Celerra + Clariion Training or VNX?

Hi Babak,

First, congratulations on achieving your Celerra certification!  You ask a lot of good questions regarding the new VNX training.  I have asked our curriculum development team for more information and hope to get back to you soon.

Thanks for your patience,

Jill

Thanks Jill, i really appreciate it!

Hi - EMC customers might also be interested to know that the four courses mentioned above:

• VNX Foundations 
• VNX File Storage New Features: Part 1 
• VNX File Storage New Features: Part 2 
• VNX File Storage RecoverPoint/SE Implementation

Are available for purchase as a training package which is currently being offerd at a 15% discount ($120 savings). The Celerra to VNX eValuePak can be purchased in the Education Services Store.

Thanks,

Stephanie

Hi Ed,

Thanks for the detailed reply, i really appreciate it.

A few other questions based on your answer...

I noticed the length (and price) of the Block Storage Deployment and Management course is the same as the Unfied Storage course. Does that mean the Storage Deployment and Management course goes more indepth with block storage? Will i be able to apply this knowledge to our current unifed storage environment, which is the NS series?

Not that i'm fishing for assistance with exam questions, but will the courses and elearning you mentioned be enough for me to sit the VNX exam? I just don't want to be stuck in a situation where i regret not purchasing the unified storage course.

And finally, just as a friendly suggestion, it would be nice for EMC to look at an upgrade path for EMC Proven Specialists to do an upgrade from Celerra, Clariion, or both Certifications to VNX. I think it would encourage specialists to get the VNX certification, as they won't have to purchase courses that contain information they have already learnt.

Thanks again.

Aaand just one last question (sorry!), what are your thoughts on doing the Clariion course, then doing the elearning for both Block and File for VNX, then sitting the VNX exam?

Even thought the Clariion product has been discontinued, i'd still love to get certified in it, as many organisations will still be running their Clariions for quite a few years yet, at the very least!

Babak,

To answer your additional questions:

I noticed the length (and price) of the Block Storage Deployment and Management course is the same as the Unfied Storage course. Does that mean the Storage Deployment and Management course goes more indepth with block storage? Will i be able to apply this knowledge to our current unifed storage environment, which is the NS series?

• The Block and the Unified Storage courses are the same duration, but the block focuses strictly on the block level storage, while the unified course focuses on both block and file level storage.  So the block course is more in depth than the unified when referring to just block level storage. There is also a File storage focused course which goes more in depth than the Unified Storage courses on the topic of File level storage.  When it comes to the exam, the exam is based on content in the Unified Storage and Deployment course.

Not that i'm fishing for assistance with exam questions, but will the courses and elearning you mentioned be enough for me to sit the VNX exam? I just don't want to be stuck in a situation where i regret not purchasing the unified storage course.

• What I can tell is the VNX exams are based on the VNX curriculums, so taking those courses will fully prepare you for the exams. There is significant product overlap between the last versions of CLARiiON and Celerra, and the first version of VNX - so it is possible to pass the exam having taken both the old NAS and CLARiiON curriculum courses. That being said, some folks have mentioned that taking the elearnings required of the VNX curriculum have helped them with the new VNX exam without having to take the full ILT courses.  My recommendation is to take the VNX practice exam first to see where you stand in relation to knowledge you already possess, then determine which courses you should take.

And finally, just as a friendly suggestion, it would be nice for EMC to look at an upgrade path for EMC Proven Specialists to do an upgrade from Celerra, Clariion, or both Certifications to VNX. I think it would encourage specialists to get the VNX certification, as they won't have to purchase courses that contain information they have already learnt.

• I will pass your recommendation along to our curriculum team for consideration.

Babak,

To address your last question:

Aaand just one last question (sorry!), what are your thoughts on doing the Clariion course, then doing the elearning for both Block and File for VNX, then sitting the VNX exam?

• I don't see any harm in that approach. Taking the elearnings, then taking the practice exam may help you determine if you are prepared.

I don't see any reason why taking the CLARiiON certification and having all three certifications would be a bad idea. Given the nature of the products, we do see that several generations of our products will be in the market - so having multiple certs can only be good for your future.

Hope this helps.

Ed

Thanks Ed. You've been very helpful!

Thanks again.

Hi All,

Sorry to bump this back to the top, but since i wrote my first post, i got a few more certifications, one being Clariion. I'm now looking at bridging from my Clariion and Celerra certification, to VNX, and was curious as to if anything has changed in terms of the elearning modules i should take.I have noted the following that were initally recommended:

• VNX Foundations 
• VNX File Storage New Features: Part 1 
• VNX File Storage New Features: Part 2 
• VNX File Storage RecoverPoint/SE Implementation

Are there any other elearning modules i should take to fill in the bits i'm missing from the block storage side? Are the above still relevant?

Thanks in advance.

Babak

Thank  you for the posting and congratulations on your certification accomplishments.  Now that you are ready to take the VNX certifications, there are several paths you can follow. As we discussed before, the VNX is a new certification and there is currently no bridge from CLARiiON or Celerra to VNX. That being said, there are paths that will help you in your certification process:

If you have a Celerra Certification, taking the following paths will help:

     VNX Foundations

     VNX File Storage New Features: Part 1

     VNX File Storage New Features: Part 2

     VNX File Storage RecoverPoint/SE Implementation

If you have a CLARiiON Certification, taking the following paths will help:

     VNX Foundations

     VNX Block Storage New Features: Part 1

     VNX Block Storage New Features: Part 2

It won't hurt to review the elearnings that are the prequisites to the VNX Certificaition, as they will continue to help you with some of the basic changes with the CLARiiON and Celerra to VNX products.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

Ed

Ed,

Once again, you've been very helpful. I'll get started on those elearnings, revise my celerra and clariion notes, then attempt a practise exam and see how i go.

Thanks again!

Babak