Author
James Young
This blog is the next installment of a six-part series discussing data center challenges and solutions.
I my previous post, I covered the operating differences between enterprises and big hyperscale providers. Hyperscale operators might have some advantages like scale, narrow scope and freedom from old legacy systems. Enterprises also must cope with more complexities and carry costs that the sizeable vendors do not. Comparing power usage effectiveness (PUE) directly between hyperscale and enterprise data centers seems unfair, but it is the economic reality that must be faced.
The shift to intelligent data centers
One question that keeps surfacing when discussing the evolution of the data center is, “How do we make the data center more eco-friendly?” I feel this is one area that we can all agree on. Reducing waste saves money. Designing to minimize or eliminate waste is the key objective of both IT equipment manufacturers and data center facilities. This synergy, combining modular data center technology with data center infrastructure management (DCIM) analytics, can enable the eco-friendly data center of the future.
Eco-friendly IT equipment will operate in a much wider environmental range, enabling modular data centers to provide alternate “free cooling” most of the time, even in places like Singapore. IT equipment is much more efficient in its use of power. So these technologies combined will mean a much greener data center.
Most leading server, switch and storage manufacturers are already supporting extended temperature operating ranges. Yet, many IT managers still feel that operating this equipment in cold data center conditions somehow makes them run better or perhaps reduces risk. Still others are taking this step towards saving energy and costs in the data center and also in promoting technologies to reduce energy demand. Singapore has begun the journey to the truly intelligent data center for both now and the future. The early adopters have a distinct competitive advantage.
Making the right choices
While this step forward is generally a positive one, to deliver on it means having the right infrastructure in place. Modern servers provide more data and information than ever, but the network has to be able to support it. This is where CommScope’s core expertise comes into play by building a reliable, next generation network with more capacity and providing highly efficient modular data centers that maximize free cooling –the basic building blocks of next generation infrastructure.
Moving into the cloud means increased flexibility and reliability, but it also means trusting the network capability and capacity. The link between you and the cloud is vital for delivering the value of cloud computing. If that link isn’t reliable or fast enough, the benefits of the cloud are negated. So a strong, reliable network with the agility and capacity to support more data is vital - and also a fundamental building block on the road to the Internet of Things, which I will discuss in more detail in the next blog post.
Do you have a question about the challenges and innovations for the modern data center? Leave a comment below and I will be sure to respond.
