part is more for trying to migrate to VMware Nutanix and trying to improve the Supermicro servers.

I can't fully assess the return on investment when using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) from a technician perspective. I can confirm there is a good impact for the investment and total cost.

The pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) are amazing, in my view.

There are some differences between VMware and Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS); the principal idea of the VMs or stretches is similar, but we can do other things. We can examine the different principles for licensing, and the prices are interesting; the compatibility with the hosts or devices is also interesting.

I am not using the Data Lens high-cost feature of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS).

I rate Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) a nine out of ten.

We are using Nutanix Unified Storage for the clusters, the AHV, and the environment for our hybrid cloud setup. This was our part of the refresh activity. As a result, our database and SQL servers are running on this unified storage platform.

The challenge we faced was transitioning from our legacy platform, which was at the end of its life. We had the option to either buy some of the Dell platforms or go with a data center refresh activity. Most of our hardware was at the end of its support life, which was becoming costly. This led us to look for a better technology platform, and ultimately we chose the Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Platform after conducting a POC. We found that some workloads were better suited for this environment, so we moved to Nutanix Unified Storage.

With Nutanix Unified Storage, managing our unstructured data is much easier. The platform's manageability is a significant improvement compared to what we were doing before. Previously, we had to invest a lot of manual effort in tasks like patching and upgrading, but now, most of these activities are self-service and transparent. One example of this is self-service, which allows us to quickly restore files or folders in just a few minutes. This has been very beneficial for our engineers, as it enables them to easily recover files and data on their own.

Nutanix Unified Storage is flexible. We can add storage as we need it because we can add it on the fly. Once we see that our capacity is reaching a threshold, we can easily add a new brick or additional storage to our platform. It's really easy, with no downtime or any other requirements. We can expand it very quickly.

Nutanix Unified Storage is resilient, making it easy to increase storage capacity compared to older three-tier systems. Previously, extending storage required extensive follow-ups and project activities, taking months to complete. Now, these tasks can be done within days or even minutes as soon as storage is available. If assistance is needed, a support ticket can be opened, but most of the time, it is quickly resolved through self-guided documentation. In just a few minutes, tasks that used to take months can now be completed in one day.

Nutanix Unified Storage has significantly improved our organization's disaster recovery capabilities. We have been using Rubrik to back up our other DR activities, making it easier to manage multiple sites. This has allowed us to meet our DR requirements and seamlessly expand our environment while still meeting DR goals.

Nutanix Unified Storage helps to unify our block, file, and object storage. We can easily scale the environment because it operates on a consumption-based model, allowing us to track usage daily and expand our storage accordingly. The platform also allows us to see the capacity of file objects in a single pane, making it easy to access all data platforms from one storage system. This provides flexibility as we can use it for checking block storage, object storage, or file-based storage as needed. Nutanix Unified Storage supports various workloads and storage types in a unified manner.

Nutanix Unified Storage allows our organization to manage and run its storage from one location using a single platform. The flexibility is also a significant advantage, especially with capacity-based licensing, as it enables us to scale our environment as needed. We have observed that sometimes we reach an 80 percent threshold, and based on that, we can plan our consumption model for the next three or six months. We can control both aspects effectively. Additionally, the platform offers a single pane of glass for management, making it very easy to handle. We don't need specialized storage admins; anyone with infrastructure knowledge can manage this platform effortlessly. It's a straightforward and efficient solution for managing and running our storage.

Nutanix Unified Storage has helped us eliminate silos in our organization. We can move critical workloads as needed for IOPS and performance, and these workloads have been running smoothly without any performance issues. We were able to utilize different storage features, such as compression and deduplication, to manage our resources effectively. The best part is the scalability it offers without causing any disruptions or performance problems. We can easily scale up or scale out our environment based on data growth or workload requirements.

The integration between Nutanix Unified Storage, Cluster, and Prism is excellent. They are integrated based on the licensing model we choose. Once we have selected the appropriate licensing, we will be able to use all the features we are licensed for. The software is responsible for integrating all these different products together. Once we have all of them set up, we will be able to see all three solutions in one dashboard. This dashboard allows us to monitor our business, view running VMs, and track resource utilization.

