What Does a Storage Engineer Do?
A storage engineer designs, implements, and manages the storage infrastructure that supports an organization’s data needs. This includes maintaining physical and virtual storage systems, configuring data redundancy, and ensuring consistent access to business-critical information.
These professionals work with SAN, NAS, and cloud storage solutions to safeguard data, support disaster recovery, and maintain performance across enterprise workloads. They also develop policies for storage provisioning, monitor capacity usage, and respond to system alerts that could impact uptime or security.
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Storage Engineer Core Responsibilities
- Design and deploy scalable SAN/NAS/cloud-based storage solutions
- Monitor storage performance and availability across systems
- Implement and manage backup and disaster recovery processes
- Configure storage replication, snapshots, and tiering
- Conduct capacity planning and performance tuning
- Troubleshoot storage-related incidents and system alerts
- Maintain security controls and data retention policies
- Collaborate with infrastructure, virtualization, and security teams
- Evaluate new storage technologies and assist in procurement
- Document system configurations, procedures, and maintenance logs
Required Skills and Qualifications
Hard skills
- Proficiency with SAN/NAS technologies (e.g., NetApp, EMC, Dell, Hitachi)
- Experience with storage protocols (iSCSI, Fibre Channel, NFS, SMB)
- Familiarity with backup and replication tools (e.g., Veeam, Commvault, Rubrik)
- Knowledge of RAID configurations, snapshots, and tiered storage
- Understanding of data center environments and virtualization platforms (VMware, Hyper-V)
- Experience with monitoring and alerting tools (e.g., SolarWinds, Nagios)
Soft skills
- Analytical and methodical troubleshooting
- Strong documentation and process orientation
- Clear technical communication across IT teams
- Time management and prioritization in incident response
- Collaboration with cross-functional infrastructure and security teams
Education
Bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer engineering, or a related field
Certifications
- NetApp Certified Data Administrator (NCDA)
- Dell EMC Proven Professional
- AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty (for cloud-based storage)
Recommended certifications include Commvault Certified Professional, VMware VCP, and Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate.
Storage Engineer Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with hybrid cloud storage deployments
- Familiarity with compliance frameworks (HIPAA, SOX, GDPR)
- Scripting knowledge for automation (e.g., PowerShell, Python)
- Exposure to infrastructure-as-code or storage orchestration tools
National Average Salary
Storage engineer salaries vary by experience, industry, organization size, and geography. Click below to explore salaries by local market.
The average national salary for a Storage Engineer is:
$103,253
Sample Storage Engineer Job Descriptions
It’s important to include the right content in your job description when hiring a storage engineer. The following examples can serve as templates for attracting the best available talent for your team.
Example 1: SAN Engineer (Storage Area Network Engineer)
The SAN Engineer designs, configures, and supports enterprise storage area networks that deliver high-speed, block-level data access. This role ensures that business-critical systems, including databases and virtual machines, have reliable, high-performance storage with built-in redundancy and failover capabilities.
Responsibilities
- Configure and maintain Fibre Channel and iSCSI SAN fabrics
- Provision and manage LUNs, RAID groups, and zoning policies
- Monitor storage performance, usage, and capacity planning
- Troubleshoot SAN connectivity issues across switches, HBAs, and storage arrays
- Collaborate with virtualization and database teams for storage alignment
- Perform firmware upgrades and maintain device patches
- Create and maintain documentation for configurations and change control
- Evaluate new SAN technologies and recommend enhancements
Requirements
Hard skills
- Proficiency with SAN platforms (NetApp, Dell EMC, HPE, IBM)
- Experience with Fibre Channel zoning, switch configuration, and multipathing
- Knowledge of storage protocols (FC, iSCSI, FCoE)
- Familiarity with Brocade, Cisco MDS, or other fabric switch platforms
- Backup and replication integration with SAN environments
Soft skills
- Methodical problem-solving and incident response
- Strong communication across infrastructure and support teams
- Precision in documentation and change control
- Planning skills for performance and capacity
Education
Bachelor’s degree in information systems, computer engineering, or related field
Certifications
- Dell EMC Proven Professional
- NetApp Certified SAN Implementation Engineer
Recommended certifications include Brocade Certified Fabric Professional and Hitachi Storage Architect.
Preferred qualifications
- Experience supporting VMware or Hyper-V on SAN infrastructure
- Familiarity with multipath software and clustering environments
- Scripting for automation (PowerShell or Python)
Example 2: NAS Engineer (Network Attached Storage Engineer)
The NAS Engineer manages shared file storage systems used across enterprise environments. This role is responsible for configuring file shares, ensuring permissions are accurate, and optimizing network access to large volumes of unstructured data.
