VMware vSAN 8 Hardware Requirements and Compatibility: Best Dell, HPE, and Lenovo Servers
- server-parts.eu server-parts.eu
- May 1
- 5 min read
Modern vSAN clusters demand the latest server platforms to maximize throughput and reliability. 15th Gen Dell PowerEdge, HPE ProLiant Gen11, and Lenovo ThinkSystem V3 servers stand out with strong hardware – DDR5 memory, PCIe Gen5 I/O, blazing NVMe SSDs, and 25–100Gb networking – all pre-certified as vSAN-ready.
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These features translate to huge gains in VM storage performance and cluster resilience.
Note: VMware is now owned by Broadcom (as of late 2023), and while core products like vSAN and vSphere remain, Broadcom has shifted to subscription-based licensing and is focusing more on large enterprise customers.
✅ VMware vSAN 8 Hardware Requirements and Compatibility Matrix + Recommended Servers
Component | Minimum Requirement | Recommended for ESA | Dell PowerEdge | HPE ProLiant | Lenovo ThinkSystem |
CPU | Intel Xeon Scalable (3rd Gen or newer) | 4th or 5th Gen Intel Xeon Scalable | Xeon 5th Gen (R650, R750) | Xeon 4th/5th Gen (DL380 G11) | Xeon 4th/5th Gen (SR650 V3) |
Memory (RAM) | Min 512 GB per host for ESA | 1–2 TB DDR5 per host optimal | Up to 8 TB DDR5 | Up to 8 TB DDR5 | Up to 8 TB DDR5 |
Storage Type | SAS/SATA SSDs (OSA) | NVMe SSDs only (ESA) | PCIe 5.0 NVMe supported | EDSFF/U.2 NVMe supported | PCIe 5.0 NVMe (36x) |
Storage Devices | 1x Cache + 1x Capacity per Disk Group | All devices must be NVMe (no disk groups in ESA) | Up to 24x NVMe | Up to 20x EDSFF NVMe | Up to 36x NVMe |
PCIe Version | PCIe Gen3 (min), Gen4 (common) | PCIe Gen5 (essential for performance scaling) | PCIe Gen5 | PCIe Gen5 | PCIe Gen5 |
Network Speed | Min 25GbE | 25–100GbE recommended (RDMA or offloads preferred) | Up to 100GbE (Intel E810) | 25/100GbE (OCP 3.0 NICs) | 100/200GbE (BlueField/Mellanox) |
vSAN Ready Node | Required | ESA requires certified vSAN Ready Node | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Form Factor | 1U or 2U rackmount | 2U preferred for NVMe capacity & airflow | R650 (1U), R750 (2U) | DL360 (1U), DL380 (2U) | SR630 (1U), SR650 (2U) |
vSphere/vSAN Ver. | vSphere 8.0+, vSAN 8.0+ | vSAN 8.0 U1+ for ESA | Compatible | Compatible | Compatible |
💡 Notes:
ESA = Express Storage Architecture (requires all-NVMe, no disk groups)
OSA = Original Storage Architecture (supports hybrid setups)
Only vSAN Ready Nodes from VMware's HCL are supported for production deployments
DDR5 and PCIe Gen5 are strongly recommended for ESA, optional for OSA
Hardware Requirements and Compatibility for VMware vSAN 8 Performance Gains
Upgrading from older servers to new Xeon CPUs with vSAN 8 (Express Storage) can boost IOPS by an order of magnitude while slashing latency. Key hardware highlights include:
🧠 DDR5 Memory
Higher capacity (often 4–8 TB per node)
Faster speeds (4.8–5.6 GHz) let vSAN cache more data in RAM and handle more VMs
ECC DDR5 improves data integrity
⚡ PCIe Gen5 I/O
Doubles bandwidth per slot over PCIe4
Supports dozens of NVMe drives and 100Gb NICs without bottlenecks
Up to 128 NVMe lanes on Xeon 5th-gen CPUs
Easily supports all-flash configurations or mixed SAS/NVMe pools
💾 NVMe SSDs
All servers support multi-TB NVMe drives
NVMe delivers much higher IOPS and lower latency than SAS/SATA
Ideal for vSAN’s flash-intensive tiers
PCIe 5.0 NVMe drives support Express Storage Architecture
Helps reduce write amplification and further cut latency
🌐 100Gb+ Networking
Built-in support for Intel E810 100Gb, Mellanox ConnectX/BlueField 200Gb, etc.
