What is FlexVol and how does it relate to an aggregate?

• A. FlexVol is a snapshot type managed by the aggregate.
• B. FlexVol is a writable volume created within an aggregate; the aggregate is the disk pool from which FlexVols consume space.
• C. FlexVol is an external volume that does not consume space in the aggregate.
• D. FlexVol is a RAID group that defines data protection for the aggregate.

Answer: (B)

FlexVol is a writable logical volume created inside an aggregate, and the aggregate acts as the disk pool that backs that volume. In NetApp, an aggregate is a collection of physical disks managed together (with RAID protection) to provide storage space. When you create a FlexVol, you allocate storage from that aggregate’s pool, and the FlexVol’s capacity is drawn from the available space within the aggregate. This setup means the actual physical disks behind the scenes provide the space for many FlexVols, and space is consumed or freed as data is written or deleted. The other descriptions miss this fundamental relationship: a FlexVol is not just a snapshot type, not an external volume that doesn’t use space, and it’s not a RAID group defining protection for the aggregate.