You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
DELL TECHNOLOGIESDell Midrange Storage Solutions Design
The Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Design certification validates your ability to architect and design midrange storage solutions that meet performance, capacity, and availability requirements. It is for storage architects and solution designers who plan, size, and design Dell midrange storage deployments. Earning it demonstrates your expertise in translating business needs into resilient, efficient storage designs.
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
Free questions276
Content last reviewed 30 July 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Design proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
3domains
14objectives
65concepts
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Design certification validates the skills required to design and architect midrange storage solutions using Dell Technologies midrange storage platforms. It covers solution planning, sizing, performance considerations, and best practices for designing resilient and efficient storage environments.
This certification is intended for storage architects and solution designers who are responsible for translating customer requirements into detailed storage designs. It demonstrates your ability to evaluate site requirements, plan for capacity and performance, and produce designs that align with Dell best practices and industry standards.
Who it’s for
This certification is for storage architects, solution designers, and IT professionals who design midrange storage solutions for enterprise environments. It is ideal for those who need to plan, size, and architect Dell midrange storage deployments, including PowerStore and Unity platforms. You should have a solid understanding of storage concepts, including block and file storage, replication, and data protection, and be comfortable working with customers to gather requirements and translate them into technical designs.
Recommended experience
Recommended experience includes hands-on experience with Dell midrange storage platforms and a strong understanding of storage architecture and design principles. Experience with Dell midrange storage platforms such as PowerStore and Unity; Understanding of storage networking protocols (FC, iSCSI, NFS, SMB); Knowledge of storage performance and capacity planning; Familiarity with data protection and replication technologies
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective Dell Technologies measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official Dell Technologies exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
Midrange Storage Solutions Best Practice
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for system configuration and upgrade (hardware capacity guidelines, deployment models, clustering, OS upgrades).
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for backend connectivity.
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for drive configuration.
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for networking performance (switch configuration, front-end connectivity).
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for storage configuration (storage pools, RAID level, capacity, storage resources utilization).
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for data services.
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for data services. (Data Reduction, Snapshots, Thin Clones, Replication, cluster migrations).
- Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for host application configurations (regular applications, and AppsON).
Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Planning, Sizing and Design
- Describe the planning, sizing, and design phases of a Midrange solution sales engagement.
- Perform site evaluation and remediation procedures.
- Describe sizing and design considerations (performance parameters, environmental limits, workload characterization).
- Describe the Migration and Data Protection planning phases of a Midrange solution sales engagement.
Dell Midrange Sizing Solutions
- Describe the Midrange Sizer for Unity sizing, Design methods, and deliverables.
- Describe the PowerSizer for PowerStore sizing, design methods and deliverables.
On the day
The exam itself
Everything Dell Technologies publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
No mandatory prerequisites — this certification has no required predecessor exam or credential.
CertificationDell Midrange Storage Solutions Design
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
LanguagesEnglish
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path Dell Technologies lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Design
Credential earnedDell Midrange Storage Solutions Design Certification Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. Dell Technologies maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by Dell Technologies
Exam registration
Register for the exam through Pearson VUE, Dell Technologies’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official Dell Technologies certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
Is there a hands-on or lab component in the D-MSS-DS-23 exam?
The official exam page does not mention a hands-on or lab component. The exam is likely multiple-choice only, but Dell Technologies does not explicitly confirm this in the provided material.
What job roles does the Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Design certification map to?
This certification aligns with storage architect and solution designer roles, focusing on midrange storage solution planning, sizing, and design.
Can I take the D-MSS-DS-23 exam online or only at a test center?
Dell Technologies offers testing through Pearson VUE, which provides both online proctored and test center options. You can choose the delivery method that suits you during registration.
What identification do I need to bring to the exam?
You must present a valid government-issued photo ID that matches the name on your registration. This is required for both online and test center delivery.
How soon will I receive my exam results?
Dell Technologies does not specify the exact timing for score reports in the provided material. Typically, results are available immediately for computer-based exams, but you should check with Pearson VUE for confirmation.
Are there any regional restrictions for taking the D-MSS-DS-23 exam?
Dell Technologies offers exams globally through Pearson VUE, but availability may vary by region. Check the Pearson VUE website for a list of test centers and online proctoring availability in your country.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-07-30 Up to date
Practice free questions 276 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept Dell Technologies measures — each one written out.
3domains
14objectives
65concepts
62free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official Dell Technologies exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
1Midrange Storage Solutions Best Practice141 questions
Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for system configuration and upgrade (hardware capacity guidelines, deployment models, clustering, OS upgrades).4 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for backend connectivity.7 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for drive configuration.1 concepts · 1 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for networking performance (switch configuration, front-end connectivity).3 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for storage configuration (storage pools, RAID level, capacity, storage resources utilization).4 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for data services.10 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for data services. (Data Reduction, Snapshots, Thin Clones, Replication, cluster migrations).5 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for host application configurations (regular applications, and AppsON).2 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →
2Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Planning, Sizing and Design91 questions
Describe the planning, sizing, and design phases of a Midrange solution sales engagement.4 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Perform site evaluation and remediation procedures.7 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →Describe sizing and design considerations (performance parameters, environmental limits, workload characterization).5 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →Describe the Migration and Data Protection planning phases of a Midrange solution sales engagement.3 concepts · 3 pagesOpen →
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
Apply Dell Midrange best practice recommendations for system configuration and upgrade (hardware capacity guidelines, deployment models, clustering, OS upgrades).5 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
21 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
276 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
276questions
62pages
14objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1Midrange Storage Solutions Best Practice141 questions
2Dell Midrange Storage Solutions Planning, Sizing and Design91 questions
3Dell Midrange Sizing Solutions44 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
65concepts
276free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from Dell Technologies
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
1official link
65concepts mapped
The source
Dell Technologies’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official Dell Technologies outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 14 objectives, 65 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When Dell Technologies changes the outline, this page changes with it.
14objectives on the outline→65concepts written→276free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.