Wednesday, December 11th, 2013

Time	Event
1:25p	Parameters to Consider for a Successful Data Center Design Project Prashant Baweja is working as a senior associate consultant with Infosys Ltd. in infrastructure domain and has a total experience of about six years. PRASHANT BAWEJA Infosys Ltd. For any business, delivering services (at right time, right place and at right cost) to its end customers is one of the most important objectives. This will drive a company’s growth and profitability. Information Technology plays a major role in achieving the same and IT infrastructure (or more generally, the data center) is a critical asset within it. A large number of external and internal factors force a company to look at its IT capacity and data centers to be revamped or build afresh. Some of the factors like growing businesses want data center capacity to be expanded to handle more data and transactions, New or re-vamped backup or DR/BCP strategy, modernization of legacy hardware, increasing data center utilization and performance by consolidation/virtualization/transformation, etc. Data center design focuses on many aspects like Site selection, facility design, IT hardware, cooling, network, power distribution, etc. For a successful data center built project, few parameters needs to be kept at high priority and planned for effectively. This includes characteristics like reliability, availability, serviceability, capacity, scalability/growth plans, manageability and criticality. These factors will help design team and management to design a data center (facility and IT) effectively with required business needs. Below I outline the parameters and will help in data center planning phase: Reliability Reliability means ability of the system to perform its task and function under stated conditions for a specified time. It is calculated by measuring Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) and Mean Time To Repair (MTTR). While designing a data center, reliable components should be used like power supplies, cooling units, servers, storage units, network, etc. Availability Availability refers to the time or proportion of time for which a system is available and operable. It is represented by ratio of system uptime to total time: Availability = System Uptime / Total Time (Uptime + Downtime) Data center tiers and availability is interlinked and are as follows: Tier 1: Guaranteeing 99.671% availability. Tier 2: Guaranteeing 99.741% availability. Tier 3: Guaranteeing 99.982% availability. Tier 4: Guaranteeing 99.995% availability. While designing a data center, high availability of servers, storage, network, application, power and cooling units, etc. should be considered. Based on requirements, clustering, load balancing, redundant systems needs to be designed. Criticality Another parameter which is of importance while designing a data center is criticality of application/service provided to end customers. If service rendered is highly critical and its downtime is costly for the company, data center and IT infrastructure has to be designed accordingly. In contrast, if application is less critical and its downtime is acceptable to certain extent, data center has to be designed accordingly. Criticality can be represented on a scale of 1-5 with 5 being most critical and 1 being least. For e.g. Banking and financial applications will be categorized as scale 5. While designing data centers, this factor needs to be considered and redundancy of power, network, etc. should be considered. Capacity Capacity parameter is crucial to know the size of data center and other facilities to be designed. It represents maximum load a data center can handle. Goal of capacity parameter is to make sure that enough power and cooling is available at data center. Growth plans Growth plan is another major factor which will provide us information on what can be expected over a period of time in terms of load and requirement. data center should be designed to handle the load as per the growth plans over the years. It is important to factor-in growth plan as it will help to add hardware and facilities at required timelines, thus saving money by not keeping them idle. Scalability Scalability is closely related to capacity and growth plans. Based on these two parameters, infrastructure and facility is designed which is scalable over years and can be adjusted smoothly. Servers, Storage, Network, power, cooling etc. should have provision for scalability. Scalability can be Horizontal or Vertical Scalability. Horizontal Scalability implies adding more and more separate independent systems to service the increased load. Vertical Scalability is adding resources within the box to cater to increased workload. Efficiency Due to more and more development in green technology, companies are trying to achieve a target for greening and efficiency. For a better and robust design, it is recommended to freeze efficiency targets during design phase itself. Density It refers to information on floor space available and number of racks in the same. In addition to that average and peak power consumption of each rack will be useful. This parameter will be tightly coupled with availability, efficiency and scalability factor. Serviceability Serviceability refers to how easy it is to find a root cause for an incident or problem and solve the same. Ideal situation will be when issues will be tracked automatically and infrastructure in itself solves the issues on the go. During data center design, facilities, hardware and architecture should be finalized keeping serviceability characteristic in mind so that failed components can be replaced without bringing down the entire system. Manageability It refers to how easy, efficient, less time consuming, detailed and effective ways are present to manage facilities and IT infrastructure. This factor will help to make data center operations, management and monitoring easier and secure. With above characteristics, data center design will be stable, secure and secure enough to provide services as required. Each data center setup/transformation project is unique with different set of expectations from stakeholders, but if above mentioned is taken into consideration during design phase, chances of project success will be increased manifold. Industry Perspectives is a content channel at Data Center Knowledge highlighting thought leadership in the data center arena. See our guidelines and submission processfor information on participating. View previously published Industry Perspectives in ourKnowledge Library. (Comment on this)
