Build outs for all previous posts (for Enterprise, at 300+ VM - servers and 30+ workstations)

 

1. Dell VxRail / PowerEdge HCI node Build (VMware vSphere preferred)

Cluster size & headroom

• Target ~10 nodes (to give head‑room and scale beyond your ~300 servers + ~30 workstations).

• Each node: dual 4th‑Gen Intel Xeon Scalable (or AMD EPYC equivalent), DDR5 memory, NVMe all‑flash for capacity & cache. According to Dell’s latest hardware evolution: memory up to DDR5, eight memory channels, PCIe Gen 5 in top config. infohub.delltechnologies.com+2infohub.delltechnologies.com+2

• Storage: All‑NVMe drives per node (for example: 24 × 4 TB NVMe capacity drives + 2 × high‑end NVMe cache drives) = ~96 TB raw per node (before RAID/erasure/dedupe). With 10 nodes → ~960 TB raw. After overhead and dedupe/compression you might see ~600‑700 TB usable, giving ample head‑room.

• Memory: Plan ~1.5 TB DDR5 per node (or more if you drive high VM density).

• Networking: Dual 100 GbE per node (one for VM traffic, one for vSAN/interconnect/replication) or 2× 50 GbE depending on your fabric.

• Deduplication/compression: Enable vSAN all‑flash dedupe+compression in the cluster. Dell VxRail claims “2× more IOPS and half the response time” in the latest gen. dell.optrics.com+1

• Rack design:

  • Rack A & B: 5 nodes each (two racks) for physical/logical separation and resilience.

  • Top-of‑rack switches (2× 100 GbE leaf per rack) + spine fabric as required.

  • Power/cooling: estimate ~3‑3.5 kW per node under load, plan for 40 U racks accordingly.

• VM/workstation mix: Use cluster DRS/HA; allocate e.g. ~330 total VMs (servers/workstations) plus room to scale to ~430 (30% head‑room).

• Storage reserve: Leave cluster utilization target ~60‑65% to avoid hitting 80%.

• Backup/DR & cloud: Use e.g. Veeam Backup & Replication for VMware (supports immutability to object storage). Features: immutability via object lock on S3‑compatible storage. Veeam Software+1

  • On‑prem hardened repository: dedicated backup appliance or node cluster (NVMe SSDs, dedupe, for high throughput).

  • Replication: VMs replicate to a DR site (could be second cluster or cloud).

  • Cloud tier: Send backup copy to S3 compatible (AWS S3, Azure Blob with lock, Wasabi, etc) with object lock immutability.

• Summary: Dell + VMware gives high performance, mature ecosystem, lots of head‑room.

---

2. HPE SimpliVity 380 Build (VMware vSphere or Hyper‑V)

Cluster size & headroom

• Target ~12 nodes (slightly more nodes to give extra compute/IO head‑room)

• Each node: HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 (or latest) supports dual Intel Xeon Scalable, up to ~8 TB memory per node (depending on config) (per HPE spec) jtfgov.com+1

• Storage: All‑flash NVMe (or high‑end SSD) drives; deduplication/compression is built‑in “always‑on” in SimpliVity. Hewlett Packard Enterprise+1

  • Example: each node might deliver effective usable capacity ~30‑40 TB after overhead; cluster (~12 nodes) ~360‑480 TB before dedupe. With dedupe/compression you may see effective higher (e.g., ~450‑600 TB).

• Memory: Use fastest bus DDR5 Smart Memory (5600 MT/s) if available; populate full channels for max bandwidth.

• Networking: 2×100 GbE or 4×50 GbE per node.

• Rack design:

  • Rack1 & Rack2: 6 nodes each (12 total)

  • Top‑of‑Rack switches, redundant power, etc.

• VM/workstation mix: ~330 VMs + head‑room to scale to ~430+.

• Deduplication: SimpliVity provides inline dedupe/compression at the VM level.

• Backup/DR & cloud:

  • Use built‑in SimpliVity RapidDR features for local VM replication and DR.

  • For immutable cloud tier, integrate backup software like Veeam or use HPE StoreOnce appliances with retention lock.

• Summary: HPE SimpliVity offers simplified HCI with built‑in dedupe and data services, very good for virtualization‑first environments.

