Precautions
Most of the above vector properties (except for those that rely explicitly on del's differential properties—for example, the product rule) rely only on symbol rearrangement, and must necessarily hold if del is replaced by any other vector. This is part of the tremendous value gained in representing this operator as a vector in its own right.
Though you can often replace del with a vector and obtain a vector identity, making those identities intuitive, the reverse is not necessarily reliable, because del does not often commute.
A counterexample that relies on del's failure to commute:
A counterexample that relies on del's differential properties:
Central to these distinctions is the fact that del is not simply a vector; it is a vector operator. Whereas a vector is an object with both a precise numerical magnitude and direction, del does not have a precise value for either until it is allowed to operate on something.
For that reason, identities involving del must be derived with care, using both vector identities and differentiation identities such as the product rule.
Read more about this topic: Del
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