Greetings to all,
Im a newly hired programmer of a forwarding company and we have 600 branches nationwide. I was tasked to supervise our newly structured Data Center, I would like to ask help from you guys in filling some questions in my mind.
- Concept of a Data Center
- Operations / Procedures
We have a NOC that takes care of the network and other stuff, my boss jst told me that Data centers will provide the necessary reports needed by our custormers, and still I cant fully comprehend that concept, it seem that there is a deeper meaning to a Data Center.
A data center is simply a place to house your servers / networking equipment. Hopefully it has some type of physical security in place and redundant power / cooling systems.
I'm not sure about the reports that you boss mentioned. But the key concept to remember about data centers is reliability. You need to create an environment where your servers and network equipment have the greatest chance of operating reliably. This means that you need to be sure that the equipment has a reliable source of data center grade electrical power. Typically, to get this power you will need at least one UPS and a standby generator.
You also need reliable data center grade air conditioning. There are special air conditioners for data centers. These air conditioners control temperature and humidity.
There are dozens of other things to consider; maintenance, testing, commissioning, static electricity control, cleanliness, infrastructure monitoring, physical security, fire suppression, life safety, and on and on. But, reliable power and air are a good start.
One thing I haven't seen mentioned alot is the concept of redundant Datacenters. If you have redudant domain controllers, app servers, SAN fabrics what would keep a company from using redundant datacenters. Think catastrophic failure due to flooding, fire, etc.... now those redundant systems don't mean nothin.
Our company is moving to a new redundant DC model this year. Should be pretty intersting, I might open a thread as the project starts rolling.
You should probably hire at least one full-time employee who has direct experience working with Data Centers. I would recommend they have extensive experience with HVAC systems, electrical systems, UPS's, generators, etc. Handling a task of this magnitude really requires folks who know the business from the ground up. Also, consider a real-estate expert during the preliminary phase who can help scope out possible existing buildings, or open lots with the right specs, for the Data Center purchase / build.
Most companies I have dealt with have forgone building their own Data Center once they realized how much time / work / money is involved. It can be a daunting task that even the largest companies decide to off-load to a competent 3rd party. That was the finding a large bank made a few years ago when they realized the $10Mil price tag and 9+ months of work involved.
With that being said, if you still decide to build it yourself, build it with the proper plans, permits, and redundancy in mind. Best of luck!
One thing to look at is power in the racks. I work for a company that offers IP assignable Rack PDU's. Giving you the ability to monitor your temperature / humidity as well as reboot outlets via a web GUI. I worked as a DC Manager for Wells Fargo for 5 years before coming here last year. We used Server Technology PDU's in our new Data Centers just to give us the ability to reboot servers that had locked up instead of having to send a physical person out to do the same thing. Cuts down on man hours signifigantly. Let me know what questions I can answer, I can answer questions on other things as well being that I was in the biz for a while.
I recommend "Maintaining Mission Critical Systems in a 24/7 Environment", by Peter M. Curtis. It covers more detail than any other reference book has regarding data centers and the critical infrastructure that they require. It is also a very good book to purchase and hand out to the electrical and HVAC folks.
I second the vote for Mr. Curtis' book. One of the best.
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Doug Egeth www.colotraq.com
Since 1999, the only neutral B2B marketplace for procuring telecom infrastructure and connectivity services.
Data Center Basics