---

3. Nutanix NX8155 Build (Nutanix AHV or VMware/Hyper‑V)

Cluster size & headroom

• Target ~10 nodes (or optionally 8 if you want fewer nodes but higher spec).

• Each node: Nutanix NX8155‑G9 (or similar) supports DDR5 memory, all‑NVMe drives, high performance.

  • Nutanix AOS supports advanced dedupe/compression: “Sub‑Extent Deduplication” introduced in AOS 6.6. Nutanix+1

• Storage: Example: each node with ~30‑40 TB usable all‑flash NVMe; cluster ~300‑400 TB before dedupe; with dedupe you might effectively get ~400‑500 TB+.

• Memory: ~1.5‑2 TB DDR5 per node (or more depending).

• Networking: Dual 100 GbE or 2×50 GbE.

• Rack design:

  • Rack A: 5 nodes.

  • Rack B: 5 nodes.

  • Redundant fabric, power, cooling.

• Deduplication: Nutanix uses inline fingerprinting (16 KB chunks) for dedupe, which helps storage efficiency. magander.se+1

• Backup/DR & cloud:

  • Use backup tool such as Veeam (works with Nutanix) or Nutanix’s native backup features.

  • Immutable cloud tier: Ensure repository supports object lock (S3) or hardened linux repo for immutability. Veeam Software

• Summary: Nutanix offers a modern HCI platform with strong dedupe, high memory/flash support, and flexibility for hypervisor.

---

Rack‑by‑Rack Conceptual Layout (for each solution)

Here’s how each vendor build might map to physical racks:

Dell rack layout

• Rack 1 (42U):
  ‑ 10 nodes (each ~1U) + 2 management servers (1U each) + network gear (2U top) + KVM/console & power distribution.
  ‑ Leave ~8U free (for future node additions or storage expansion) to allow head‑room.

• Rack 2 (42U):
  ‑ Optionally a second rack with replication/DR nodes or spare capacity.
  ‑ Storage backup appliance rack (2U dedicated for backup target).

• Networking/Interconnect: Top‑of‑rack switches, leaf‑spine architecture, redundant power/cooling.

HPE SimpliVity rack layout

• Rack 1 (45U):
  ‑ 6 nodes (each 2U) = 12U.
  ‑ Additional infrastructure (management, backup target) ~5U.
  ‑ Leave ~28U empty for future scale‑out.

• Rack 2 (45U):
  ‑ 6 nodes additional = 12U.
  ‑ Network gear ~4U, power/UPS ~4U.
  ‑ Empty ~25U for growth.

Nutanix rack layout

• Rack A (44U):
  ‑ 5 nodes (~2U each) = 10U.
  ‑ Networking gear ~3U.
  ‑ Spare capacity ~30U.

• Rack B (44U):
  ‑ 5 nodes = 10U.
  ‑ Backup/DR appliance rack ~4U.
  ‑ Power/UPS ~4U.
  ‑ Spare ~26U.

---

Backup/Replication & Immutable Cloud Tier (common across builds)

• Deploy Veeam Backup & Replication with a dedicated backup infrastructure: a cluster or appliance with NVMe drives, large cache, dedupe‑enabled repository.

• Configure backup jobs: full + incremental, changed‑block tracking, VM replication to DR cluster or cloud.

• Configure a “capacity tier” or “cloud tier” target: e.g., S3‑compatible storage with object lock or versioning for immutability. Veeam supports this. Veeam Software+1

• Retention: set immutability period (e.g., 30/60/90 days) so backup chain cannot be deleted within that window.

• Ensure backup repository is isolated/secured (hardened Linux repo or appliance) so ransomware cannot easily modify backup data. Vitanium

• Ensure VM replication for DR: setup replication between clusters (e.g., Dell cluster to second cluster, HPE cluster to second site, Nutanix cluster to remote site or cloud).

• Storage for backup: Deduplication and compression enabled to reduce footprint. Note: for cluster storage dedupe (Nutanix/HPE) and backup dedupe (Veeam) are separate layers.

