Portworx-Enterprise-Professional Pure Storage Pure Certified Portworx Enterprise Professional (PEP) Exam Free Practice Exam Questions (2025 Updated)

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Stork (Storage Orchestrator for Kubernetes) is a Portworx utility designed to improve Kubernetes storage orchestration. Its two main components are the Stork scheduler and the Stork extender. The scheduler works by placing pods in Kubernetes clusters based on storage constraints, such as volume affinity and anti-affinity, improving application resiliency and data locality. The extender integrates with Kubernetes’ default scheduler, influencing pod scheduling decisions to respect storage policies and optimize workload placement. Together, these components enable advanced features such as application-aware migration, snapshot management, and backup coordination. Portworx documentation explains that Stork’s design helps maintain stateful application availability during scaling, upgrades, or disaster recovery scenarios by making Kubernetes scheduling storage-aware【Pure Storage Portworx Stork Guide†source】.

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Enabling security in Portworx without allowing guest access involves explicitly setting both enabled: true under the security section and guestAccess: false within the auth subsection of the StorageCluster spec. This configuration activates Portworx security features, enforcing authentication and encryption while preventing unauthenticated (guest) access to volumes. The guestAccess flag controls whether clients without valid credentials can access storage resources; setting it to false tightens security by requiring all access to be authenticated. This declarative setup is managed via the Kubernetes operator, ensuring consistent enforcement across cluster restarts and upgrades. Portworx’s security documentation stresses this dual setting to harden clusters against unauthorized access while maintaining operational capabilities for authorized users, aligning with enterprise security policies and compliance standards【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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When configuring Portworx to communicate securely with an AWS S3-compatible Object Store using custom SSL certificates, the AWS_CA_BUNDLE environment variable must point to the mounted certificate file location. The correct path for this in the StorageCluster spec is /opt/certs/objectstore.pem. This file contains the Certificate Authority (CA) bundle trusted by Portworx to validate TLS connections to the object store. Ensuring this path is correctly specified and the certificate secret properly mounted is critical to prevent TLS handshake failures and enable secure communication. Portworx documentation and configuration samples specify /opt/certs/objectstore.pem as the standard path for the CA bundle within Portworx containers when integrating with custom or private certificate authorities【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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Defragmentation in Portworx reorganizes storage blocks to reduce fragmentation caused by frequent write and delete operations. Scheduling defragmentation during low workload periods ensures minimal impact on application performance while improving storage efficiency and I/O throughput. This optimization leads to faster read/write operations and prolongs the lifespan of storage devices by minimizing random I/O. Portworx provides administrators the ability to define defragmentation windows and recurrence policies within cluster configurations to automate this process. The official Portworx documentation explains that carefully timed defragmentation is critical to maintaining optimal cluster performance without disrupting business-critical workloads, making it an essential part of ongoing cluster maintenance and operational health【Pure Storage Portworx Performance Guide†source】.

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Portworx implements Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) to secure management operations within the cluster. One of the key built-in roles is system.admin, which has full administrative privileges across Portworx resources. This role allows users to manage storage nodes, volumes, snapshots, backups, and cluster-wide settings. The system.admin role is typically assigned to trusted cluster operators or administrators responsible for cluster maintenance and configuration. Other roles like storage.manager or storage.admin are not standard built-in roles in Portworx RBAC but may be custom roles defined in some environments. The official Portworx security and RBAC documentation details system.admin as the comprehensive administrative role with full cluster management capabilities, critical for secure operations and delegation of responsibilities【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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Portworx’s Volume Placement Strategy ensures that persistent volumes are co-located with the pods that use them, enhancing performance and reducing latency. This strategy involves applying placement rules and constraints that guide Kubernetes scheduler and Portworx storage operations to place data volumes on nodes close to or the same as the pods. Co-location improves I/O throughput and application responsiveness by minimizing network hops between compute and storage resources. While Autopilot automates scaling and Stork manages storage-aware scheduling, Volume Placement Strategy specifically handles volume location relative to workloads. The Portworx architecture documentation highlights this component as critical for optimizing storage efficiency and workload performance in Kubernetes environments running Portworx storage【Pure Storage Portworx Architecture Docs†source】.

