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Dell Partner · SAN configurator

Dell PowerVault Storage Configurator

Build and price a Dell PowerVault SAN — new ME5 or refurbished ME4. Pick the array, drives and RAID (including ADAPT), and see usable capacity update live. Free UK quote, no obligation.

Quick start — pre-built configurations
Step 1 of 6🗄️ Array

Select your array

Choose new or refurbished, then pick a model

PowerVault ME5 — current

Configure a Dell PowerVault entry SAN online and request a free UK quote. Choose new (ME5012/24/84 — up to 640K IOPS, 32Gb FC / 25GbE iSCSI, ADAPT) or refurbished (ME4, supportable to 2029, plus legacy MD3), set your drive mix and RAID tier, and watch raw and usable capacity update live. Servnet supplies and supports both Dell and HPE, so the advice is genuinely vendor-neutral.

Current line
PowerVault ME5012 / ME5024 / ME5084
Refurbished
ME4 (supportable to 2029) + legacy MD3
Performance
Up to 640K IOPS · 32Gb FC · 25GbE iSCSI
Max capacity
Up to 7.39 PB raw (ME5084 + ME484)
Host connectivity
Host 1Host 2Host 3Host 416/32Gb FC · 10/25GbE iSCSI · 12Gb SAS (dual controller)Controller AactiveController Bactivecache mirror / failoverSSDSASLFFDual-active controllers · no single point of failure · expandable disk enclosures
Dell ADAPT distributed RAID
Traditional RAID 5/6 + dedicated hot spareidle spareOne drive's data rebuilds onto a single idle spare — sequential, slow, and the spare does nothing until then.Dell ADAPT — distributed erasure codingData, parity and spare capacity are distributed across every drive — a failure rebuilds in parallel across all drives, so recovery is dramatically faster and any drive can fail.ADAPT reserves only ~2 drives of spare capacity, kept distributed — more usable capacity and far shorter rebuilds than fixed RAID + hot spare.

Dell PowerVault arrays you can configure

PowerVault ME5 — current

  • Dell PowerVault ME5024

    2U · 24 SFF · 5.72 PB raw · 24 GB total (dual ctrl)

    Current ME5 performance SAN — up to 640K IOPS, 32Gb Fibre Channel / 25GbE iSCSI and ADAPT distributed RAID. The 2.5" SFF model for virtualisation and databases.

  • Dell PowerVault ME5012

    2U · 12 LFF · 5.80 PB raw · 24 GB total (dual ctrl)

    ME5 with 3.5" large-form-factor bays — the cost-effective capacity model for file shares, backup-to-disk and bulk block.

  • Dell PowerVault ME5084

    5U · 84 LFF · 7.39 PB raw · 24 GB total (dual ctrl)

    The dense 84-bay ME5 — up to 7.39 PB raw with ME484 expansion. High-capacity block storage for backup repositories, media and archive.

PowerVault ME4 — refurbished (supportable to 2029)

  • Dell PowerVault ME4024

    2U · 24 SFF · ~4 PB raw · 8 GB/ctrl

    Re-certified ME4 SFF SAN — ADAPT RAID, multiprotocol host, up to 320K IOPS, and replication to a current ME5. The longest refurbished support runway we offer.

  • Dell PowerVault ME4012

    2U · 12 LFF · ~4 PB raw · 8 GB/ctrl

    Re-certified ME4 LFF SAN — cost-effective 3.5" block storage for file and backup, with a tracked support runway to 2029.

  • Dell PowerVault ME4084

    5U · 84 LFF · ~4 PB raw · 8 GB/ctrl

    Re-certified dense 84-bay ME4 — high-capacity refurbished block storage for backup and bulk data, supportable to 2029.

PowerVault MD3 — refurbished (TPM)

  • Dell PowerVault MD3

    2U–4U · prior gen · Up to ~192 drives · varies

    The cheapest Dell block storage — abundant and spares-rich; the line the ME4 directly succeeded. Past OEM support (tracker EOSL 2019), so best run under third-party maintenance.

Frequently asked questions

Can I configure both new ME5 and refurbished ME4?

Yes — use the New / Refurbished toggle. New covers the current ME5 (ME5012/24/84); Refurbished covers re-certified ME4 (ME4012/24/84), which third-party trackers place as supportable to 2029, plus the legacy MD3 for the lowest-cost option. The drive, RAID and connectivity options adapt to the array you pick.

How accurate is the usable-capacity figure?

It is a close indication. We multiply raw capacity (drive size × quantity) by the RAID tier’s overhead — 50% for mirror, (n−1)/n for RAID 5/50, (n−2)/n for RAID 6, and a distributed-spare allowance for ADAPT. Real usable capacity depends on pre-format, spare disks and pool layout, so Servnet confirms the exact figure on quote.

What is ADAPT and should I use it?

ADAPT is Dell’s distributed RAID: it spreads data and spare capacity across all drives, so a failed disk rebuilds far faster than classic parity — a big advantage on large drive counts. It needs a minimum number of drives (we recommend 12+). For smaller pools, RAID 6 is the safe choice; RAID 10 suits write-heavy workloads.

Fibre Channel, iSCSI or SAS?

ME5 offers 32Gb Fibre Channel and 25GbE iSCSI for the highest throughput; ME4 offers 16Gb FC and 10GbE iSCSI. Choose FC for established fabrics and lowest latency, iSCSI for flexible Ethernet-based access, or 12Gb SAS for the simplest direct-attach to one or two servers.

Can a refurbished ME4 work with a new ME5?

Yes — the ME4 supports asynchronous replication to an ME5 over FC or iSCSI, so a refurbished ME4 makes an inexpensive disaster-recovery target or migration partner for a production ME5. We can supply the ME4 and advise on the replication setup.

Is this a price, and does Servnet support it?

It builds a validated configuration and a request for quote — no live price is shown. Servnet supplies, optionally installs/configures and supports PowerVault across the UK; new arrays carry Dell ProSupport, refurbished arrays a Servnet warranty with third-party-maintenance options.

Explore more

Dell PowerVault hub
ME5/ME4 specs & family overview
PowerVault ME5 specs
The current ME5 deep-dive
Refurbished PowerVault
ME4 & MD3 — the value case
HPE MSA vs PowerVault ME5
Head-to-head comparison
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