Responsibilities
- Configure NFS and SMB shares on NAS platforms
- Set up directory structures, access controls, and quotas
- Monitor performance and usage metrics for NAS volumes
- Manage snapshots, replication, and file system backups
- Ensure proper integration with authentication services (AD, LDAP)
- Coordinate with application and user support teams
- Resolve file access, latency, and permission-related issues
- Maintain compliance with data retention and access policies
Requirements
Hard skills
- Proficiency with NAS systems (NetApp, Synology, Isilon, Qumulo)
- Knowledge of CIFS/SMB and NFS protocols
- Understanding of file permissions, ACLs, and authentication mechanisms
- Experience with snapshot management and NDMP backups
- Integration with Active Directory or LDAP environments
Soft skills
- Detail-oriented troubleshooting and documentation habits
- Clear communication with end users and technical teams
- Organizational skills to manage multiple shares and data sets
- Customer-focused support mindset
Education
Bachelor’s degree in computer science or information technology
Certifications
- NetApp Certified Data Administrator (NCDA)
- CompTIA Linux+ (for Linux-based NAS environments)
Recommended certifications include Microsoft MCSA (File Services) and Synology Certified Specialist.
Preferred qualifications
- Experience with unstructured data management
- Familiarity with tiered storage or cloud NAS integration
- Background supporting cross-platform file access (Windows/Linux)
Example 3: Cloud Storage Engineer
The Cloud Storage Engineer designs and manages scalable storage solutions in cloud environments such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. This role ensures data availability, lifecycle management, and integration with cloud-native applications and hybrid infrastructure.
Responsibilities
- Deploy and manage cloud storage services (S3, EBS, EFS, Azure Blob)
- Implement encryption, access control, and bucket policies
- Monitor cost, usage, and performance of storage resources
- Configure lifecycle rules, versioning, and replication policies
- Support data migration to/from cloud and on-prem environments
- Collaborate with cloud architects and DevOps teams
- Document storage architectures and disaster recovery plans
- Optimize data redundancy, availability zones, and latency
Requirements
Hard skills
- Deep knowledge of AWS, Azure, or GCP storage services
- Experience with cloud CLI tools, SDKs, and management consoles
- Understanding of IAM, data encryption, and compliance policies
- Familiarity with hybrid storage solutions and data gateways
- Proficiency with cloud monitoring and billing tools
Soft skills
- Analytical mindset and cloud cost awareness
- Technical communication and documentation proficiency
- Initiative and flexibility in evolving environments
- Team collaboration with security and DevOps staff
Education
Bachelor’s degree in cloud computing, information systems, or related field
Certifications
- AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
- Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate
Recommended certifications include Google Professional Cloud Architect and HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate (for infrastructure-as-code support).
Preferred qualifications
- Experience with S3-compatible object storage (e.g., MinIO, Wasabi)
- Familiarity with cloud-native backup and DR solutions
- Scripting in Python, Bash, or PowerShell
Example 4: Storage Automation Engineer
The Storage Automation Engineer designs scripts, APIs, and infrastructure-as-code solutions to automate provisioning, monitoring, and maintenance of enterprise storage systems. This role accelerates deployment timelines and improves consistency across data center and cloud storage environments.
Responsibilities
- Develop automation workflows for storage provisioning and configuration
- Integrate APIs with storage systems (e.g., NetApp, Pure Storage, Dell EMC)
- Write scripts using PowerShell, Python, or Bash
- Build infrastructure-as-code templates (Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation)
- Automate performance monitoring and alerting routines
- Document automation procedures and version control all scripts
- Collaborate with DevOps, virtualization, and networking teams
- Identify and eliminate manual processes and configuration drift
Requirements
Hard skills
- Experience with automation tools (Ansible, Terraform, Chef, Puppet)
- Scripting proficiency (Python, PowerShell, or Bash)
- Familiarity with storage APIs and SDKs
- Knowledge of version control (Git) and CI/CD integration
- Understanding of SAN/NAS architectures and virtualization platforms
Soft skills
- Process improvement mindset
- Strong technical documentation habits
- Ability to work independently and proactively solve problems
- Cross-team collaboration and DevOps alignment
Education
Bachelor’s degree in information technology, engineering, or a related discipline
Certifications
- HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate
- Red Hat Certified Specialist in Ansible Automation
Recommended certifications include NetApp Automation Specialist and Certified Kubernetes Administrator (for persistent volume automation).
Preferred qualifications
- Experience with infrastructure orchestration in hybrid cloud environments
- Background in site reliability engineering (SRE) or DevOps roles
- Familiarity with observability and monitoring stacks (e.g., Prometheus, ELK)