Dell EMC World 2017

CRN is live at Dell EMC World 2017 in Las Vegas. Get all of ourr coverage of the event, as well content from the Dell EMC World 2017 special issue of CRN, here.

CRN is live at Dell EMC World 2017 in Las Vegas. Get all of their coverage of the event, as well content from the Dell EMC World 2017 special issue of CRN, here.

Dell EMC Bringing Mission-Critical Cloud Power Virtustream Into Channel ProgramThe Virtustream Enterprise Cloud's move into the Dell EMC partner program is effective immediately and was announced today at the Dell EMC World conference in Las Vegas.

Pat Gelsinger: VMware Opens Up Tech Partners To Expand Cloud CapabilitiesVMware CEO Pat Gelsinger said new partnerships with Amazon Web Services, Google, and other parts of the Dell EMC business will make it easier for customers to run applications and manage IoT over private, hybrid, and public clouds.

Virtustream Extends Mission-Critical Cloud Tech To Complex Health Care ApplicationsVirtustream, known mainly for its public cloud infrastructure for mission-critical apps like SAP, is now providing the ability to run Epic and other health care apps in a HIPAA-compliant cloud.

Michael Dell To Partners: 'Enormous Cross-Selling Opportunities For You'Dell EMC CEO Michael Dell tells partners that the complexity inherent in enterprise digital transformations opens up more opportunities for partners to sell across Dell EMC's broad portfolio.

Dell EMC's David Goulden: Modern, Automated Infrastructure Provides The First Step For Cloud MigrationA big focus of this week's Dell EMC World is the ability of Dell EMC to provide the modern infrastructure that lets customers look at the cloud and other ways to add flexibility to their applications.

Dell EMC Rolls Out 'Flexible Consumption' Rebate For PartnersChannel Chief John Byrne hit the Dell EMC World conference stage in Las Vegas to talk about the vendor's new consumption-based rebate model for partners selling cloud and hyper-converged resources.

Dell EMC Takes Aim At Cisco With New Open Networking PushDell EMC is putting the pressure on Cisco and other networking market leaders, unveiling a slew of new open networking products at this week's Dell EMC World.

Dell North America Sales Chief: 'Winning In Both Consumer And Commercial PCs' Is KeyDavid Schmoock, who took over as North America sales head at Dell EMC in early April after the departure of 18-year sales veteran Bill Rodriguez, made the case at Dell EMC World for keeping the competitive pressure on in the PC arena.

Dell EMC World: Michael Dell's 7 Keys To The Future Of Dell Technologies And The IT IndustryIn a keynote at the Dell EMC World conference in Las Vegas, Dell laid out the company's broad product portfolio for the more than 13,000 in attendance and gave insights into how that portfolio is positioned for the future of global business.

Dell EMC World: Enterprise Sales Chief Scannell Says Partners Are Booting Competitors, Winning Big Deals Amid Huge Market OpportunityScannell says the market opportunity for Dell EMC now is bigger than he's seen in more than three decades.

Michael Dell To Partners: 'Enormous Cross-Selling Opportunities For You'Dell is contributing its Project FUSE source code to the EdgeX Foundry initiative, a project aiming to create a standard to align market leaders around a common Internet of Things framework.

Partner Marketing Push: Dell EMC Arms Partners With New MDF ResourcesDell EMC is simplifying its MDF strategy with its Partner Marketing Institute, an online portal that enables partners to seamlessly make their marketing efforts an extension of Dell EMC's.

Dell EMC Gives Partners The Nod On Commercial PCs With Extension Of Partner-Led StrategyDell EMC moves closer to launching its sales strategy for servers, storage and networking lines, establishing a "line of sight" for partners to make money.

Dell EMC Launches All-Flash Storage BarrageDell EMC debuts its VMAX 950X all-flash enterprise storage array and second-generation XtremIO all-flash block storage platform at Dell EMC World.

15 Hot Products Unleashed At Dell EMC World 2017Whether you made it to Las Vegas for Dell EMC World or not, CRN was there.

Dell EMC World: Transformation Titans Map Out Dell EMC's Path To GrowthWith the right pieces now in place, Dell EMC's complete-portfolio call to action is being heard loud and clear across the partner ecosystem.

Marius Haas On Why There's 'Zero Debate' About The Value Of Dell EMC's End-To-End PortfolioMarius Haas believes that when it comes to determining which vendor partner is going to provide you with long-term value creation opportunities, there's no debate that it's Dell EMC.

John Byrne On Partners Pivoting Away From Cisco, HPE, Lenovo, And Selling The Entire Dell EMC PortfolioJohn Byrne says that Dell EMC partners are rapidly moving away from competing vendors and aggressively pushing new business opportunities across the entire combined portfolio.

Dell EMC's Cheryl Cook On The Combined Partner Marketing PerspectiveDell EMC's global channel marketing chief Cheryl Cook talks to CRN about the importance of communication when combining the marketing efforts of two massive partner programs.

