Entry-priced shared storage, built to scale
Dell PowerVault is the affordable end of Dell’s storage stack — simple to deploy, dual-controller-resilient and easy to grow. The current ME5 SAN delivers up to 640,000 IOPS and 12 GB/s of read throughput from two active controllers, with ADAPT distributed RAID, 32Gb Fibre Channel, 25Gb iSCSI or 12Gb SAS connectivity, and self-encrypting drives as standard.
It scales without forklift upgrades: start with a 2U or 5U base array and add ME484 expansion enclosures up to 7.39 PB raw. The family also covers the ME4 (the prior generation and prime refurbished buy), ML3 / TL1000 LTO-9 tape for air-gapped backup, and the NX Windows NAS appliances — so one partner can cover block, file and archive.
The Dell PowerVault family
Block, tape and file — one entry-storage family, sized to your workload and budget.
Dual-active controllers, no single point of failure
Hosts connect over Fibre Channel, iSCSI or SAS to two active controllers with mirrored cache; either can run the array alone during maintenance or failure.
Why Dell PowerVault ME5
Up to 640,000 IOPS
The ME5 roughly doubles the IOPS of the previous ME4 and pushes 12 GB/s read / 10 GB/s write — enterprise performance at an entry-SAN price.
ADAPT — fewer rebuilds, more usable capacity
Dell ADAPT distributes data, parity and spare across every drive, so a failed disk rebuilds in parallel across the whole pool — far faster than a fixed RAID + hot spare, with more usable capacity.
FC, iSCSI or SAS — your fabric
32Gb Fibre Channel (auto-negotiating to 16Gb), 25Gb iSCSI (SFP28), 10GBASE-T iSCSI or 12Gb SAS — up to 8 host ports per array, matched to your network.
Scale to 7.39 PB without forklifts
Start at 2U and grow with ME484 (84-bay) expansion enclosures — up to 336 drives and 7.39 PB raw on the ME5084, mixing SSD, 10K SAS and NL-SAS.
Encrypted by design
Self-encrypting SSD or HDD with AES-256 full-disk encryption, FIPS 140-2 Level 2-certified drives and internal key management — compliance-ready out of the box.
Sized & supported in the UK
As a Dell partner we size capacity, IOPS and connectivity, pick the right model and media, supply expansion shelves and SFPs, and support it UK-wide — new or refurbished.
Dell PowerVault — FAQs
What is Dell PowerVault?
PowerVault is Dell’s entry-level shared-storage family. The flagship is the ME5 SAN/DAS array (ME5012, ME5024, ME5084); the range also includes the previous-generation ME4, the PowerVault ML3 / TL1000 LTO tape libraries for backup and archive, and the NX series of Windows NAS appliances. It sits below Dell’s PowerStore, Unity XT, PowerScale and PowerMax platforms.
What is the difference between PowerVault ME5 and ME4?
The ME5 (2022) roughly doubles the IOPS of the ME4 (2018), raises sequential throughput, moves Fibre Channel from 16Gb to 32Gb and iSCSI from 10Gb to 25Gb, doubles controller memory to 24 GB total per array, scales to ~8 PB and adds the 7.68 TB SSD tier. Both use dual-active controllers and ADAPT. ME4 remains supported (EOSL around 2029) and is the prime refurbished PowerVault buy. See the ME5 page for the full breakdown.
How much capacity does PowerVault ME5 support?
The ME5012 reaches 5.80 PB, the ME5024 5.72 PB and the ME5084 up to 7.39 PB raw, using ME484 (84-bay) expansion enclosures — up to 264, 276 and 336 drives respectively. You can mix SSD, 10K SAS and NL-SAS media to balance performance and £/TB.
What is Dell ADAPT?
ADAPT is Dell’s distributed erasure-coding RAID. Instead of dedicating whole drives to parity and a hot spare, it spreads data, parity and spare capacity across every drive in the pool. A drive failure then rebuilds in parallel across all drives — dramatically faster than a traditional RAID 5/6 rebuild to a single spare — while leaving more usable capacity.
Which host connectivity does PowerVault ME5 support?
Per array you can have up to 8 host ports: 32Gb Fibre Channel (auto-negotiates to 16Gb), 25Gb iSCSI (SFP28), 10GBASE-T iSCSI (down to 1Gb) or 12Gb SAS. The interface is chosen at order time to match your fabric.
Is PowerVault good for VMware and Hyper-V?
Yes — ME5 is certified for VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V and provides the dual-active, resilient shared datastore that vMotion/Storage vMotion, HA and failover clustering need, with sub-millisecond latency from the flash tier.
Can I buy Dell PowerVault refurbished?
Yes — the ME4 and older MD3-series are widely available re-certified at a fraction of new, which suits DR, dev/test and budget production. For new deployments we usually recommend the current ME5; we’ll advise honestly on where refurbished fits.
Can Servnet supply and configure Dell PowerVault across the UK?
Yes — Servnet is a Dell partner. We size the array (capacity, IOPS, connectivity), select the model and media, supply ME484 expansion shelves, SFPs and tape, and deliver and support UK-wide. Contact sales@servnetuk.com or call 0800 987 4111 for a quote.
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Size your Dell PowerVault with us
Tell us the workload, capacity and IOPS — we’ll spec the right ME5 model, media and connectivity (new or refurbished) and quote it with UK delivery and support.
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