---

Estimated Spec Summary (example values)

Platform	Nodes	CPU	RAM/node	NVMe capacity/node (raw)	Networking	Effective usable after overhead + dedupe
Dell	10	2× Xeon 4th Gen	~1.5 TB DDR5	~96 TB	2×100 GbE	~600‑700 TB
HPE	12	2× Xeon Scalable	~2 TB DDR5	~35‑40 TB	2×100 GbE	~450‑600 TB
Nutanix	10	2× Xeon/EPYC	~1.5‑2 TB DDR5	~30‑40 TB	2×100 GbE	~400‑500 TB

___________________________________________________________________________________

1. Dell Solution

Node hardware reference: Dell PowerEdge R760 (used here as the server node platform for quantification)

Key Components (per node)

• 2 × Intel Xeon Scalable 5th Gen (e.g., dual CPUs)

• ~1.5 TB DDR5 memory (populate all channels)

• NVMe drives: e.g., 24 × 4 TB NVMe capacity + 2 × high‑end NVMe cache drives

• Dual 100GbE network cards (or 2×50GbE)

• Redundant power supplies, high‑efficiency cooling

• Rack rails, cables

• vSAN‑Ready Node certification (Dell VxRail or PowerEdge HCI)

• Software: VMware vSphere Enterprise Plus licenses (for number of CPU sockets), VMware vSAN, VMware vCenter, VMware Distributed Switch etc

• Backup Software: e.g., Veeam Backup & Replication licenses sized for 300+ servers + 30 workstations + replication/cloud tiering

• Cloud object storage connector licenses (e.g., S3‑compatible storage, object lock)

• Deduplication/compression licenses (if separate)

Cluster‑wide additions

• 10 nodes × above hardware

• Top‑of‑Rack switches: 2× per rack, 100GbE leaf/spine architecture

• UPS / power distribution units sized for ~3‑3.5 kW per node

• Cooling infrastructure, rack PDUs, cabling

• Backup repository appliance: NVMe SSD based, dedupe‑enabled repository server(s)

• DR replication target (cluster or cloud)

• Cloud storage account (S3 or equivalent) with immutability/object‑lock support

Example Quantity Summary

Item	Qty
Dell PowerEdge R760 nodes	10
Dual Intel CPUs per node	20
DDR5 memory (~1.5 TB/node)	~15 TB total
NVMe drives (capacity + cache)	10 × (24+2) = 260 drives approx
Network cards per node	20
Top‑of‑Rack switches	2 or more
Backup repository appliance	2‑3 units
Veeam licenses (server + replication)	1 set sized

---

2. HPE Solution

Node hardware reference: HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 Node

Key Components (per node)

• HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 Node chassis

• Dual Intel Xeon Scalable (or Xeon‑G) processors

• DDR5 Smart Memory 5600 MT/s (~2 TB per node)

• NVMe all‑flash drives sized for capacity + performance

• Inline deduplication/compression built‑in to SimpliVity

• Network: dual 100GbE (or 4×50GbE)

• Software: HPE SimpliVity software license (per node)

• VMware vSphere (or Hyper‑V) licenses

• Backup/DR: Veeam or similar plus cloud tiering/immutable storage

• Object‑storage connector or HPE StoreOnce appliance with retention lock

Cluster‑wide additions

• 12 nodes × above hardware

• Networking infrastructure, spine/leaf switches

• UPSs, cooling, PDUs

• Backup appliance or repository cluster

• Cloud storage account for long‑term retention + immutability

Example Quantity Summary

Item	Qty
HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 Nodes	12
Dual CPUs per node	24
DDR5 memory total (~2 TB/node)	~24 TB
NVMe drives per node (capacity tier)	~30‑40 per node ×12
Network cards per node	24
Backup repository units	2‑3
Veeam (or equivalent) licenses	1 set

---

3. Nutanix Solution

Node hardware reference: Nutanix NX‑8155‑G6 (representative of NX8155 platform)

Key Components (per node)

• Nutanix NX‑8155‑G9 (or G6 as similar) node: dual Intel Xeon (e.g., Gold 6426Y) processors. CDW+2portal.nutanix.com+2

• DDR5 memory (~1.5‑2 TB per node)

• All‑NVMe drives per node (12 drive slots per spec). portal.nutanix.com+1

• 2×512 GB M.2 boot devices (in many models) portal.nutanix.com

• Networking: dual 100GbE (or equivalent high‑bandwidth)

• Software: Nutanix AOS license (per node), Nutanix data reduction (dedupe/compression) enabled

