Best Storage Certifications for 2015.

Storage certifications continue to be in high demand in todays workplace. But with over seventy
different storage-related certifications available, the choices might be overwhelming. Here are
our picks for the best storage certifications for 2015.
For the past five or six years, storage-related certifications have loomed large and impressive in a
variety of employer and job market surveys (most notably, those from Foote Partners Principal
David Foote). In any case, theres no doubt that skills and knowledge related to various
networked forms of storage such as storage area networks (SANs), network-attached storage
(NAS), and even storage as a service (STaaS), which moves storage into the clouds, so to speak
are in high demand in todays workplace. Additionally, IT professionals interested in data
center or network backbone related positions are likely to need strong storage chops to do their
jobs.
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 nowadays. That is, there are some vendor-neutral storage certifications
available particularly those from the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA), but
also Arcitura while there are also numerous vendor-specific storage certifications available
from vendors that offer storage systems and solutions, including Cisco, Brocade, D-Link, EMC,
Hitachi Data Systems (HDS), HP (H3C), IBM (BCS), NetApp, Sun/Oracle, Symantec, and no
doubt still others.
1.Brocade Certified Network Engineer (BCNE)

Brocade has been running a top-notch storage certification program for over a decade. The
BCNE (Brocade Certified Network Engineer) is an intermediate level Brocade credential
(Premier Level in Brocade terminology) that enjoys broad recognition in the industry, and
recognizes individuals who understand how to administer Brocade hardware and software,
including all components of an Ethernet fabric, using Brocade management tools and consoles.
Brocade recommends that prospective BCNE candidates first earn their Brocade Certified Fabric
Professional Gen 5 credential before attempting to pass this exam, but it is not a strict
prerequisite. This exam also counts as an elective toward the senior-level SNIA Certified Storage
Networking Expert credential. Brocade recommends its CNE 200-BLS course Brocade
Certified Network Engineer Blended Learning Solution as well as the two day ETH 101-WBT
course titled Internetworking Fundamentals for Brocade Training for preparation.
The BCNE class is a four day instructor-led course available through Brocade authorized
training partners. It costs $3,200 and commensurate amounts in local currencies elsewhere,

where available. Currently a bridge promotion is available to holders of the CCNA, CCNP, or
CCIE credential whereby they can take a class for $100, then use an exam voucher that comes
with that purchase to take the BCNE exam to add Brocade expertise to their arsenal (see the
CNE 250 page for details).
Table 1: BCNE Facts & Figures
Certification Name Brocade Certified Network Engineer (BCNE)
None. Completion of Brocades ETH 101-WBT and CNE 200-BLS
Prerequisites/Req
courses, or equivalent experience in networking, is
uired Courses
recommended.
Number of Exams 1 exam: 150-130 Brocade Certified Network Engineer
Cost per Exam

URL

Self-Study
Materials

$150 USD in the USA; prices vary by location elsewhere

Exam administered by Pearson VUE,
www.pearsonvue.com/brocade
www.brocade.com/education/certificationaccreditation/certified-network-engineer/index.page
BCNE in a Nutshell Study Guide, extended study materials and
practice exams and questions:
www.brocade.com/education/certificationaccreditation/certified-network-engineer/curriculum.page

2.Cisco Certified Network Professional Data Center (CCNP Data Center)

Cisco offers a variety of certifications that address storage networking topics the CCENT and
the Data Center versions of the CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE (in order of difficulty). We chose the
CCNP Data Center credential as the best fit for this top five list because it hits the sweet spot in
terms of warranting an IT professionals knowledge and understanding of Ciscos storage
networking products and platforms in a data center context.
Cisco requires the Cisco Certified Network Associate Data Center (CCDA Data Center)
credential or any Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) certification as a prerequisite.
Of all of the storage-related Cisco certifications, the CCIE Data Center is the most senior and the
best-recognized. And while it is a difficult and demanding credential to earn, it comes with a
terrific payoff for its holders.

Table 2: Cisco CCNP Data Center Facts & Figures

Certification
Name

Cisco Certified Network Professional Data Center (CCNP Data

Center)

Prerequisites/R Valid Cisco Certified Network Associate Data Center (CCNA Data
equired
Center) certification or any Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert
Courses:
(CCIE) certificationTraining is recommended but not required

Number of
Exams

4 exams:
642-999 DCUCI and 642-997 DCUFI
plus
Design track: 642-998 DCUCD and 642-996 DCUFD
or
Troubleshooting track: 642-035 DCUCT and 642-980 DCUFT

Cost per Exam

$200 USD per exam; $800 USD total (price may vary by region).
Exams administered by Pearson Vue.

URL

www.cisco.com/web/learning/certifications/professional/ccnp_dat
acenter/index.html

Self-Study
Materials

Instructor-led training is recommended.

Preparation materials including self-study materials, Cisco
Learning Network resources, and available Learning Partner
Content:
www.cisco.com/web/learning/certifications/professional/ccnp_dat
acenter/index.html

3.CompTIA Storage+ Powered by SNIA

In 2011, CompTIA partnered up with the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) to
create, develop, and promulgate the Storage+ certification. Today, it essentially occupies the pole
position as the premier entry-level storage technology certification. As such, the exam covers
basic knowledge and skills needed to configure basic storage networks for archive, backup, and
restore technologies. The exam also covers the basics of disaster recovery and business
continuity, application workloads, system integration, storage and system administration, and
troubleshooting connectivity issues.
The Storage+ is a great starting point for interested or curious IT professionals, to help develop
skills and knowledge in this area. The involvement of the SNIA in this credential (which replaces
that organizations SNIA Certified Storage Professional, or SCSP, certification, which is now
retired) ensures that content and coverage are rigorously researched, carefully developed, and
current with state-of-the-art storage tools and technologies.

