Role Overview
The Storage Administrator at the L3 level is responsible for managing, maintaining, and optimizing storage infrastructure in a multi-vendor environment. This role requires advanced expertise in storage technologies, operational efficiency, and problem resolution to ensure high availability, performance, and cost-effectiveness.
Key Responsibilities
- Storage Administration:
- Define storage pools, data characteristics, and volume selection.
- Optimize space utilization across hard disk drives and tiered storage configurations.
- Perform storage administration services, including problem management resolution and engineering services.
- Provide Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 support for storage-related issues 12.
- Storage Provisioning:
- Add or remove servers from the Storage Area Network (SAN).
- Allocate and reallocate disk volumes to servers as required.
- Configure and expand storage networks and disk resources 1.
- Performance and Capacity Management:
- Monitor storage infrastructure resource utilization and reconfigure as necessary to meet business requirements.
- Identify and resolve storage-related performance issues in collaboration with system administrators.
- Provide recommendations for storage environment expansion as needed 12.
- Patch Management:
- Review firmware and connectivity patches published by vendors.
- Assess the risk of installing patches and manage them through the change management process 13.
- Vendor Management:
- Collaborate with storage vendors such as EMC, IBM, HP, HDS, and NetApp for issue resolution and infrastructure optimization.
- Coordinate with vendors for storage infrastructure issues and ensure timely resolution 23.
- Disaster Recovery (DR) Support:
- Implement and manage disaster recovery solutions for storage environments.
- Ensure data recoverability and business continuity through robust DR strategies 23.
Required Skills and Qualifications
- Technical Expertise:
- Advanced knowledge of SAN, NAS, DAS, and tiered storage configurations.
- Experience with multi-vendor storage technologies (e.g., EMC, NetApp, HP).
- Proficiency in storage provisioning, performance optimization, and capacity planning.
- Familiarity with backup solutions and disaster recovery strategies.
- Certifications (Preferred):
- Dell EMC VNX Solution Expert.
- NetBackup Certified.
- ITIL Foundation Certification.
- Soft Skills:
- Strong analytical and diagnostic abilities.
- Effective communication and collaboration skills.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, 24x7 production environment.
Additional Responsibilities
- Monitor the storage infrastructure using vendor-provided tools.
- Perform audits and ensure compliance with organizational policies.
- Maintain documentation for audits, capacity planning, and change management processes.
