PowerFlex 3.6.X Implementation and Administration

PowerFlex 3.6.X Implementation and Administration

About the Course

This advanced training provides a deep dive into the PowerFlex 3.6.X ecosystem, Dell’s premier software-defined storage (SDS) platform. PowerFlex (formerly VxFlex OS) is designed to provide massive scalability and high performance by aggregating local storage into a unified pool. This course covers the full spectrum of the solution, from physical hardware components to logical storage organization.

Whether you are deploying the PowerFlex rack (fully engineered system), PowerFlex appliance, or a software-only configuration on custom nodes, this course provides the practical skills to handle real-world scenarios. Students will learn how the system achieves its “self-healing” properties through rapid data rebuilding and rebalancing, and how to manage complex multi-tenant environments using Protection Domains and Storage Pools.

Audience Profile

This course is intended for:

• Storage Administrators responsible for day-to-day provisioning and monitoring.

• Deployment Engineers tasked with installing and scaling PowerFlex clusters.

• IT Architects designing software-defined data centers (SDDC).

• Support Personnel who troubleshoot performance and connectivity issues.

Learning Objectives

Domain 1: Architecture and Components

• Identify the roles of the MDM (Meta Data Manager), SDS (Storage Data Server), and SDC (Storage Data Client).

• Explain the physical and logical networking requirements for a hyper-converged or storage-only deployment.

• Differentiate between the various PowerFlex consumption models (Rack, Appliance, Custom Node).

Domain 2: Installation and Scaling

• Execute the installation and initial configuration of a PowerFlex cluster.

• Scale the environment by adding nodes and storage resources non-disruptively.

• Perform system upgrades using the PowerFlex Manager.

Domain 3: Storage Provisioning and Management

• Create Protection Domains, Fault Sets, and Storage Pools to organize physical media.

• Provision and map volumes to clients across VMware and Linux platforms.

• Manage high-performance Acceleration Pools using NVDIMMs or specialized SSDs.

Domain 4: Data Protection and Continuity

• Implement Native Asynchronous Replication for multi-site disaster recovery.

• Manage snapshots and volume mobility to support application dev/test and backup.

• Understand maintenance modes (Instant vs. Protected) to ensure data availability during hardware servicing.

Domain 5: Monitoring and Security

• Utilize the Presentation Server Web UI, CLI, and REST API for system management.

• Monitor system health through CloudIQ, SNMP, and iDRAC integration.

• Secure the environment using role-based access control (RBAC) and CloudLink encryption.

Certification Path

This course serves as the foundation for the Dell PowerFlex Operate (D-PWF-OE-00) certification. This credential validates your ability to operate and manage PowerFlex systems effectively, ensuring optimal performance and reliability in enterprise environments.

Prerequisites

• Proficiency in storage networking infrastructure and protocols (iSCSI, Fibre Channel).

• Strong understanding of virtualized data center concepts (VMware vSphere).

• Familiarity with Linux and Windows operating system administration.