More advanced SNIA certifications are also quite popular in the storage niche. While its typical
for more senior IT professionals to earn one or more vendor-specific storage credentials, its also
both typical and desirable for them to earn higher-level SNIA credentials as they advance up the
career ladder as well. Visit the SNIA Networking Certification Program (SCNP) home page for
more details.
Table 3: CompTIA Storage+ Powered by SNIA Facts & Figures
Certification
Name

CompTIA Storage+ Powered by SNIA

Training is not mandated to earn this credential. CompTIA

Prerequisites/Req recommends 12 months of hands-on technical storage
uired Courses: experience, plus CompTIA A+, Network+ or Server+
certifications.
Number of Exams
Cost per Exam
URL
Self-Study
Materials

1 exam: SGO-001 (100 questions, 1.5 hours, passing score

72%, multiple choice)
$261 USD (discounts available to CompTIA members)
www.certification.comptia.org/getCertified/certifications/storage
.aspx
Search the CompTIA Marketplace for aftermarket books, ebooks, practice exams and so forth: www.comptiastore.com

4.EMC Storage Administrator (EMCSA) Track

EMC has one of the longest-standing and best-recognized certification programs for storage, in
keeping with its long presence and excellent recognition as a leading provider of storage
solutions of all kinds. The Storage Administrator track covers a number of specialties or
platforms at the Associate, Specialist, and Expert levels, as the following diagram illustrates.

Diagram 1: EMC offers credentials for six storage platforms, plus two backup solutions.
For most EMCSA candidates, their work begins with the associate level Information Storage and
Management exam (E20-001). This qualifies candidates for associate level status in all specialty
tracks. Each of the individual specialties has its own track exam (of which there are too many to
cover all of them in Table 3; find links on the EMCSA home page).
Although the EMC offerings cover a broad range of platforms and systems, entry into EMCSA is
easy because the E10-001 ISM V2 foundations exam leads to all destinations. At the specialty
level, a different exam applies to each niche, and only the Symmetrix and CLARiiON tracks
include expert-level credentials.
Table 4: EMCSA Track Facts & Figures
Certification
Name

EMC Storage Administrator (EMCSA) Track

Training is recommended, but not required. Third-party

Prerequisites/Req
information and training sources are spotty or lacking,
uired Courses:
depending on the credential.
Number of Exams EMCSA credentials at associate, specialist and expert levels
involve a single exam:
https://education.emc.com/guest/certification/framework/defaul
t.aspx
Each exam: 90 minutes, typically 60-65 multiple-choice

questions
Cost per Exam
URL

Self-Study
Materials

$200 USD
www.education.emc.com/guest/certification/framework/default.
aspx
Exam pages include pointers to relevant courses (ILT and elearning), books, and videos.
Search Amazon by exam ID for aftermarket EMC books,
practice tests and study materials.

5.HP Master ASE Storage Solutions Architect V1

HP operates an entire silo devoted to storage in its Expert One program, as shown in Diagram 2
below (this comes from that programs view all certifications page). As you can see, the program
includes a Master ASE (Accredited Solutions Expert) for storage solutions and related architect
roles, an ASE for Storageworks Integration (a prerequisite for the Master ASE credential), an
AIS (Accredited Integration Specialist) also for Storageworks Integration, and an ATA
(Accredited Technical Associate) for Servers and Storage.

Diagram 2: HP Expert One Storage Silo

This defines a fairly complete certification ladder on HP storage products, platforms, and
solutions. Table 5 covers information for the capstone architect level credential in that sequence,
the HP Master ASE Storage Solutions Architect.
Overall the Master ASE Storage Solutions Architect is a pretty demanding credential. It targets
senior storage architects, who typically manage or lead teams in charge of designing multiple site
enterprise storage environments, typically based on HP Converged Storage solutions and
platforms. The exam guide for HP0-J67 (PDF available here) spells out more details, and calls
for three to five years of relevant work experience, familiarity with the HP Storage Portfolio
product family, especially a working understanding of HP StoreVirtual snapshots, network
configuration, campus and multi-site configurations, synchronous and asynchronous replication,
and much, much more.
Table 5: HP Master ASE Storage Solutions Architect V2 Facts & Figures
Certification
Name

HP Master ASE Storage Solutions Architect V1

HP ASE Storage Solutions Architect V1 (2-3 exams depending

on current credentials held)
HP Master ASE Storage Solutions [2011] (1 exam, but with
Prerequisites/Req
additional prior prereqs)
uired Courses:
No courses are currently required for any of HP Expert One
Certifications, though HP routinely recommends one or more
courses for each exam
Number of Exams
Cost per Exam
URL

Self-Study
Materials

1 exam per credential (multiple-choice)

HP0-J67 Architecting multi-site HP Storage Solutions
$200 USD
www.certificationexplorer.com/defaultdev.aspx#/CompleteCoreRequirements?certificationId=MASEStorSolArcV1X1
Little or no aftermarket materials are available, so HP training
is highly recommended (and highly attended by successful
exam candidates). Practice exams are available at the HP
ExpertOne Exam Voucher Store (a Pearson VUE site) for $50 for
all topics.