There is a software called Nutanix Data Lens that provides insight into our infrastructure data. With it, we can keep track of anything we detect, allowing us to monitor and prevent suspicious activity and attacks. Nutanix Data Lens offers a feature that can monitor suspicious activity.

What I found to be the most valuable features were better performance and uptime. Performance, in terms of block storage, provided a good amount of IOPs, which was essential for our tier application. The other important aspect was meeting our SLA's uptime requirement. This ensured that our platform, applications, and customers were effectively served.

Storage has been constantly changing due to a significant improvement in technology over the past few years. As a result, the cost of storage has generally decreased. However, in recent years, pricing has gone up in certain areas due to factors like the COVID pandemic and disruptions in the supply chain. We are currently waiting for the demand and supply to stabilize in order to improve the cost situation.

Another aspect that needs improvement is continuous protection against security threats such as ransomware and potential data leakage. These areas require enhanced security measures to safeguard the data effectively.

I have been using Nutanix Unified Storage for a couple of years.

We have not seen anything at all as of now that concerns the stability of Nutanix Unified Storage. In terms of performance, it is providing better IOPS. Everyone is content unless there is a concern raised by the application folks about some issue with IOPS or a performance conflict related to the application ID. In that case, we need to investigate. Otherwise, Nutanix Unified Storage works perfectly all the time.

It is easy to scale the environment. We can scale based on the performance requirements of our workloads. So, if we have a new workload coming in and need more storage, we can easily scale it. There will be no disruption or performance loss when scaling out or scaling up.

We have around 200 people that use the solution.

We contact tech support whenever we have issues and need help. It's very easy to reach out to them because they are available online. If we're stuck or unable to find specific documentation, they are able to help us out.

Positive

We had various types of storage, mainly Dell EMC, with three file storage systems. We used multiple different storage options since it followed a three-tier architecture. As a result, we began transferring some of our data to the cloud and some to Nutanix.

The initial deployment was straightforward because we had already done everything earlier, such as test drives. After that, a lengthy discussion was conducted to determine the capacity sizing and other necessary details. We then communicated with the Nutanix account team to decide on the required storage and the environment we would be implementing.

There were plenty of other team members involved in the testing. These team members also work with us and have specific concerns related to their areas of expertise, such as the application folks with concerns about the application and the database folks with concerns about the database. During the testing, we collaborated with these different team members to ensure that any questions or performance issues they had were addressed. This included the database team, application owners, and various infrastructure members. There were around 50 people involved in the deployment.

In our two years of using Nutanix Unified Storage, we have already seen a 50 percent return on investment.

Nutanix offers different pricing options, including Ultimate and Ultimate Pro. Depending on our business requirements, we can discuss these options with the account manager. We can also request a quotation based on the capacity and model we need. The price will vary based on our specific requirements and the workload we plan to run.

If the workload is critical, we will need better critical support licensing to ensure our platform is robust and has the flexibility to handle any additional storage needs. It's important to have a single point of management to monitor all files, objects, and block storage services in the environment. Our goal is to support a maximum amount of different product services and storage types to accommodate our environment.

Anyone who is worried about the price can run the test drive. They should do the Proof of Concept because, in the long run, Nutanix Unified Storage offers a good return on investment within the first year. One of the best things about it is that it provides peace of mind by transitioning an organization from a three-tier architecture to a single unified platform, offering a single pane of glass to help plan maintenance activities accordingly. There is no need for months of planning as required in those three-tier architectures. With Nutanix Unified Storage, it will be simple.

We also explored a couple of other solutions, such as moving everything to the cloud platform or utilizing the CMB with EMC storage and implementing the three-tier models. However, after careful consideration, we decided to go with a hybrid cloud environment. This way, we can run certain workloads that are not suitable for the cloud on our current setup while upgrading other aspects to the cloud.

I give Nutanix Unified Storage a ten out of ten.

