Scale HC3 3 Node first time purchaser review
February 02, 2018
Scale HC3 3 Node first time purchaser review
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Scale Computing HC3
We use our Scale 3 node cluster to run our 5 virtual machines that service our 4 locations. Functions include application servers, web servers and test machines that are used by all departments. The HC3 cluster gives us an easy method to backup an entire machine and is a first step in building a secondary site in which we can replicate our scale data to.
Pros
- Scale platform updates - the scale cluster runs on its own software and can be updated in real time without causing any downtime for production virtual machines.
- Node capacity visibility - the software provides an easy window into how much storage and RAM capacity is available on each node and simplifies being able to see how much room there is for growth for new virtual machines.
- Snapshotting - the scheduling of snapshots works extremely well and is an easy set and forget method for backups on a daily basis.
Cons
- While Scale handles storage and RAM utilization very well, CPU usage is somewhat hard to configure - you can configure how many CPU cores a VM gets but it's not overly simple to boost an individual VM's CPU performance.
- The custom software that runs on the scale cluster is simple but doesn't necessarily support all backup products out there - or maybe the other backup products don't support them yet - VEEAM for example, backing up a VM outside the hypervisor isn't supported.
- I would like to see the software made available so we can add it to other physical servers we have available - for example, say we have an old VM Ware server and we want to convert it to a Scale node - having the ability to install the software on our hardware would be a huge plus.
We are running a web server with an MS SQL database on the back end. The software specification made it sound like it was pretty hardware intensive and that a robust storage and physical machine environment would be required to run on an acceptable level. We took an educated chance on Scale and it has been running our applications with ease since day one with an increase in performance from our old physical server-based application.
- We were running a single server setup and adding this 3 node cluster in a second location has established a beginning to allow us to have a location and soon a co-location.
- Being a small shop - taking out the need for a storage device has potentially saved us from forklift upgrades in the future since all scale nodes are supposed to be forward and backward compatible.
- Moving from a VMWare environment to a Scale node was a simple process and did not require any costly software to move from one VM type to another.
- VM Ware
In small business scenarios where you have 15 VMs or less Scale makes a good product that gives a scalable performance compared to a VM setup that uses physical servers tied to a storage device. Not having to manage the storage layer saves headaches and allows admins more time to do other tasks. The competitive and personal communications I received while working on our first purchase with Scale hardware was a great experience and I felt valued as a potential customer and that they genuinely wanted my business.
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