VMware vSAN is the de facto standard for hyper-converged virtualization. vSAN Ready Nodes are pre-validated hardware bundles that ship with the exact firmware/driver combinations VMware certifies. We stock ReadyNode-equivalent configurations refurbished at significant savings vs. new.
Hybrid vSAN (less common in 2026): 1× cache SSD + 4-8× SAS HDDs per disk group. Cost-effective for large-capacity tier 2 storage where you don't need all-flash performance. Available but rarely deployed new — most net-new is all-flash.
Network: vSAN requires 10 GbE minimum, recommends 25 GbE. We supply matched NICs and DAC cables to interconnect the cluster (point-to-point 25 GbE between nodes for the vSAN VLAN, dual paths for redundancy).
Frequently Asked Questions
How many nodes do I need for a vSAN cluster?
Minimum 3 nodes (data-protection requires at least 3 fault domains). Recommended 4-6 nodes for production resilience — survives 2 node failures and still allows rebuilds. Maximum supported is 64 nodes per cluster.
What is the difference between vSAN All-Flash and Hybrid?
All-Flash uses SSDs for both cache and capacity tiers — 3-5× the IOPS of hybrid, supports advanced features like deduplication, compression, RAID-5/6 erasure coding. Hybrid uses HDDs for capacity + SSDs for cache — lower cost per TB but limited to RAID-1 mirroring only.
Is vSAN included with vSphere?
No — vSAN is a separate licence, priced per CPU socket. vSAN Standard / Advanced / Enterprise tiers add functionality (replication, stretched clusters, encryption). Most production deployments use vSAN Advanced ($2.5K/socket list, varies with VMware partner program).
Can I run vSAN on refurbished hardware?
Yes — VMware certifies hardware by model, not by acquisition channel. Refurbished Dell EMC vSAN Ready Nodes (or equivalent refurbished R740xd / R750xd with matching disk loadout) work identically. Validate firmware matches the vSAN compatibility matrix during deployment.