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When security is enabled in Portworx, all commands, including those issued via the pxctl CLI, require authentication to access the cluster. If pxctl returns an “access denied” error, it means the CLI does not have valid credentials. To regain access, administrators must provide authentication details using the --user and --password flags or configure a context with an authentication token. The username and password are stored securely within the Kubernetes secret px-admin-token. Using these credentials ensures pxctl commands are authorized to perform management operations. Without authentication, Portworx enforces strict access controls to protect sensitive storage operations and data. While creating new contexts via pxctl context create is a valid method, initially supplying credentials is mandatory. Failure to authenticate prevents any management activity, reinforcing Portworx’s security posture. Official security guides outline these steps as fundamental to transitioning from unsecured to secured cluster operation and managing authenticated access effectively【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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When integrating Portworx with an S3 Object Store secured by a custom or third-party certificate that is not signed by a public Certificate Authority (CA), administrators must manually provide the relevant CA certificate to Portworx. This involves creating a Kubernetes secret that contains the custom CA certificate and referencing this secret in the StorageCluster manifest through environment variables. This allows Portworx components to trust the certificate during TLS handshake with the S3 endpoint, avoiding connection failures due to untrusted certificates. Without this step, Portworx cannot securely communicate with the object store. The Portworx security and installation documentation highlights this practice as essential for secure Object Store integration in private or regulated environments where internal or custom PKIs are used【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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The primary command to back up a volume in Portworx is pxctl volume snapshot create. This command creates a point-in-time snapshot of the specified volume, capturing its state for backup or recovery purposes. Snapshots can be local or uploaded to cloud object stores as part of disaster recovery strategies. The snapshot operation is efficient and minimally intrusive, using -on-write mechanisms to avoid full data duplication. Although other commands like pxctl volume save or pxctl backup volume might exist in other storage systems, Portworx explicitly uses pxctl volume snapshot create as its core volume backup command. The Portworx CLI documentation details this command as fundamental for data protection and snapshot lifecycle management in the cluster【Pure Storage Portworx CLI Guide†source】.

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Dynamic Provisioning in Kubernetes with Portworx StorageClasses enables automatic, on-demand creation of storage volumes as requested by applications through Persistent Volume Claims (PVCs). This eliminates the need for administrators to manually create and manage volumes, significantly improving operational efficiency and accelerating application deployment. StorageClasses encapsulate parameters such as replication, encryption, and IO profiles, ensuring consistent volume configuration. Dynamic Provisioning also supports scaling and workload agility by provisioning storage transparently based on application needs. This feature is central to cloud-native storage management and is well documented in both Kubernetes and Portworx installation guides. It contrasts with manual volume creation, which is labor-intensive and error-prone, thus dynamic provisioning enhances automation and simplifies storage lifecycle management【Pure Storage Portworx Kubernetes Guide†source】.

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Stork (Storage Orchestrator for Kubernetes) is a Portworx component designed to enhance Kubernetes storage management. Its primary purpose is to orchestrate storage-aware operations, including volume scheduling, migration, backup, and disaster recovery. Stork integrates deeply with Kubernetes to provide application-aware scheduling decisions that respect storage constraints such as volume locality and affinity. It also facilitates migration of stateful workloads by coordinating volume replication and failover. Stork simplifies complex storage workflows in Kubernetes environments, enabling seamless backup and restore of applications and improving overall resilience. Portworx’s official documentation highlights Stork as a key enabler for business continuity by managing storage operations and migrations, making it essential for Kubernetes environments running critical stateful workloads with Portworx storage【Pure Storage Portworx Stork Guide†source】.

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To view detailed information about storage pools in a Portworx cluster—including size, availability, usage, and health—administrators should use the command pxctl service pool show. This CLI command provides a comprehensive overview of all storage pools configured on cluster nodes, including pool IDs, device names, pool sizes, free space, and status. It helps administrators monitor resource utilization, detect degraded pools, and plan capacity expansions. While kubectl get storagecluster shows the overall cluster CRD status and pxctl cluster provision-status shows provisioning status, neither provides detailed pool-level insights. Portworx’s operational documentation recommends pxctl service pool show as the definitive command for monitoring pool resources and ensuring storage health across the cluster【Pure Storage Portworx CLI Guide†source】.

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The Kubernetes secret named px-kvdb-auth is used to store external KVDB certificates in a Portworx deployment. These certificates enable mutual TLS authentication for the KVDB pods, ensuring secure and authenticated communication between the distributed KVDB instances running on different nodes. The px-kvdb-auth secret includes private keys and certificate chains that are essential for encrypting KVDB traffic and verifying peer identities within the cluster. This security feature prevents unauthorized access and protects sensitive KVDB data in transit. Portworx’sofficial security and KVDB documentation detail the use of this secret, highlighting its role in certificate management and enabling encryption for high-availability clusters running on Kubernetes environments【Pure Storage Portworx Security Guide†source】.