Nutanix Unified Storage does not require regular maintenance. Maintenance is only necessary when performing patching or other specific activities. Even then, maintenance is simplified due to the use of clusters, which allows for easy transfer of workloads between clusters during upgrades or updates. The process is non-disruptive and allows for seamless transitions. Maintenance is only needed on a few occasions, as most upgrades are non-disruptive.

Anyone considering evaluating Nutanix Unified Storage should consider the workload they plan to run and the specific use case they have. Another important factor is whether they will be using a mix of cloud or hybrid environments, or if everything will be in the hybrid cloud. To begin, they should do a test drive and conduct a proof of concept with a critical workload. The advantage is that there is no cost involved in testing it out and seeing if it suits their needs before deciding to proceed with the unified solution.

My main use case for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is for files, specifically file analytics. We're looking to do file stores, either SMB or NFS shares.

We don't run any AI or ML workloads.

With File analytics, we have granular visibility. We are able to keep an eye and see the usage of users using File services. We can use File analytics to see which files are accessed more frequently, or if we have someone who's potentially exfiltrating files. We can see which files are being accessed, and if we did have some sort of data exfiltration going on, we would have the introspection to see that.

We transitioned from a three-tier architecture to Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS). With the Files offering out of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS), we were able to migrate those shares with a smaller footprint. We didn't have to create a bunch of Windows file servers and reset everything. We could just migrate our current environment, and that migration has been very nice for us. If we were doing it currently with Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) Files, the Move functionality is built in. Five years ago, I had to do scripting. There are certainly time savings with the Move feature. Using the scripting method that I worked on required finding the right times for particular groups and all the coordination. I needed to make sure everything was right.

Five years ago, the integration and the provisioning setup for NFS were not automatic. That has been improved greatly in the latest release or the 5.x releases. There have been many great improvements. 

Pain points are just in the management and understanding of how the functions work. As far as updating and day-to-day operations, if my staff is properly trained and we have those proper training sessions, we don't have that many issues. There can be more educational resources from their side.

I have been using or working with Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for five years now.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is very stable and very reliable, running multiple virtual machines or virtual appliances with unstructured files. It's very reliable.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) scales effectively with our growing needs. We just add to the cluster.

Customer support for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is top-notch. They're very knowledgeable.

Positive

Prior to adopting Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS), we were using another solution, specifically NetApp and a three-tier architecture.

It's an easy, quick process.

We had some training. Through Nutanix University, I have attended good learning sessions. We have partnered with Nutanix to have some education sessions, and Nutanix also throws great events.

For new users, the ROI would be in terms of time savings through the File analytics of how the data is being used, as well as with the migration aspect. If we were using a more current version of Move, those migration aspects would have taken less time. So, there could have been potential time savings for current users. 

I assume Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has helped reduce our total cost of ownership.

We considered other solutions, such as using Windows distributed file systems and file shares, and maybe looking into some other sort of NFS or SMB sharing.

The negative aspect of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) at the time of implementation was provisioning. That's something that's been greatly improved in the last five years. A positive aspect of comparing Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) to Microsoft would be that it has lower licensing costs.

The advice I would give to other companies considering Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is to make a good implementation plan and also ensure good communication with users, including file users and accounting users. 

My overall rating for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is a nine out of ten. Five years ago, it would have been at an eight, but today, I would rate it a nine since we don't use it for anything other than file shares.

During my time as a partner alliance engineer at Nutanix, I worked with various vendors who utilized Nutanix Unified Storage to determine if their products fit into the environment. For instance, if they primarily worked with Trend Micro for threat and virus identification, their solution would be integrated into the Nutanix platform, ingesting files via Nutanix Files, which falls under Nutanix Unified Storage. Nutanix Files has the capability of identifying threats and includes built-in antivirus using ICAP, helping to identify any malware present. This represents one of the use cases of Nutanix Files, particularly for identifying SMB files and storing files in the Nutanix environment. Nutanix Unified Storage demonstrates strength in files, objects, and blocks storage.

In my current organization, the customers use our product in a Nutanix environment.

