During troubleshooting of a performance problem with an all-flash array that is used to store the primary production data of multiple virtualization clusters in a private cloud, the storage vendor…

While opening a change request and seeking approval is a crucial step, it is typically part of or follows the establishment of a detailed plan of action, which defines what is being requested and how it will be executed.

Before performing any critical action like a firmware upgrade on production infrastructure, it is essential to establish a comprehensive plan of action, which includes steps like backups, impact assessment, rollback procedures, and communication. This plan should then be implemented, typically after approval, to minimize risks and ensure a controlled process.

Directly downloading and applying firmware to a production array without a preceding plan and approval is a high-risk action that can lead to outages or data loss.

Documenting the findings is an ongoing process during troubleshooting and a final step after resolution, but it's not the immediate next step before performing a critical change like a firmware upgrade.