CDCP study plan

Map the four exam domains against your current knowledge and write a one-page gap list ranked by weakness.

Define the standard bodies and document families that govern data centre design (availability tier frameworks, ANSI/TIA-942, ISO/IEC 22237, EN 50600, Uptime Institute concepts) without attributing any of them as exam publisher material.

Distinguish the four commonly cited availability tiers by redundancy topology and the maintenance windows each permits, and sketch each as a single-line block diagram.

Convert a stated availability target (for example 99.982% vs 99.995%) into permitted annual downtime minutes and state which tier class supports it.

Compute floor loading, ceiling height, and aisle width constraints for a sample white space and flag which values breach common design guidance.

Lay out a hot-aisle/cold-aisle containment scheme on a 20-rack grid and annotate where fire suppression, egress, and clearance rules conflict with the containment geometry.

Compare raised-floor versus slab design on cooling delivery, cable management, load rating, and retrofit cost, and pick one for a stated greenfield scenario with justification.

Identify the physical security and fire-detection design requirements that must be decided at design stage rather than retrofitted.

Trace power from utility service through transformer, switchgear, UPS, PDU, and rack PDU, and label every conversion point and single point of failure on the diagram.

Compare UPS topologies (double-conversion, line-interactive, delta-conversion, rotary) on efficiency, transfer behaviour, and load protection, and select one for a stated load profile.

Size a UPS and battery string for a given critical load and autonomy target, showing the derating and efficiency assumptions used.

Distinguish ATS, STS, and static switch functions and explain where each belongs in a two-path distribution scheme.

Calculate power usage effectiveness from given IT load and total facility load figures, then identify which loads you would attack first to improve it.

Compare generator, flywheel, and battery energy storage for ride-through and long-duration backup, including fuel storage, testing obligations, and start-time assumptions.

Explain earthing, bonding, and neutral handling for a dual-path supply and state why a shared neutral undermines concurrent maintainability.

Interpret a branch-circuit monitoring report and identify overloaded circuits, phase imbalance, and stranded capacity.

Convert a given IT load into required cooling capacity and airflow, showing the unit conversions used.

Compare air-cooled, chilled-water, and liquid-cooling approaches on density ceiling, efficiency, and retrofit difficulty, and match each to a stated rack density band.

Explain psychrometrics well enough to read a chart: dry-bulb, wet-bulb, dew point, relative humidity, and why the allowable envelope is bounded at both ends.

Diagnose three common airflow faults (bypass, recirculation, stratification) from described symptoms and prescribe the containment or blanking fix for each.

Design a CRAC/CRAH and chiller configuration that stays maintainable at full IT load, and prove the N+1 or 2N claim with a failure walkthrough.

Explain economiser modes (air-side and water-side) and the climate conditions under which each is viable.

Describe free-cooling limits, humidity control conflicts, and condensate management in a low-humidity or high-altitude site.

List the cooling telemetry points you would trend and the alarm thresholds that indicate impending loss of cooling.

Build a preventive maintenance calendar covering UPS battery testing, generator load banking, switchgear servicing, and cooling maintenance, and state the interval basis for each.

Write a method-of-procedure outline for a risk-prone task (for example UPS bypass transfer) with prerequisites, rollback, and verification steps.

Define the change-management and MOP/SOP/EOP document hierarchy and state who authorises each level.

Explain how concurrent maintainability is proven in practice through planned maintenance without dropping load.

Run two timed mixed-domain practice sets and log every miss by domain and by cause (knowledge gap, misread, calculation error).

Re-derive from memory the tier downtime table, PUE formula, cooling capacity conversion, and UPS sizing method, and correct any drift.

Rehearse the five weakest topics from your week 1 gap list and confirm each now answers correctly under time pressure.

Assemble a one-page exam-day reference of formulas, unit conversions, and document definitions that you can reconstruct without notes.