In my previous organization, performance-wise, it had a great impact. I was one of the people who used to work on performance testing as well. It was able to give good latency even when we put lots of data into the Nutanix environment. When it comes to performance, it's really good.

Nutanix Files have a built-in capability to detect a virus. It has an antivirus capability by using the concept called ICAP. When it comes to security, it provides a lot of different ways, but ICAP is something that I have worked with closely. It can identify and detect, and it can stop ransomware. It gives options to quarantine or delete a file. It protects and secures the data. When it comes to networking, they also have a VPN. It offers security at different levels. With Data Lens, one can see in a single pane of glass what is happening, how many ransomware threats have been detected, and what the alerts are related to.

In my current organization, the impact of Nutanix Unified Storage on business operations has been positive. We utilize Nutanix for our own product related to deep observability, networking, and network telemetry. The functionalities and opportunities Nutanix provides are remarkable, comparable to VMware. The system operates smoothly, with excellent guidance and support available whenever assistance is needed. I appreciate Nutanix as a company.

The most valuable features in Nutanix Unified Storage include the infrastructure and the exceptional UI design, which is remarkably user-friendly. Even newcomers can navigate it easily. Everything follows a step-by-step approach without requiring extensive documentation reading. It guides users effectively, and the key terminology used is very accessible. The UI deserves primary emphasis, followed by its ease of utilization. 

Nutanix Unified Storage already operates at an advanced level. They consistently adapt to new technologies, such as AI, and from my perspective, there isn't much that needs to be added. The main concern is pricing, which could deter some customers; addressing this would enhance its appeal. Apart from pricing considerations, it stands as an exceptional product.

I worked with Nutanix Unified Storage until 2023 in my previous organization, and I continue to work with the Nutanix environment in my current organization, though not frequently. I utilize the Nutanix environment as required.

I never experienced any issues during my usage. I would rate its stability a nine out of ten.

It's scalable. I would rate Nutanix Unified Storage a perfect ten out of ten for scalability, as scaling with Nutanix is one of its best features.

They are awesome. I would rate their support a nine out of ten because they excel in their support efforts.

Positive

The deployment process for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is straightforward, featuring a one-step deployment process. They provide a Nutanix Bible that covers all related topics, enabling users to understand everything from scratch. Whether deploying on bare metal or other environments, the process remains straightforward, and those familiar with VMware can quickly grasp the entire process. 

Deployment time varies. Beginners typically need about a week to understand and complete the process from scratch, whereas experienced Nutanix users can complete it in just a day or two if networking is already configured.

I mostly worked in the cloud environment. I worked on the physical environment when I got a chance. 

Nutanix offers two different ways. They have their own hardware. We can use their hardware, and on top of that, we can install the operating system. From there, we can use it in the cloud. They provide cloud services as well. 

The pricing of Nutanix is generally higher compared to other vendors, which is a common observation, but it provides value through its support and features offered to customers.

I would recommend Nutanix Unified Storage. It's easy to use, and they are the best when it comes to storage services. Especially for the hyperconverged infrastructure, I feel this is the best place to go because of the services and the features they are providing. They provide maintenance and other advanced features with every release. I would definitely recommend going with Nutanix.

I would rate Nutanix Unified Storage a ten out of ten.

My use cases for Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) are storage, Hypervisor, and critical applications.

The feature I like most about Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is the ability to optimize storage spaces.

This capability has helped my company achieve cost reductions and price improvements.

I have reduced costs by approximately between 20 and 30 percent.

Regarding Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for low-latency or heavy workloads, it helps significantly in optimizing quantities and achieving better performance with lower response times.

The biggest return on investment when using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has been better response times for applications, which applies to latencies.

I think Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) can be improved with integration with vendors other than VMware or Dell, seeking more integrations with other storage vendors.

For Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) to be a ten, I would want more interoperability with other platforms.

I have been using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) for about one year.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) is a stable platform and is top of the market.

Regarding scalability, Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) can reach many petabytes of storage.

The technical and customer support service is good, as we haven't had many problems. I would give their technical service a nine.