Chad Sakac On Dell EMC's Push To Turn Hyper-Converged Infrastructure Into A UtilityDell EMC is putting the 'pedal to the medal' when it comes to hyper-converged infrastructure and is tasking Chad Sakac and his team with making customer transformation as simple as possible for partners.

Jeremy Burton On How Partners Can Take Advantage Of A Combined Dell, EMCAhead of Dell EMC World 2017, Jeremy Burton dug into the blockbuster acquisition and how it primes partners to take advantage of the new combined company.

Dell EMC's David Goulden On What It Means To Be The Biggest Player In StorageAhead of Dell EMC World 2017, David Goulden talks to CRN about the new combined storage powerhouse and why you won't heard anyone referred to as 'ex-Dell' or 'ex-EMC.'

Best Storage Certifications

There’s no question that skills and knowledge related to various networked forms of storage – such as storage area networks (SANs), network-attached storage (NAS), virtualized storage, and even storage as a service (STaaS) – are in high demand. Also, IT professionals interested in data center or network-backbone-related positions are likely to need strong storage chops.

Average salaries for storage engineers are consistent (and lucrative) across several job-related websites. For example, SimplyHired reports the average nationwide salary is a little over $107,600 in a range starting at $74,085 and climbing just over $156,000. Potential earnings reported by Glassdoor are higher: The national average salary is just over $165,800, with the low end of the range at about $110,000 and the high end close to $182,000.

In some ways, the state of storage certification perfectly mirrors in a single subject area (or perhaps a closely clustered collection of related subjects) what occurs across the full spectrum of information technology. Some vendor-neutral storage certifications are available, particularly those from the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) and Arcitura. Also, there are numerous vendor-specific storage credentials available from providers of storage systems and solutions, including Cisco, Dell EMC, Hitachi Data Systems (HDS), HPE, NetApp and Sun/Oracle, among others.

Like other IT certifications, vendor-neutral credentials recognize broad competency in design, implementation and management, while vendor-specific programs tend to match up with technologies active IT professionals interact within the workplace (or that they’d like to interact with for prospective employers).

How is a storage-minded IT professional supposed to pick a winner here? Name recognition is one factor. Big name and big company certifications tend to attract higher numbers of certified individuals, lending more credibility to such certifications.

Popularity with employers is another consideration when selecting a certification. In their informal survey, they searched several online job sites on a given day for specific storage certifications. Note that the Cisco CCNP swamps the other certifications because its coverage goes well beyond storage. (The CCNP Data Center specialization involves storage to some degree, but it does not focus only on storage.)

Job Board Search Results (in alphabetical order, by certification)

Based on name recognition and job board surveys, their picks for 2019 lie with Cisco, HDS, NetApp and SNIA. One item noticeably absent from the leader board this year is the Brocade storage program. This gap in the lineup isn’t for lack of popularity. In fact, quite the opposite is true as the job board search yielded over 3,000 employers seeking candidates with Brocade experience and certs. Unfortunately for certification seekers, after Brocade was acquired by Broadcom, its exams, accreditations, certifications, and instructor-led training are no longer available. However, many free web-based courses remain that cover Fibre Channel Storage Area Networking products for professionals seeking to expand their Brocade knowledge and skills.

The following sections explore each of the preceding certifications and/or programs.

Of all the storage-related Cisco certifications, the CCIE Data Center is the most senior and the best recognized. While it is a difficult and demanding credential to earn, it comes with a terrific payoff for its holders.

An expert-level credential, CCIE Data Center professionals are masters when it comes to planning, designing, implementing and managing IT data center infrastructures. Exam topics focus on connectivity (Layers 2 and 3), fabric infrastructure, storage networking and computing, network services, evolving and emerging technologies, and network services and automation.

To earn this credential, candidates must pass both a written and a rigorous 8-hour, two-part practical lab exam. The written exam must be passed before candidates may attempt the lab exam. Lab exams must be attempted within 18 months of successfully passing the written exam. The lab exam is delivered in two parts: The first part consists of a one-hour Diagnostic Module, while Part 2 consists of a 7-hour Configuration and Troubleshooting module. It is reputed to be fiendishly challenging.

Lab Exam: $1,600

Exam fees to not include travel-related costs.

Cisco offers a variety of certifications that address storage networking topics, including the Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician (CCENT) and the Data Center versions of the CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE (in order of difficulty). The CCNP Data Center credential hits the sweet spot in terms of warranting an IT professional’s knowledge and understanding of Cisco’s storage networking products and platforms in a data center context.

Cisco requires the Cisco Certified Network Associate Data Center (CCNA Data Center) credential or any Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) certification as a prerequisite for the CCNP Data Center.

Implementing Cisco Data Center Unified Computing (300-175 DCUCI)  90 55-65

Implementing Cisco Data Center Infrastructure (300-165 DCII)

Implementing Cisco Data Center Virtualization and Automation (300-170 DCVAI)

plus

Design track: Designing Cisco Data Center Infrastructure (300-160 DCID)

or

Troubleshooting track: Troubleshooting Cisco Data Center Infrastructure (300-180 DCIT)

Hitachi Vantara, formerly known as the Hitachi Data Systems corporation, is known for its hybrid storage systems, storage management, and networking solutions aimed at Fortune 100 and Fortune Global 100 enterprises. The company has a well-developed certification program to support its products and services.

