What is the primary objective of the storage capacity planning process?

The primary objective of storage capacity planning is to produce a capacity plan at agreed intervals that aligns with the business planning cycle. This ensures storage resources are strategically planned to meet business needs while optimizing costs and performance. The capacity plan typically covers forecast periods aligned with financial planning (quarterly, annually) and provides a roadmap for storage investments, migrations, and technology refreshes that support business objectives.

A. Demonstrating effects of service level changes is a component activity, not the primary objective.

B. Reaching agreement on requirements is part of the process, but not the main objective.

D. Calculating effects on utilization and service levels are analytical activities within planning, not the primary goal.

1. SNIA Storage Management Initiative Specification (SMI-S) v1.8.0, Section 7.2 "Capacity Planning Requirements" - Details the primary objectives of capacity planning processes.

2. "Storage Networking Fundamentals" (Cisco Press, 2018), Chapter 14, pp. 412-415 - Discusses capacity planning objectives and business alignment.

3. ISO/IEC 20000-1:2018 Service Management System, Section 6.5 "Capacity Management" - Defines capacity planning objectives in IT service management context.

4. "Information Storage and Management" (EMC Education Services, 2016), Chapter 13, Section 13.3 - Covers storage capacity planning lifecycle and objectives.

5. ITIL Service Design Publication (2011), Section 4.3 "Capacity Management Process", pp. 178-182 - Describes capacity planning objectives within service management framework.