Positive

I considered VMware before choosing Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS).

The installation experience of Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has been easy, performed by technicians. I don't know how to do it myself, but I understand it has been a straightforward integration.

I have been able to lower prices using Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS), with cost optimization of nearly 30 percent compared to what we had before.

Regarding prices, installation, and licenses, I believe they are within market range, so it is not concerning. It is necessary for them to manage these costs.

We ultimately chose Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) because integrability with other platforms was key in our decision.

The integrability extends to platforms such as Dell and VMware to make it more open.

Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) has connections with other platforms, but not with all, though it is more open and has many more use cases.

I rate Nutanix Unified Storage (NUS) eight out of ten.

It serves as a centralized network location accessible to all staff members within our district school district, including technology personnel, teachers, and administrators. We utilize it as a shared file repository, allowing individuals to access necessary files from any computer based on their assigned policies.

When we decided to implement Nutanix, we aimed to address several challenges. Firstly, we were dealing with an outdated NAS server that had been in place long before my tenure at the school district. It was over ten years old and required a hard drive replacement within the first year of my arrival due to failure. Secondly, we sought to minimize our data center's footprint by consolidating our infrastructure. Rather than adding more equipment to accommodate our needs, Nutanix allowed us to streamline services by consolidating them onto our existing virtualization platform.

It has effectively managed our unstructured data, including audio and video files. We've experienced smooth operations without any complaints regarding uploading or downloading videos. While video usage isn't as frequent, we primarily utilize it for downloading videos related to specific incidents for administrators or our police department. We've encountered no issues uploading files of any kind.

Transitioning from VMware to Nutanix has highlighted the overall flexibility of Nutanix's platform. Unlike VMware's three-tier system, Nutanix simplifies the learning curve by streamlining operations. The update process, in particular, has been favorable, with no critical issues encountered.

The resiliency of Nutanix hasn't been thoroughly tested in our environment so far. However, I routinely check fault tolerance settings to ensure they meet our requirements. During the update process, I've observed critical errors occur as hosts restart, but Nutanix's self-healing mechanism handles these issues seamlessly.

The benefit of using Nutanix is evident in several ways. Firstly, we've effectively compressed our storage while significantly expanding our overall storage pool. Previously, our service had a capacity of twenty-five terabytes, but with Nutanix, we've scaled up to a hundred and twenty terabytes physically and approximately fifty terabytes logically. This expansion has been accompanied by noticeable improvements in performance, particularly with reduced latency and IOPS well within the boundaries of our equipment.

All our resources are centralized in a single location for managing and running storage: our data center. We operate three Nutanix nodes within this center, effectively managing everything from one central location. We don't have any other locations outside of our data center running a Nutanix cluster.

Nutanix's capability to eliminate silos within our organization's storage infrastructure was discussed during our recent call with the engineer. Although we haven't explored this feature extensively yet, there's a forthcoming project where we anticipate leveraging it.One thing I'd appreciate is having a desktop application similar to what VMware offered. With VMware, I could download a separate client program onto my computer, allowing me to log in directly rather than accessing the host through a browser.

Currently, the most valuable aspect of our Nutanix implementation is its file storage functionality.

One thing I'd appreciate is having a desktop application similar to what VMware offered. With VMware, I could download a separate client program onto my computer, allowing me to log in directly rather than accessing the host through a browser.

We transitioned from a VMware environment to Nutanix over a year ago, during which we also introduced Unified File Storage capabilities alongside our existing Enterprise Storage solution.

The occurrence of lagging and downtime has been very minimal since we migrated most of our servers. It has been an improvement overall. Any lag that may occur would likely be imperceptible to the average user. Occasionally, I may receive minor warnings in reports, such as a recent anomaly where computation usage nearly reached a hundred percent during midday. However, this did not impact everyday use, and it was only noted upon reviewing the report later in the day.

