- What D-CI-DS-23 Actually Is
- Who Issues It and Where It Sits in the Dell Program
- The Seven Domains and Their Weights
- What a Design Exam Really Tests
- Registration, Delivery, and Exam Logistics
- Voucher Cost and How Validity Works
- Who Should Pursue It and Who Hires for It
- Sequencing Your Preparation Around the Weights
- Frequently Asked Questions
- D-CI-DS-23 is the Dell Cloud Infrastructure Design 2023 exam, issued by Dell Technologies under its Proven Professional program.
- The exam runs 90 minutes and is offered in English and French.
- Architecting a Do-It-Yourself Solution is the heaviest domain at 25%; CI / HCI follows at 18%.
- Delivery is through Pearson VUE, at a test center or via OnVUE online proctoring.
What D-CI-DS-23 Actually Is
D-CI-DS-23 is the exam code for Dell Cloud Infrastructure Design 2023. It is a Dell Technologies Proven Professional exam that validates your ability to design cloud infrastructure: gathering requirements, analyzing data, choosing between build-it-yourself and converged or hyperconverged approaches, and planning for hybrid and multi-cloud operation. Passing the exam is the way you earn the credential.
The word "design" in the title matters. This is not an administration or implementation exam. You are expected to reason like an architect: given a customer's workloads, constraints, and goals, which infrastructure approach fits, and why? If you want a broader overview of the credential itself, see our page on the D-CI-DS-23 certification.
Who Issues It and Where It Sits in the Dell Program
The governing body is Dell Technologies, through its Dell Technologies Proven Professional certification program. Credential status is tracked in CertTracker, and recognition follows Dell's current requirements, which can include newer revised exams when Dell requires them. Dell's Proven Professional Policies and Guidelines document is the authoritative source for how that works, so read it before you invest in preparation.
The exam's stated requirement is straightforward: you need sufficient knowledge and skills, gained through hands-on experience and/or recommended training, and then you must pass this exact exam. There is no long chain of mandatory prerequisite certifications spelled out for this code. For a deeper look at eligibility, read our guide to D-CI-DS-23 requirements.
Recommended training
Dell's recommended preparation is the on-demand course Cloud Infrastructure Planning and Design v2 (course code ES732OCMCIPD2). Training is recommended rather than strictly mandated, which means experienced architects can rely on field experience, but the course aligns most directly with what the exam covers. More on your options is in our D-CI-DS-23 training overview.
The Seven Domains and Their Weights
Dell publishes seven exam objectives with approximate question-distribution weights. Treat these as proportions of the exam, not exact question counts, since the exact number of questions is not published in the sources we verified.
| Domain | Approximate Weight |
|---|---|
| 1. Introduction to Cloud Design and Design Parameters | 10% |
| 2. Data Collection and Analysis | 12% |
| 3. Architecting a Do-It-Yourself Solution | 25% |
| 4. Architecting a CI / HCI Solution | 18% |
| 5. Cloud Management Platform | 10% |
| 6. Hybrid Cloud and Multi Cloud | 15% |
| 7. Application Development and Deployment Platform | 10% |
Two things stand out. First, the two architecting domains (Do-It-Yourself and CI / HCI) together account for roughly 43% of the exam, so solution architecture is the center of gravity. Second, the smaller domains are not filler: Data Collection and Analysis and Cloud Management Platform feed directly into the architecture decisions you make elsewhere. Our complete guide to the seven exam domains goes domain by domain.
What a Design Exam Really Tests
Rather than rehearsing product trivia, a design exam rewards your ability to connect requirements to architecture. Here is how each cluster of domains maps to the thinking you need.
Design Foundations and Data Collection (Domains 1 and 2)
These domains cover how a design project starts: understanding design parameters and gathering and interpreting the data that justifies decisions.
- Know the design parameters that shape any cloud infrastructure decision and how they trade off against each other.
- Understand how workload and environment data are collected and analyzed before sizing or selecting a platform.
- Be ready to identify missing information in a scenario and recognize what data you would need next.
Do-It-Yourself Architecture (Domain 3, 25%)
The largest domain asks you to architect a solution assembled from individual compute, storage, and networking components rather than a pre-integrated platform.
- Reason about component selection, integration responsibility, and lifecycle ownership when you build rather than buy integrated.
- Weigh flexibility and customization against operational burden and risk.
- Expect scenario-style questions where several designs are plausible and one best fits stated constraints.
CI / HCI Architecture (Domain 4, 18%)
This domain contrasts the DIY approach with converged and hyperconverged infrastructure.
- Understand what converged and hyperconverged systems standardize and what they trade away.
- Be able to explain when scaling model, operational simplicity, or support model favors CI / HCI over DIY.
- Compare the two architecting domains directly; the exam likes to test the boundary between them.
Management, Hybrid and Multi Cloud, and Application Platforms (Domains 5, 6, 7)
These domains extend design beyond the hardware footprint into how the cloud is managed, how it spans environments, and what runs on it.
