FAIS Sample Questions & Answers

The purearray phonehome --test command is the specific Purity CLI tool used to send a test transmission to Pure Storage Support. A successful result from this command confirms that the array's network configuration, firewall rules, and phone-home settings are all correct, and that diagnostic data can be sent successfully.

The FlashArray//E is designed for high capacity and is significantly heavier than other models. Verifying the rack's load rating, as well as the load-bearing capacity of the raised floor tiles beneath it, is the most critical factor. Failure to do so could result in damage to the equipment or the data center infrastructure. While power and cooling are important for all models, the exceptional weight of a fully populated //E chassis makes structural support the primary concern.

Pure Storage FlashArrays require N_Port ID Virtualization (NPIV) to be enabled on the SAN fabric switches. NPIV allows a single physical Fibre Channel port to register multiple WWPNs on the fabric, which is how the FlashArray presents itself. If NPIV is disabled, the switch will only recognize the physical port's WWN and not the virtual WWNs used for host communication, leading to the exact symptom described: the host and array are in a zone, but LUN masking fails because the correct target ports are not visible. Verifying and enabling NPIV is a critical step in troubleshooting this type of connectivity issue.

The industry-standard and vendor-recommended best practice is to install the heaviest equipment at the bottom of the rack. This provides the lowest center of gravity, ensuring maximum stability and preventing the rack from becoming top-heavy and posing a tipping hazard. The FlashArray chassis should be installed first, at the bottom, followed by any expansion shelves above it.

The most effective way to demonstrate data reduction is to use a data set that is known to be highly compressible. Copying a VDI gold image or a text-based database export to a new volume will quickly result in a high data reduction ratio. The overall 'Data Reduction' number on the Purity Dashboard is the most prominent and easily understood metric to show the customer, as it reflects the total efficiency of the array.

Adding an expansion shelf is a non-disruptive operation that leverages the redundant SAS architecture. The correct procedure is to work on one SAS chain at a time. The engineer should first break SAS chain A, cable the new shelf into that chain, and verify its connectivity. Once chain A is healthy, the engineer repeats the exact same process for SAS chain B. This ensures that the array always maintains at least one valid path to all existing shelves throughout the entire upgrade process, preventing any loss of data access.

The serial console port on each controller provides direct, out-of-band CLI access. This method does not require network connectivity and is the standard procedure for accessing an array when network-based management (SSH) is unavailable or not permitted. This allows the engineer to perform all necessary CLI commands without violating the site's security policy.

This statement is false. On FlashArray models with dedicated, built-in ports for iSCSI, those ports are hardware-assigned to that function. They cannot be re-purposed for other traffic types like management or replication. To add more management or replication ports, an additional Ethernet card must be installed in a free PCIe slot.

A FlashArray//X chassis requires a minimum of 5 data packs to be installed to boot and maintain operation. This information is critical for planning capacity consolidations where data packs might be removed, to ensure the array does not fall below the minimum supported configuration at any point during the procedure.