D-MSS-DS-23 practice question 4 of 15

The CPU utilization in a Dell Unity XT system is currently at 68%. What is the level of CPU utilization?

Full set: 85 questions
Answer options
A: Extremely High Utilization
B: High Utilization Correct answer
C: Low Utilization
D: Normal Utilization
Correct Answer:
B. High Utilization
Explanation

According to Dell's official performance metrics for the Unity XT family, CPU utilization is categorized into specific thresholds to help administrators assess system health. A utilization level between 51% and 80% is defined as "High Utilization". Since the system's CPU utilization is at 68%, it falls directly into this category. This indicates that the storage processors are heavily loaded but are still operating within their designed high-performance range, though they should be monitored for sustained periods at this level.

Why Incorrect

A. Extremely High Utilization: This classification is reserved for CPU utilization levels of 81% to 100%, which indicates a critical load that may impact performance.
C. Low Utilization: This is not an official Dell classification for this metric. Utilization from 0% to 50% is categorized as "Normal".
D. Normal Utilization: This level corresponds to a CPU utilization range of 0% to 50%. The reported 68% is significantly above this threshold.

References

1. Dell Technologies White Paper: Dell Unity: Performance Metrics. (August 2020). Page 10, Table 3, "SP utilization metrics". This table explicitly defines the performance thresholds for Storage Processor (SP) utilization: Normal (0-50%), High (51-80%), and Extremely High (81-100%).

2. Dell Unity Family Unisphere Online Help. (Version 5.x). In the "Performance Charts" or "Monitoring Performance" section, the tooltips and documentation for CPU Utilization charts describe these same thresholds (Normal: 80%) which are used for color-coding and alerting within the Unisphere management interface.

Scroll to Top