What is the primary architectural difference between 7-Mode and Clustered Data ONTAP?

• A. 7-Mode uses a single controller per system with a per-node namespace.
• B. CDOT uses a clustered architecture with multiple nodes sharing a single namespace.
• C. 7-Mode supports a cluster-wide namespace across all nodes.
• D. CDOT uses separate namespaces per node.

Answer: (A)

The key idea being tested is how the namespace and node design differ between a non-clustered system and a clustered one. In 7-Mode, the storage operates in a non-clustered fashion where each node presents its own namespace. There isn’t a single, global namespace that spans multiple nodes. In contrast, Clustered Data ONTAP groups multiple nodes into one cluster and presents a single cluster-wide namespace that covers all nodes, allowing volumes to move between nodes without downtime and providing unified administration.

This is why describing 7-Mode as having a per-node namespace best captures its architecture: each node stands largely independent in terms of the namespace, unlike CDOT, which centralizes access under one shared namespace across the cluster.