• Hypervisor license: either VMware vSphere, Hyper‑V, or Nutanix AHV

• Backup/Replication: Veeam (supports Nutanix), or Nutanix native backup plus cloud tiering

• Cloud storage connector for immutable backup storage

Cluster‑wide additions

• 10 nodes × above spec

• Networking fabric, switches

• UPS/PDUs/cooling

• Backup repository appliance or Nutanix unified storage for backups

• Cloud object storage account with object‑lock for immutability

Example Quantity Summary

Item	Qty
Nutanix NX‑8155 series nodes	10
Dual CPUs per node	20
DDR5 memory total (~1.5‑2 TB/node)	~15‑20 TB
NVMe drives per node (~12)	~120 drives total
Network cards per node	20
Backup repository units	2
Backup software licenses	1 set

---

Licensing / Software Summary Across All Builds

• VMware vSphere Enterprise Plus (for clusters using VMware)

• VMware vSAN (for storage HCI)

• VMware vCenter Server

• Backup software: Veeam (or equivalent) licenses including capacity for replication, cloud tiering, immutability

• Cloud object storage service (AWS S3, Azure Blob, Wasabi, etc) with object‑lock/WORM support

• Deduplication/compression software license (where separate)

• Support/maintenance contracts (3‑5 years) for hardware, firmware, software

---

Notes & Considerations

• Pricing: Vendor-specific, negotiate enterprise discount; hardware spec changes (CPU core count, memory, NVMe capacity) will change price significantly.

• Quantities: Nodes count may scale according to actual VM density and IOPS demands; the BOM here uses selected node counts (10/12/10) for head‑room.

• NVMe/Memory specs: We assume fastest available memory bus (DDR5) and all‑NVMe storage; ensure vendor quoting matches your bus speed, channel population, NVMe capacity/brand.

• Backup repository: While you use the same backup software across platforms, the repository hardware may differ (NVMe SSD dedicated backup appliance).

• Cloud tier: Ensure object‑storage service supports immutability (object lock) and you have sufficient network egress bandwidth.

• Growth: Leave spare rack U space, spare PCIe slots, spare drive bays for expansion.

• Networking: Make sure your spine/leaf fabric is sized for inter‑node storage traffic and replication; 100GbE is recommended for high IOPS cluster.

• Deduplication: Check vendor dedupe rates, overhead, performance impact.

• Licensing: Confirm hypervisor and backup software licensing counts and limitations (CPU sockets, cores, VM count).

• Support: Maintenance contracts (hardware + firmware + software) are critical for enterprise HCI.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Reference Sheet:

Dell EMC vSAN Ready Nodes — “Solution Overview (PDF)”. ■ https://i.dell.com/sites/csdocuments/Product_Docs/en/dell-emc-vsan-ready-nodes-solution-overview.pdf Dell

Dell — “vSAN Ready Nodes Solution Brief (PDF)”. ■ https://www.delltechnologies.com/asset/en-us/products/converged-infrastructure/briefs-summaries/dell-vsan-ready-node-solution-brief.pdf Dell+1

HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 Node — product brief. ■ https://www.hpe.com/psnow/doc/a50010103enw Hewlett Packard Enterprise

HPE SimpliVity 380 Gen11 QuickSpecs — memory, scale‑out specs. ■ https://www.hpe.com/us/en/collaterals/collateral.a00021989enw.html Hewlett Packard Enterprise+1

Nutanix NX‑8155‑G9 System Specifications. ■ https://portal.nutanix.com/docs/System-Specs-NX8155G9%3ASystem-Specs-NX8155G9 portal.nutanix.com

Nutanix NX‑8155‑G9 (drive bays/boot devices) — “System Specifications”. ■ https://portal.nutanix.com/page/documents/details?targetId=System‑Specs‑NX8155G9%3ASystem+Specifications portal.nutanix.com

Nutanix NX‑8155A‑G9 System Specifications (alternative model). ■ https://portal.nutanix.com/page/documents/details?targetId=System‑Specs‑NX8155AG9%3ASystem‑Specifications portal.nutanix.com+1

VMware vSAN ReadyNode Guide (PDF) — compatibility/configurations. ■ https://partnerweb.vmware.com/comp_guide2/pdf/vi_vsan_rn_guide.pdf Broadcom Compatibility Guide