Why you should purchase your HP P4300 or P4500 SAN from a HP Authorized Reseller
At Storage Networks, we understand the reward and risks of purchasing your HP P4300 and P4500 SAN/IQ storage systems from the "Gray Market" or "Grey Market".
The reward is obvious. Your cost may be less. However, your risks could far exceed your initial savings. The licensing, warranty, and support benefits of purchasing your HP P4300 and P4500 storage systems from a HP Authorized distribution channel vs. the gray market, further protects your business investment and company data.
Frequently Asked Questions
From where do gray market HP P4300 and P4500 storage systems originate?
Due to HP educational and government sector discounts, some HP StorageWorks P4300 and P4500 storage devices are sold to public institutions at steeply discounted prices. Due to the modular node architecture of the P4300 and P4500 G2 SANs, some nodes are never actually placed into use. In order to recover some of the lost investment, the end user sells these extra nodes to asset recovery houses, which in turn, sell the P4300 / P4500 nodes to unauthorized HP resellers. These resellers post the storage systems for sale on eBay, Google Shopping, and Google AdWords. These StorageWorks systems are often brand new and still factory sealed and are advertised with full 3-Year warranties (which, you will find, are not actually valid for any party other than the original end user.)
Other Gray Market P4000 products originate from outside the United States and ship with different language packs and software specific to the region of origin.
Are these grey market HP P4500 and HP P4300 systems legal to purchase?
The reseller may be violating their contract with HP, but there are no legal ramifications involved with end users purchasing grey market equipment.
This does not mean that grey market P4300 and P4500 storage systems come without risk.
Are there licensing issues when purchasing gray market HP P4300 and P4500 systems?
Yes. Before explaining the caveats of buying a grey market HP P4000 system, you should understand what makes HP P4300 and HP P4500 storage systems unique.
What is an HP P4000 series storage system composed of?
HP P4300 storage systems are re branded HP DL180 servers that ship with 8 disk drives installed. The P4300 has a high performance HP SmartArray controller installed to achieve hardware RAID across the disk drives. The P4300 boots into a scaled down Hyper visor (similar to VMware) to launch the SAN/IQ management software. SAN/IQ is the heart of the storage system. SAN/IQ allows the HP P4300 and P4500 products to work together in Network RAID, create snapshots, allow for thinly provision volumes, and create iSCSI targets. Without the SAN/IQ operating environment, a P4300 and P4500 is just an HP DL180 server with a RAID controller and 8 (or 12) disk drives.
SAN/IQ requires just a base license key from HP. To utilize snapshots, network RAID, thin provisioning, and automated task scripting, the P4300 / P4500 user must enter add-on licenses. These licenses are usually INCLUDED with the P4300 and P4500 purchase when you buy through an HP Authorized Reseller.
How do I activate SAN/IQ licenses on an HP P4300 or HP P4500 storage system?
When an HP P4300 or P4500 is shipped from the factory, a license entitlement envelope is included. HP records an Entitlement Order Number (EON) inside this envelope as well as the Sales Order Number. This sales order number and Entitlement Order Number is associated with the company that purchased the equipment (contact name, e-mail address, ship to address, etc.) In HP lingo, these are "Assigned Entitlements" that are NOT transferable to users outside of the original purchasing company. The customer must enter the EON at http://www.webware.hp.com to obtain the license keys needed to activate features in SAN/IQ. One EON will contain entitlements for many different SAN/IQ features (including the base license.) The license keys are assigned to what HP refers to as a target. A target in the case of an HP P4300 or P4500 is a storage node with a WWN (World Wide Name.)
I plan to buy an HP P4300 or P4500 outside of the authorized channel. It includes an Entitlement Order Number and is factory sealed. Will I be able to obtain license keys from HP?
No. You will not be able to obtain licenses from HP. The HP P4300 and P4500 EON (Entitlement Order Number) is an HP Assigned Entitlement. The entitlement order number is associated with the entity that HP originally shipped the P4300 or P4500 to. When you attempt to retrieve SAN/IQ feature keys from HP's Webware site, you will have to enter the EON, your name, address, and e-mail address. If this information does not match what HP has on file for the given EON, license keys will not be granted. HP will request a copy of the sales receipt from an HP authorized partner.
In the case you buy an open box P4300 or P4500 storage system, you may receive errors that the EON has already been used. Most HP P4000 products ship in bundles (meaning that you should receive two storage nodes.) Many open box units are for sale on the internet as single nodes. Even if you purchase an open box single node that contains an HP EON, the EON was probably already entered into the HP Webware system by the original purchaser so he / she could retrieve license keys for the first storage system.
If you are lucky enough to have received an unactivated Entitlement Order Number on the gray market, you will likely see the screen below, when you attempt to obtain license keys. HP will then attempt to contact you to receive proof of purchase from an HP Authorized reseller.
What are some of the Warranty issues with Gray Market HP P4300 and HP P4500 Systems?
HP P4300 and P4500 storage systems come with a 1-3 year warranty. Individual nodes ship with a 1-Year parts warranty. SAN Solution Bundles ship with a 3-Year parts warranty. The warranty commences on the ship date from HP. The warranty is tied to a warranty tag serial number for the SAN Solution Bundle (storage node pair) or just the node serial number in an add-on single node purchase. If you purchase a single node separated from its bundle serial tag, you will be unable to make any warranty claims as the chassis serial number on a single node is not tied to a warranty.
We have seen numerous gray market (factory sealed) HP P4300 and HP P4500 products advertised with a full 3-Year warranty. The warranty clock started ticking when HP originally shipped the product from the factory, so it is unlikely that the full warranty is in effect. Furthermore, while a portion of the warranty may still be valid, spare part shipments will only be delivered to the original purchaser of the product. Owner information is recorded by HP on the initial sales order and cannot be changed by anyone other than the original end user.
HP CarePack warranties can only be purchased and applied to an HP P4300 or HP P4500 node by the original end user.
For more information, or assistance in obtaining necessary HP Authorized P4000 Licenses or Warranties, Storage Networks may be able to help. Call 855-NET-STOR and select the option to speak with a Project Coordinator, or email coordinators@storagenetworks.com