Enables fast vSAN replication between hosts
25/50/100 GbE or Infiniband links reduce rebuild/rebalance times
Intel offloads (iSCSI/NVMe-oF) and Mellanox RDMA minimize CPU load on network I/O
VMware vSAN Hardware Requirements and Compatibility: Recommended Dell, HPE, and Lenovo Servers
💻 Dell PowerEdge (15th Gen) Servers
Models like the R750 (2U) and R650 (1U) are certified as vSAN Ready Nodes
Support dual Xeon 5th-gen CPUs (up to 64 cores total)
Up to ~8 TB DDR5 and up to 24 x 2.5″ NVMe drives without oversubscription
Integrated iDRAC management and vCenter plugin (OpenManage for VMware) simplify deployment and lifecycle updates
Ships many factory-tested vSAN configurations (all-flash, hybrid, NVMe-only, etc.)
Expandable NIC options (OCP or PCIe slots) for 25–100Gb Ethernet or fiber
Ideal for large enterprise clusters
Smaller 1U PowerEdge (e.g. R650) suitable for SMB or remote-edge setups
Refurbished 14th-gen PowerEdge (R740, R640, etc.) usable in non-production labs (limited to DDR4/PCIe4)
🖥 HPE ProLiant (Gen11) Servers
Models include DL360/DL380 Gen11 (2U) and ML350/ML110 towers (2U rackable or 5U tower)
Support 4th/5th-gen Xeon, DDR5, and PCIe5
DL380 Gen11 can include 64 cores, 8 TB DDR5, and up to 20 EDSFF NVMe drives in a 2U chassis
OCP 3 slots allow dual-port 25/100Gb NICs (Intel, Mellanox, or Broadcom)
HPE iLO management and silicon root-of-trust for high availability
HPE offers vSAN-ready configurations aligned with vSphere HCL guidelines
Includes features like persistent memory for cache tiers if needed
Smaller models (ML110, MicroServer Gen11) are budget-friendly for SMBs and branches
Older Gen10 servers (DL380 Gen10 with DDR4/PCIe4) are still widely used in labs
💾 Lenovo ThinkSystem (V3)
Includes SR650/SR630 and ThinkAgile VX V3, using Intel Xeon 4th/5th-gen platforms
SR650 V3 (2U) supports up to 36 NVMe drives (PCIe5, 1:1 lane mapping), 8 TB DDR5, and 128 PCIe lanes for NICs/GPUs
Delivers massive I/O performance, ideal for vSAN ESA all-flash configurations
OCP NIC slots, with support for Nvidia BlueField DPUs and Mellanox cards
XClarity management integrates with vCenter for firmware upgrades
SR630 V3 (1U) offers a dense option (up to 8–16 NVMe) for edge deployments
Lenovo offers turnkey vSAN nodes (ThinkAgile VX) for fast validation
Cost-sensitive options: Gen2 models (e.g. SR650 Gen2 with DDR4/PCIe4) suitable for labs or small clusters
🚀 VMware vSAN Hardware Requirements and Compatibility: Deployment Scenarios
🏢 Enterprise Datacenters
Use dual-socket racks (Dell R750xs, HPE DL380 Gen11, Lenovo SR650 V3) with full feature sets – dozens of NVMe, multi-terabyte DDR5, and 100Gb NICs – for large vSAN clusters. These handle heavy VM and storage I/O with headroom for growth.
🏠 SMBs and ROBO
Smaller configs (single-socket or entry models) like Dell R650/R550, HPE ML350 or DL360, Lenovo SR630, each with 4–8 NVMe drives, DDR5 (128–512 GB), and 25–50Gb NICs, offer a sweet spot of performance and cost. They can run vSAN for ~3–5 hosts in offices or remote sites.
🌐 Edge/Branch
Compact 1U or tower servers with SSD/NVMe storage (fewer drives but still PCIe5) are great on the edge. For example, an HPE ProLiant DL360 Gen11 or Lenovo ThinkSystem SE350 (rugged) can deliver vSAN storage with minimal latency at local sites.
🧪 Lab/Dev (Refurbished)
For proof-of-concept or testing, consider refurbished 13–14th Gen servers – e.g. Dell R740xd, HPE DL380 Gen10, Lenovo Gen2 – which support DDR4 and PCIe4. They lack the peak performance of new gear, but still run vSAN or Ceph clusters for training and validation at low cost.
Dell, HPE and Lenovo Servers: Save Up To 80%
✔️ No Upfront Payment Required - Test First, Pay Later!
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