Energy consumption is growing exponentially and nowhere more than in the data centre. As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to bring more exciting and innovative technological products and applications to the fore, users are consuming more data and energy.
Data centre operators are, in turn, having to keep up with this demand. Last year, leading UK data centre expert, Ian Bitterlin warned that the amount of energy being used by data centres is doubling every four years, with analysts predicting that data centres will consume in the region of three times the amount of electricity in the next 10 years.
With reducing costs being a key challenge for data centres everywhere, it’s vital that organisations clearly define the energy efficiency objectives of their data centres to enable them to manage their energy consumption accordingly.
So, How Do We Support This?
Data centre managers need to take a new approach and should look at the regular data centre cabinet as the starting point for an energy efficient strategy.
A complete cabinet ecosystem approach that incorporates an integrated hardware solution, all networked through a reduced number of IP addresses and managed centrally through a plug-and-play software is the key to simplifying and gaining control of the energy consumption in the data centre. Managing and reducing the data centre’s cooling costs should be high on the list of priorities.
In fact, according to a Cisco White Paper: ‘Cooling is a major cost factor in data centres. If cooling is implemented poorly, the power required to cool a data centre can match or exceed the power used to run the IT equipment itself.
Cooling also is often the limiting factor in data centre capacity (heat removal can be a bigger problem than getting power to the equipment). Developing a strategy that properly addresses airflow management is the first step toward that.
Airflow Management
An effective airflow management (containment) strategy allows the data centre cabinet to support high-density equipment, while bringing in energy efficiency and lower cooling costs. New types of aisle containment systems also address thermal management, improving data centre operational efficiency and reclaiming lost power. It’s critical to ensure that airflow is well controlled and that hot/cold aisle containment is in place.
Aisle containment can ensure critical equipment is protected from environmental extremes and, as well as good environmental management, can ensure a data centre remains environmentally conscious. In airflow management, the separation of hot and cold air within the server room is the first step to maximising cooling system efficiency and reducing the energy consumed by the cooling systems by increasing ‘free cooling’ hours. This is the time that the cooling units are run using the outside temperature of air or water to cool the data centre.
Free cooling not only saves energy, but is now virtually mandated by the requirements of ASHRAE 90.1 – 20105.
To optimise cooling and airflow management in your cabinet ecosystem, consider the following when selecting airflow management accessories:
- Door perforation and internal airflow management: Select a cabinet with door perforation of at least 78% for maximum front-to rear airflow
- Specify airflow management accessories: Specify cabinet accessories that optimise front-to-rear airflow. These include baffles that seal the space between the equipment mounting rails and the top, bottom and sides of equipment to block airflow around equipment and blanking panels to seal and open (unused) rack-mount spaces in between equipment
- Compatibility with Vertical Exhaust Duct, Hot Aisle Containment (HAC) or Cold Aisle Containment (CAC): A Vertical Exhaust Duct directs hot exhaust air from the servers to a plenum above the drop ceiling and back to the cooling units or to outside vents, thus isolating the hot from cold air within the cabinet and room. A Vertical Exhaust Duct is a highly efficient cabinet-based alternative to HAC or CAC Optimal airflow management practices also recommend airflow management accessories that block airflow under and around contained cabinets, so the cabinets or aisles are completely sealed.
Environmental Monitoring
Measuring environmental variables and monitoring both power and cooling are also an essential part of maintaining energy efficiency levels. It is important to maintain the appropriate temperature levels within the white space, as they have a strong correlation to the overall energy consumption within the data centre.
One of the most common causes of downtime is hardware failure resulting from excessive temperature or humidity levels within the cabinet. A good strategy is to place temperature and humidity probes near the top front and rear of each cabinet. Tracking inlet temperature against ASHRAE guidelines and evolving equipment specifications is key and it is worth considering outlining cooling monitoring as part of any Service Level Agreement (SLA).
Power Distribution, Monitoring, and Control
Power management will minimise the overall energy footprint of the data centre and is critical to ensure availability of all IT applications. Efficient power management will boost operational efficiency by managing and monitoring power at the rack- and device-level. An effective power distribution unit (PDU) should have features such as branch and outlet monitoring and switching and be operational at a high ambient temperature.
In addition to this, investing in an effective, yet simple data centre infrastructure management (DCIM) software solution will provide the ability to visualise trends of all monitored parameters within the room and cabinet in a single screen.
When procuring DCIM software, focus on simplicity, usefulness and easy deployment.
Other Energy Efficiency Considerations
It is important not to forget that other considerations such as cabinet structure and cable management, will also have a bearing on the overall energy efficiency of the data centre. When selecting a cabinet size, for example, it will not only affect the cabinet footprint but also the effectiveness of airflow management.
The cabinet should include specific and physically separate pathways for power and network cables, as well as mounting locations for power distribution units (PDUs) that minimise interference with airflow through the cabinet.
The European Standard EN50600 requires deeper and wider cabinets for proper cabling and airflow. It’s vital that data centre managers start to look at the data centre cabinet as the foundation of a complete ecosystem. The most effective and direct path to availability, reliability and energy efficiency is to address infrastructure, hardware and software as one single cohesive, integrated system that not only operates seamlessly, but also fully complies with performance standards.
Current computing and networking trends are resulting in more equipment being collocated or placed in remote sites. Optimising higher density and remote sites requires a holistic approach to deploying and monitoring in the white space. A complete cabinet ecosystem will not only provide the ability to successfully set and manage energy efficiency objectives but will also consistently support, organise, manage, control, monitor, protect, optimise and simplify operations.
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By Luca Rozzoni, Sr. Product Manager for Europe, Chatsworth Products.
This article was originally published in the Data Centre Alliance magazine.