Unlike most other IT certification sponsors, Hitachi’s program distinguishes between qualifications and certifications. Qualification credentials aim at the associate and professional levels where candidates have broad knowledge of topics and concepts. Hitachi certifications are either specialists or experts, where candidates have deep knowledge of and ample hands-on experience with products and solutions.

Both types of credentials fall under various tracks: Administration (professional), Architect (specialist and expert), Implementation and Integration (specialist and expert), Installation and Support (specialist and professional), and Basics and Fundamentals (entry-level), as well as Sales and Presales.

The Hitachi Qualified Professional – Storage Administration credential, part of the Administration track, is an intermediate-level qualification aimed at storage networking professionals who can configure and troubleshoot Hitachi Command Suite products, as well as use Hitachi Device Manager to manage the storage environment. Candidates must pass one exam – Storage Administration HQT-6740 – to earn the credential.

NetApp has been in the storage business since 1992, and offers a broad line of products and systems for backup and recovery, traditional and virtualized storage and cloud-based data centers. Although NetApp has some stiff competition – Dell EMC, HPE and Hitachi, to name a few – the company understands the value of flexibility and integration with other third-party products. For example, NetApp worked with Cisco to develop FlexPod, which helps customers manage Cisco, Citrix, Cloudera, Microsoft, NetApp, Oracle, Red Hat, VMware, and other applications and environments, and NetApp’s hybrid cloud storage integrates with Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, among others.

The NetApp Certification Program (NCP) features several certifications within three tracks: Data, Hybrid Cloud and Converged Infrastructure. All NetApp certifications focus on some aspect of storage hardware or the software that powers these products. The Data track includes the NetApp Certified Storage Associate (NCSA) – Hybrid Cloud, the NetApp Certified Storage Installation Engineer, ONTAP as well as their featured certification, the NetApp Certified Data Administrator (NCDA).

The NCDA recognizes working knowledge of NetApp storage architecture, core ONTAP components, high availability, data clustering, protocol administration, storage performance, security and data protection. Candidates must be able to configure controllers running the ONTAP operating system in NFS and Windows (CIFS) environments, and understand NetApp SnapMirror, SnapRestore and SnapVault technologies.

Candidates must pass one exam to earn the credential.

NetApp certifications are valid for 27 months, and credential holders must meet recertification requirements during this period to maintain their certifications.

6 to 12 months of experience implementing and administering NetApp data storage solutions

Knowledge of HA controller implementation and configuration, SyncMirror software or ONTAP solutions with single- or multi-node configurations

ONTAP Cluster Fundamentals

ONTAP Cluster Administration are also recommended

A NetApp Support Site account is required to enroll in NetApp University training.

The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) is a nonprofit organization incorporated in 1997 and comprises members from various storage vendors and service providers, as well as individuals. The association develops and promotes storage solution specifications and standards, and offers education and certification for storage and information management professionals.

SNIA recently rolled out several changes to its Storage Networking Certification Program (SNCP). Most notable among the changes is the retirement of the SNIA Certified Storage Engineer (SCSE) and SNIA Certified Storage Architect (SCSA). The exams for both credentials were withdrawn on January 31, 2019.

Both the SCSE and SCSA have been replaced by the SNIA Certified Information Architect (SCIA). SNIA will continue to recognize the SCSE and SCSA until November 31, 2021. The Storage Networking Certification Program (SNCP) offers several vendor-neutral certifications:

Each certification requires candidates to pass the S10-110 Foundations exam or hold a current CompTIA Storage+ Powered by SNIA certification (exam no longer offered), which earns the Professional (SCSP) credential. The Networking Expert (SCSN-E) requires all of them.

SNIA certifications are good for three years from the date of certification. After that, a certification holder must take the most current exam to maintain the credential.

SCSN-E: Two exams; Foundations S10-110 OR CompTIA Storage+ Powered by SNIA (no longer offered) PLUS SNIA Storage Networking Management Administration (S10-210) OR SNIA Information Architect – Storage Advanced Exam (S10-510) and two SNIA Certification Partner product credentials

SQSSP: One exam; SNAI Qualified Storage Sales Professional exam (S10-905)

SCIA: One exam, Storage Advanced Exam S10-510

Beyond the top five storage certifications mentioned in this article, there are lots of other certification programs that can further the careers and professional development of IT professionals who work in the networked storage arena.

Although no EMC storage certifications made their top five list for 2018 or 2019, EMC (acquired by Dell in 2016) has one of the longest-standing certification programs for storage. The program offers credentials for data scientists, cloud architects and administrators, storage administrators, cloud and implementation engineers, and a whole lot more.

In addition, look at the credentials available from Arcitura, HPE, Huawei, IBM, Nimble and Sun/Oracle:

Dell Technologies Launches Partner First Strategy For Storage