However, with many organizations changing or adapting their strategy to the market, data center requirements are also changing. Data centers in need of attention may have different types of signs. For example, physical signs include numerous displaced cables, different types of servers in and out of racks cooled by a bunch of fans and portable air conditioners. These signs indicate a lack of an evolving strategy.
Pressures are mounting for IT departments. Mergers and acquisitions are jamming more technology into tighter spaces. Increasing computational demands create crowded equipment racks. Staggering power and cooling requirements cripple budgets. In general, a high percentage of data centers are reaching the end of their lifecycles and becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.
Technical Advances
In addition to the risks organizations face in terms of service interruptions and outright failure, they are also missing opportunities to leverage technical advances that can be critical to maintaining a competitive edge. Much documentation is available about savings in dollars and energy as a result of a strategy for server and storage virtualization and consolidation. But those savings cannot be fully realized unless corresponding changes are also implemented in the data center.
What about the so-called “greening” of data centers? Cooling accounts for as much as 40 percent of the cost of powering a typical data center for a midsize data center (around 2,500 square feet); it can cost more than $200,000 a year just to maintain an acceptable temperature.
Key Data Center Opportunities
- Advances in cooling technologies save money and reduce energy consumption.
- Rationalized IT systems make it easier to respond to changing demands.
- Reclaimed floor space and lower energy bills help realize the full benefits of IT consolidation efforts.
- Reduced complexity facilitates maintenance and allows more flexibility.
- Energy-efficient, optimized data centers prepare an organization for the data requirements of tomorrow.
Multiple Points of View
Several forces prevent organizations from dealing with data centers issues. One of the biggest challenges of evaluating data center options is getting all of the different points of view involved to converge into one coherent strategy. Different departments view data centers in different ways. The IT department looks at them in terms of the servers, storage devices and switches. The facilities department, on the other hand, sees them as physical structures with structural, electrical and plumbing challenges. Meanwhile, CFOs see them in terms of capital expenditures, ROI and budgetary constraints.
Engineering Orientation
Although it obviously involves information technology, developing a data center strategy requires an engineering orientation that not all IT departments or traditional systems integrators have. Taking a holistic approach is the key to successful planning and execution. For example, a plan may require specialists with design, integration and implementation of telecommunications systems experience and their related infrastructure components.
Diverse Skills
Data center development requires a diverse range of skills:
- Data center design and full-service planning
- Data center relocation
- Site selection and preparation
- Asset inventory, tagging and move planning
- Asset moving and installation
- Disaster recovery/redundant site setup
- Project management
- System and data migration
- System/server consolidation
- Cabling, power and physical infrastructure services
- Post-migration maintenance and support
Phased Approach
A phased approach is often the best option -- beginning with a period of discovery and assessment that consists of a review of the existing and planned data center space requirements and overall IT infrastructure. (See data center best practices at the end of the article.)
Technical requirements that need to be detailed include:
- Power and cooling densities, as well as loads by equipment type and areas
- Space requirements
- Physical parameters (reliability, power, cooling, fire protection)
- Disaster recovery, backup strategies and equipment
- Telecommunications and connectivity requirements
- Networking infrastructure
- Security (physical and network)
- Operations and staffing space
- Equipment inventory (server and storage)
Organizations that set off on their own to develop a data center plan often go first to a firm that specializes in mechanical, electrical and plumbing - where they are met by a perfectly capable electrical or mechanical engineer who knows very little about IT. The result is a facility that doesn’t quite fit IT - not unlike what happens when an application is developed without the participation of the users in the process.
It’s important to work with a team of experts who have experience with the larger context for all of the specialties that go into a cohesive data center development. Once all of the appropriate information has been collected and prioritized by stakeholders, there are three basic options for data centers: in-house private build, co-located and outsourced.
Capex Preferences
Each of the three alternatives have pros and cons that need to be evaluated in order to determine the best data center option or combination of options. It often depends on how an organization likes to handle capital expenditures. Organizations that like capex on their books and are looking for an ROI of between five and 10 years tend to favor building their own data centers. The larger the organization, the more difficult it is to make the economics of co-location work. The economics of outsourcing make it a better option for small or midsized companies with standard platforms. The cost of outsourcing escalates rapidly with size and complexity and can be very expensive to take back control from the outsourcer.
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