HCIE-Storage study plan
HCIE-Storage · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Map the full HCIE-Storage blueprint into a personal syllabus and rank each topic by exam weight and your current confidence
Explain the architecture of an all-flash and hybrid storage array from controller to media, including the read/write data path and cache tiering
Describe RAID levels 0, 1, 5, 6, 10, and RAID-TP in terms of capacity overhead, rebuild behavior, and failure tolerance
Trace how a host write reaches persistent media, naming each layer and the failure domain at each step
Your checkpoint
A one-page annotated storage architecture diagram plus a ranked topic-confidence table covering at least 25 blueprint items
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Configure thin provisioning, thick provisioning, and LUN mapping on a lab array or simulator and record the resulting capacity accounting
Compare block, file, and object access paths and justify which protocol fits a given workload
Explain snapshot mechanics including copy-on-write, redirect-on-write, and consistency groups, and predict the capacity impact of each
Demonstrate a clone workflow and measure how it differs from a snapshot in space and performance cost
Your checkpoint
A lab report with screenshots or CLI transcripts showing provisioning, snapshot, and clone operations plus a capacity-consumption table
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Describe SAN fabric design with FC zoning, NPIV, and multipathing, and explain how each protects against a single point of failure
Configure iSCSI and NVMe over Fabrics host connectivity and compare their queueing and latency characteristics
Explain host-side multipathing policy selection and predict behavior when one path fails
Diagnose a simulated path-down condition using logs and CLI output
Your checkpoint
A troubleshooting write-up for a simulated path failure with root cause, evidence, and the exact remediation commands
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Explain synchronous and asynchronous replication, RPO and RTO trade-offs, and quorum behavior in active-active and active-passive setups
Design a two-site and a three-site disaster recovery topology for stated RPO and RTO targets
Describe stretched-cluster and gateway split-brain prevention mechanisms
Walk through a planned failover and a forced failover, listing the pre-checks for each
Your checkpoint
A disaster recovery design document with topology diagram, RPO and RTO justification, and a step-by-step failover runbook
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Explain deduplication and compression at the block and file layer, including inline versus post-process and the effect on write amplification
Describe tiering and QoS controls and predict how each changes latency under contention
Model capacity savings for a given dataset using deduplication and compression ratios
Explain encryption at rest, key management, and secure erase workflows
Your checkpoint
A capacity and performance sizing spreadsheet with assumptions, formulas, and a written justification for each efficiency feature chosen
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Interpret performance counters for IOPS, bandwidth, latency, and queue depth and identify which one is the bottleneck in a scenario
Diagnose common degradation causes such as cache thrash, media wear, misaligned I/O, and fabric congestion
Use performance analysis tooling to capture and read a workload profile
Propose and validate a tuning change against a baseline measurement
Your checkpoint
A performance analysis report with baseline versus tuned metrics and a defensible conclusion on which change helped and why
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Explain backup architectures including snapshot-based backup, NDMP, and backup-to-object, and contrast them with replication
Describe ransomware-resilient design elements such as immutable snapshots, air gaps, and isolated recovery environments
Design a data protection policy that meets stated retention and compliance requirements
Validate a restore from an immutable snapshot and record recovery time
Your checkpoint
A data protection policy document plus a timed restore test record showing achieved recovery time against target
Storage (Expert-level track content, domains not enumerated in source)
Synthesize all prior weeks into a full end-to-end solution design for a multi-site enterprise scenario
Practice timed scenario questions and close the weakest three topics from the week 1 confidence table
Explain and defend design trade-offs verbally as if presenting to a customer architect
Review every lab report and correct any factual gaps found
Your checkpoint
A complete solution design package with architecture, sizing, DR, data protection, and a 30-minute mock defense recording or written transcript
Milestones
Week 2: Can explain the full data path from host write to persistent media and correctly size RAID and provisioning overhead for a sample workload without notes
Week 4: Can design and justify a multi-site DR topology meeting a stated RPO and RTO, and list the failover pre-checks from memory
Week 6: Can identify the bottleneck in an unfamiliar performance scenario using only counters and logs, and propose a validated tuning change
Week 8: Can deliver a complete multi-site solution design covering architecture, sizing, DR, and data protection within the exam time budget and defend each trade-off