I can't provide a definitive assessment of scalability as we initially started with a three-node cluster. However, in terms of deploying virtual machines, Nutanix has demonstrated greater efficiency with resources compared to our previous VMware setup. Previously, I often had to allocate significant amounts of RAM and CPU resources to servers. With Nutanix, resource allocation requirements are notably reduced. For instance, where I would typically allocate a four-core CPU and eight gigs of RAM, I can now achieve similar performance with just two cores for the CPU and two gigs of RAM. This efficiency in resource utilization suggests that we have ample runway to deploy more virtual machines as needed.

Before migrating to Nutanix, our infrastructure was based on VMware. Regarding other services, we utilize Unified Storage and operate within the hyper-converged Acropolis hypervisor environment for our virtual machines. This setup allows us to leverage the multi-cloud infrastructure aspect in conjunction with Unified Storage. The integration between Unified Storage and our Acropolis hypervisor environment has been excellent. The reporting functionality is highly readable, and I appreciate how it includes links to knowledge-based articles whenever critical errors occur.

When comparing the security features of Nutanix to VMware, we didn't delve deeply into security with VMware. However, with Nutanix Files, I appreciate the ransomware feature. This feature allows us to add known malicious file names to a list, preventing any uploads of those files into the system. I find this feature valuable, especially considering past incidents like the Log4J malicious code. If any other threats arise in the future, we can easily add them to the list for protection.

Initially, when we purchased the solution, I wasn't involved in the hardware selection process. Instead, a third-party technology firm handled the initial deployment since I lacked full certification or expertise in Nutanix at the time. However, since then, I've obtained the Nutanix Certified Associate certification.

Two individuals were involved in the deployment process, with one acting as an overseer while the other handled the entire implementation. Following the deployment, the latter provided me with an Excel sheet containing all the usernames, and passwords for Nutanix admin users, and an overview of the tasks completed.

The only maintenance task I handle is performing life cycle management updates, which I conduct twice a month. This includes software and firmware maintenance. As for physical maintenance, there haven't been any requirements since the nodes were purchased.

For new users considering Nutanix, my advice would be to first assess your specific goals and needs within your environment. Determine what you're aiming to achieve—is it more efficient virtual machines, a smaller footprint in your data center, or reduced energy consumption. In our case, transitioning from VMware to Nutanix significantly reduced our footprint from a full six-foot rack to just three small servers. This not only reduced space requirements but also improved energy efficiency. Additionally, if you're dealing with outdated hardware, Nutanix could be a viable option to explore. Considering recent changes, such as VMware's shift towards more subscription-based models and potentially less customer-oriented programs, evaluating Nutanix's offerings in alignment with your organization's mission and views may be worthwhile. Overall, I would rate it nine out of ten.

We use Nutanix Unified Storage for file storage and SMB sharing. My company has around 2,000 to 3,000 users on the platform.

We have massive storage needs and currently have 20 terabytes of storage Nutanix. We are storing around 10 or 11 terabytes of data on NUS. The cost would be huge if we wanted to add another NAS. 

A separate NAS would require us to buy more hardware and add switches. Nutanix allows us to add more storage inside the same cluster. It has significantly reduced our storage nodes by about 50 percent. It has been effective for us in terms of operations, management, and control. 

Nutanix Unified Storage is easy for end users to access. They can use it like any other drive on their systems.  We have mapped it in the user system so they can scan files and store them. They can use it just like an Android drive.

The dashboard could be more customizable

We have had Nutanix Unified Storage for four years.

I rate Nutanix Unified Storage nine out of 10 for stability. 

Nutanix Unified Storage is scalable. 

I rate Nutanix support nine out of 10. If you face any problems, support checks and resolves them immediately. 

Positive

We were using a VMware solution, but it required us to purchase separate storage and integrate it with the hardware. Nutanix is more convenient. 

We have Nutanix Unified Storage deployed on-prem in our data center. The deployment wasn't complex, and it only took two days. After deployment, NUS only requires periodic software updates but no patches. 

We see a 35 to 40 percent ROI on our investment. 

Nutanix Unified Storage isn't expensive. 

I rate Nutanix Unified Storage nine out of 10. I would recommend it to others.