Vendor-neutral storage networking certification from SNIA

Vendor-neutral storage networking certification from SNIA
By Alan Earls

Late last month, the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) announced that, in conjunction with Infinity I/ O, it will launch a Fibre Channel Storage Area Network (FC-SAN) certification program in late October in the U. S. and Europe to test IT professionals' expertise in Fibre Channel-based SANs. The SNIA FC-SAN Certification Program is the first module of the SNIA Storage Networking Certification Program (SNIA SNCP), which will include modules on other storage networking topics.

"The ultimate goal of the SNIA SNCP is to provide uniform standards by which the knowledge and abilities of people working with storage networks of all kinds can be judged," says Paul Massiglia, chairperson of the SNIA Education Committee, which is overseeing the SNIA's certification activities. "We have begun with Fibre Channel because that's where the action is among the user community today."

Infinity I/ O, a provider of training and education for individuals employed in various technological fields, initiated the creation and development of the FC-SAN Certification Program in response to the rapid growth of the storage networking marketplace and a strong, worldwide industry demand for a single uniform standard to measure individual knowledge of system-level, heterogeneous, open-system network technologies.

Max Shu, marketing manager at SNIA, says the program has been under development for about a year. "We are not trying to compete with vendor-specific certification programs," says Shu. "In fact, we are looking at ways to integrate our program with vendor-specific ones."

Shu says SNIA is not aware of any vendor-neutral certification programs in these disciplines. "If such third-party certifications do appear on the scene, we will do our best to work with the organization to develop consistent positioning for the consumer," she says.

For information on the SNIA certification programs, contact the SNIA by telephone at 650- 949- 6720, via e-mail at executivedirector@snia.org, or visit the SNIA Web site.

About the author: Alan Earls is a freelance writer residing in Franklin, Mass.

Rate this Tip To rate tips, you must be a member of SearchStorage.com. Register now to start rating these tips. Log in if you are already a member. Submit a Tip BROWSE BY TAG Basics,   Careers and Training,   VIEW ALL TAGS Digg This!     StumbleUpon     Del.icio.us    RELATED CONTENT Basics Gartner: HP loses storage services market share Maximizing the ROI of data center management Users have mixed reactions to SNIA storage credentials Tacit takes in $16 million Schwarzenegger lures storage vendors to California LSI Logic Storage Systems changes name Best practices for buying storage StorageTek: No IT spending uptick A new ripple for nStor Former CEO files unfair competition complaint against Xiotech Careers and Training Users have mixed reactions to SNIA storage credentials Schwarzenegger lures storage vendors to California What's Windows Storage Server for anyway? Lesson one: What's a backup? McData cuts 92 employees Protesters to rally against offshore outsourcing StorageTek backs storage engineering training program Troika Networks' CEO jumps ship for Brocade Sun lays off workers in factory shuffle Sure-fire skills for IT success in 2004 RELATED RESOURCES 2020software.com, trial software downloads for accounting software, ERP software, CRM software and business software systems Search Bitpipe.com for the latest white papers and business webcasts Whatis.com, the online computer dictionary DISCLAIMER: Our Tips Exchange is a forum for you to share technical advice and expertise with your peers and to learn from other enterprise IT professionals. TechTarget provides the infrastructure to facilitate this sharing of information. However, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or validity of the material submitted. You agree that your use of the Ask The Expert services and your reliance on any questions, answers, information or other materials received through this Web site is at your own risk.