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The command pxctl list autopilotrules is used to list all Autopilot rule objects across namespaces within a Portworx cluster. Autopilot rules define automated policies for storage operations like scaling and volume migration. This CLI command queries the Portworx control plane to retrieve and display all configured Autopilot rules, regardless of the Kubernetes namespace they reside in. Using kubectl commands alone is insufficient because Autopilot rules are managed internally by Portworx and may not correspond directly to Kubernetes resources. Official Portworx CLI documentation confirms pxctl list autopilotrules as the primary command for comprehensive Autopilot rule enumeration, enabling administrators to audit and manage storage automation policies efficiently【Pure Storage Portworx Autopilot Guide†source】.

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The Portworx diagnostics bundle, known as “diags,” aggregates comprehensive diagnostic data for troubleshooting. This includes Portworx journal logs, which record detailed system and service events essential for identifying errors or malfunctions. Additionally, the bundle contains outputs from key CLI commands such as pxctl status and pxctl volume list that provide snapshots of the cluster’s health, volume states, and configuration at the time of collection. Basic operating system information, including kernel version, disk hardware details, and network interfaces, is also captured to understand the underlying environment. Together, these components equip Portworx support and administrators with the contextual data needed for effective root cause analysis and faster issue resolution. The official Portworx support documentation recommends collecting and submitting this bundle for all significant troubleshooting cases as it expedites problem diagnosis and resolution【Pure Storage Portworx Support Guide†source】.

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Portworx requires a minimum Linux kernel version of 3.10 or greater to operate properly. This requirement stems from Portworx’s dependencies on certain kernel features and modules that became standard from kernel version 3.10 onwards. The kernel version affects support for device-mapper, overlay filesystems, network stack enhancements, and other low-level capabilities essential for Portworx’s block storage functionality and performance. Although newer kernels (like 4.15+) offer additional features and improvements, Portworx maintains compatibility back to 3.10 to support a wide range of enterprise Linux distributions such as RHEL, CentOS, and Ubuntu LTS releases. The official Portworx system requirements document explicitly states kernel 3.10 as the minimum supported version to ensure stability and compatibility in production environments【Pure Storage Portworx System Requirements†source】.

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Adding a new drive to an existing Portworx storage cluster involves bringing the physical device online for Portworx management. The correct command for this is pxctl service drive add -drive /dev/dm-1 -operation start. This command instructs Portworx to recognize and incorporate the new drive specified by the device path (e.g., /dev/dm-1) into its storage pool. After this operation, Portworx can use the drive for provisioning volumes or expanding capacity. The -operation start flag signals Portworx to initialize and prepare the drive for use. This method is part of Portworx’s dynamic storage management capabilities, allowing flexible scaling of storage resources without downtime. Official CLI documentation outlines this command as the supported approach to adding drives to running clusters safely and efficiently【Pure Storage Portworx CLI Guide†source】.

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Upgrading Portworx clusters managed by the Kubernetes Operator requires a declarative update to the StorageCluster Custom Resource Definition (CRD). Specifically, the administrator must edit the StorageCluster resource and update the .spec.image field to point to the new version image, such as changing portworx/oci-monitor:3.0 to portworx/oci-monitor:3.1. This change instructs the Operator to roll out the new image across the cluster nodes, performing a seamless upgrade with minimal downtime. The pxctl CLI does not perform upgrades in Operator-managed environments; it is primarily for direct cluster management. The Operator ensures orderly upgrade sequencing, node by node, handling pod restarts and health checks. Automatic upgrades without manual intervention are not currently supported to prevent unintentional disruptions. Official Portworx upgrade documentation details this procedure, emphasizing the importance of version pinning and controlled rollout for production stability and rollback capabilities during upgrades【Pure Storage Portworx Upgrade Guide†source】.

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The spec.csi.enabled flag in the Portworx StorageCluster specification dictates whether the Container Storage Interface (CSI) driver is deployed within the Kubernetes environment. Setting this flag to false means that the CSI driver will not be installed or enabled, effectively disabling the CSI functionality. The CSI driver is responsible for dynamic volume provisioning, attachment, and lifecycle management in Kubernetes clusters. Disabling CSI might be necessary in environments relying on legacy volume plugins or specific operational requirements. When CSI is disabled, Portworx will not support dynamic provisioning or other CSI-dependent features, which could limit functionality for Kubernetes storage operations. Portworx operator documentation explicitly states that disabling CSI omits the CSI driver installation, advising users to carefully consider the impact before setting this flag to false, especially in production environments requiring CSI functionality【Pure Storage Portworx Operator Docs†source】.