- Cloud Management Platform: what a management layer provides and how it fits a design.
- Hybrid Cloud and Multi Cloud (15%): placement, connectivity, and governance across environments.
- Application Development and Deployment Platform: how the infrastructure supports modern application delivery.
Registration, Delivery, and Exam Logistics
The exam is delivered through Pearson VUE. You can sit it at a proctored test center or via OnVUE, Pearson's online proctoring. The published duration is 90 minutes, and the exam is offered in English and French.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Exam code | D-CI-DS-23 |
| Exam title | Dell Cloud Infrastructure Design 2023 |
| Duration | 90 minutes |
| Languages | English, French |
| Delivery | Pearson VUE test center or OnVUE online |
| Retake wait | 7 days after first failure; 14 days after later failures |
| Results | Computer-scored results are provisional pending Dell review |
If you choose OnVUE
Online proctoring has specific requirements. You must pass a system test beforehand, present a government-issued photo ID that matches your registration name, and test in a private room without books or notes. Run the system test well before exam day, since a failed equipment check is an avoidable way to lose an appointment. Our article on exam dates and scheduling covers booking practicalities.
Retake policy
If you do not pass, the retake wait is 7 days after a first failure and 14 days after any later failure. That short first window is forgiving, but it is not a reason to attempt unprepared; use the gap to study the domains where the score report shows weakness.
Voucher Cost and How Validity Works
The Pearson U.S. voucher store lists the general Dell certification voucher at USD 230, and the voucher expires 12 months after purchase. Two cautions apply. First, that price is a listed figure that may differ by region or change over time, so confirm at checkout. Second, voucher expiry is separate from credential validity: the 12 months applies to using the voucher, not to how long your certification is recognized. Credential recognition is governed by Dell's current requirements and tracked in CertTracker.
Training costs are separate and vary, so total investment depends on whether you take the recommended course. Our certification cost breakdown walks through the pieces.
Who Should Pursue It and Who Hires for It
This credential fits professionals who design or advise on enterprise infrastructure: solution architects, pre-sales and systems engineers, infrastructure consultants, and senior administrators moving toward architecture. Because the content centers on Dell-oriented infrastructure design and the DIY versus converged and hyperconverged decision, it is most relevant where Dell platforms are sold, integrated, or operated.
Typical employers include Dell Technologies partners and resellers, systems integrators, managed service providers, and enterprise IT organizations running Dell infrastructure. We have intentionally not attached salary numbers here, because we have no verified figures specific to this credential. For discussion of job roles, see D-CI-DS-23 jobs, and for the value question, our ROI analysis and earnings guide.
Key Takeaway
The credential rewards architects who can justify a design choice, not just name components. If your daily work involves recommending or sizing infrastructure, the exam content will feel familiar; if it does not, budget extra time for Domains 2 and 3.
Sequencing Your Preparation Around the Weights
Rather than a generic schedule, order your study by dependency and weight. The data and design-parameter domains come first because every later architecture question assumes them. The two architecting domains then deserve the most hours, since they carry about 43% of the exam together. Study them side by side so you can articulate the differences.
Foundations
- Domain 1: design parameters and project framing
- Domain 2: data collection and analysis methods
Core architecture
- Domain 3: Do-It-Yourself solution architecture (the 25% domain)
- Domain 4: CI / HCI solution architecture, compared against DIY
Extended scope
- Domain 5: Cloud Management Platform
- Domain 6: Hybrid Cloud and Multi Cloud
- Domain 7: Application Development and Deployment Platform
Scenario practice
- Timed scenario questions across all seven domains
- Review misses and revisit the weakest domain
Adjust the pace to your experience; practitioners who design infrastructure daily may compress this, while newcomers may stretch it. For a fuller plan, use our study guide, keep the cheat sheet handy for last-minute review, and gauge your readiness with questions from our D-CI-DS-23 practice tests. If you are unsure how demanding the exam is, our difficulty guide sets expectations.
Practice with scenario-style items is the single most useful way to find gaps. You can start with a free set at our practice test site and track which domains cost you the most points.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is the exam code for Dell Cloud Infrastructure Design 2023, a Dell Technologies Proven Professional exam. Passing it earns the corresponding Dell credential. See also what D-CI-DS-23 stands for.
The published duration is 90 minutes, and it is offered in English and French. The question count and passing score are not published in the exact-code sources we verified.
Architecting a Do-It-Yourself Solution is the largest at 25%, followed by Architecting a CI / HCI Solution at 18% and Hybrid Cloud and Multi Cloud at 15%.
The Pearson U.S. store lists the general Dell certification voucher at USD 230, expiring 12 months after purchase. Voucher expiry is separate from credential validity, and prices can change, so verify at checkout.
Yes, through Pearson VUE's OnVUE online proctoring, which requires a passed system test, matching government photo ID, and a private room without books or notes. After a first failure you wait 7 days; after later failures, 14 days.