Product features
In polling respondents about array product features, we focused on software. We asked users to provide their assessment of array management tools, remote replication software, snapshot software and mirroring software. The intent was to evaluate how well particular products met the responding organization's needs, rather than to simply compare feature lists.
Because EMC pioneered much of the functionality found in enterprise-class arrays, conventional wisdom holds that EMC would lead in array software functionality. However, our survey indicates that other vendors have closed any gap that might have existed and have overtaken EMC. While not specifically faulting EMC's feature set, "EMC storage is too proprietary for our continued use," one survey respondent says.
HDS led this category with a score of 5.68, while EMC lagged the field with a 5.40, but this was the narrowest range of any category. Given the scant differences in scores, we conclude that all of the products generally meet user requirements and expectations. Nevertheless, when respondents rated vendors on "This product's management features meet my needs" and "This product is interoperable with other vendor's products," EMC was the only vendor to receive ratings below 5.0 (4.99 and 4.79, respectively). EMC earned a very high 5.97 for "This product's remote replication features meet my needs," while HDS scored a 5.98 for "Overall, the product's features meet my needs." Sun was the only firm to exceed a 6.0 rating for a question in this category, with a 6.14 for "This product's remote replication features meet my needs" (see "Product features," this page).