2:21p	HP Rolls Out New Converged Systems and Storage HP StoreAll Archive helps organizations analyze big data from large-scale data repositories with simple, integrated search tools. (Photo: HP) At the HP Discover event this week in Barcelona, HP (HPQ) outlined its vision for the data center of the future, with new hardware in its ConvergedSystem and ConvergedStorage portfolios. Citing Gartner research that says over the next five years, the average enterprise will see data capacities grow more than 800 percent, HP is positioning its new systems to help eliminate the complexity of the data center. “The next generation of CIOs and CTOs will be at the center of their organization’s business strategy and relied upon to drive growth, accelerate innovation and manage risk,” said Bill Veghte, executive vice president and general manager, Enterprise Group, HP.  “HP ConvergedSystem and HP Converged Storage offerings enable our customers to use technology to deliver business outcomes that drive their success, by creating an agile pool of resources that can deploy quickly, accelerate results and transform an organization’s most valuable asset—its data—into actionable competitive insight.” ConvergedSystem Engineered from the ground up, the new HP ConvergedSystem product line built on ConvergedInfrastructure’s servers, storage, networking, software and services. It is comprised of ConvergedSystem for Virtualization, ConvergedSystem 300 for Vertica big data analytics, and ConvergedSystem 100 for Hosted Desktops. HP ConvergedSystem products also come with a unified support model from HP Proactive Care, providing clients with a single point of support for all system components, including partner software. HP ConvergedSystem for Virtualization and HP ConvergedSystem for Hosted Desktops are currently available worldwide HP has introduced enhancements to its Converged Storage portfolio, including HP StoreOnce Backup solutions, HP StoreAll Archive, and 3PAR StoreServ Storage. As a single architecture approach, HP hopes this next era of storage for a new style of IT gives a return on information, return on infrastructure, and a return on individuals. StoreOnce Backup will help manage exponential data growth, and perform up to 10 times faster recoveries than its closes competitors. StoreAll Archive helps organizations analyze big data  from large-scale data repositories with simple, integrated search tools. HP 3PAR StoreServ Storage brings new levels of affordability at half the cost and lower response times for customers needing high-performance, flash-optimized storage solutions. (Comment on this)
2:27p	ManageEngine Enters DCIM Arena By Adding Facilities Management ManageEngine has added facilities management to its IT management and integrated it as a full DCIM suite. The new offering, dubbed IT360, enables real-time management of both IT and facilities infrastructure components from a single console. New features like workflow automation, network change and configuration, and a 3-D rack builder have also been added. The data center plays an increasingly important role in the enterprise, and ManageEngine has expanded to help manage the entire data center infrastructure. “Energy management rivals IT management as one of the major challenges in running an efficient data center,” said Sridhar Iyengar, vice president, product management at ManageEngine. “Typically, the IT management and facilities infrastructure management are separate worlds, which prevent data center operations teams from readily correlating facilities and IT events. Now, IT360 unifies the facilities and IT management in a unified DCIM console, so data center admins can easily see facilities and IT relationships and manage the complete data center proactively.” ManageEngine already touts more than 72,000 business customers worldwide, including 60 percent of the Fortune 500. A new entrant into facilities management, it has already established itself in the IT management world. It’s made a name in terms of application discovery and dependency mapping, as well as its advanced CMDB capabilities. Zoho Pushes Into DCIM ManageEngine is a division of Zoho Corporation. Zoho is perhaps best known for its suite of SaaS applications that rival Google Apps and Microsoft Office. It also offers CRM, email hosting, project management, accounting and app creation tools. The 1,600 employee company has the workforce to support multiple offerings, and now it finds itself squarely in the DCIM ring with the addition of facilities management to IT360. Manual processes, multiple tools and consoles, inefficient power management and other challenges interfere with optimal management of the data center and underlying components. For these companies, an automated DCIM solution that supports IT and facilities management from a single console promises to eliminate many of the challenges to data center optimization. “True data center infrastructure management consolidates the administration of all hardware, software and environmental components across a support stack onto a single console interface,” noted Steve Brasen, managing research director at Enterprise Management Associates. “By extending the IT360 solution to deliver functionality that targets key requirements in facilities management, ManageEngine has achieved a milestone in enabling holistic infrastructure monitoring and management that will drive proactive IT optimizations, efficiencies and cost-reductions.” The new features in IT360 include:  Passive device management lets data center operations teams monitor and control passive infrastructure components in the data center, including power, cooling control systems and other non-IT assets. The operations team can also remotely monitor and manage the passive devices as well as manage asset lifecycles. IT360 can also report on power usage effectiveness (PUE), data center infrastructure efficiency (DCiE) and KPI reports on energy efficiency across sites and regions.  Workflow automation relies on more than 70 code-free workflow templates to automate routine tasks that data center admins would otherwise perform manually or write scripts to automate. With IT360, admins can create or modify automated workflows via an intuitive, drag-and-drop interface.  Network change and configuration management lets data center admins configure multi-vendor network devices such as routers, switches and firewalls directly from IT360. In addition, IT360 can detect a configuration change in a network device, alert admins to the change and roll back the device to its previous, pre-change state. 3-D rack builder enables data center staff to create an exact, three-dimensional replica of their data center infrastructure on screen. Admins can easily build racks and check the health of associated network elements via the drag-and-drop console. Unlike isolated rack builders, the IT360 3-D rack builder displays the real-time status of each element, so admins can visually model the entire data center from the NOC screens. (Comment on this)
3:00p	IBM and Bechtle Win $115 Million EU Contract IBM and Business Partner Bechtle AG have won a $115-million contract with the European Commission for System x and Flex Systems servers and services, the largest server contract ever awarded by the EC. Having already provided more than $2.6 million in systems and services to date, the two companies expect over the lifetime of the contract to deliver more than 6,100 servers and supporting services to European Union institutions and agencies. “That the EU would award us a contract of this size and scope illustrates the value of our server and services offerings in helping them meet their technology, economic and international relations goals,” said Harry Van Dorenmalen, Chairman IBM Europe. “Our System x and Flex Systems servers provide the best combination of efficiency, performance, flexibility and economy in the industry.” The contract is “inter-institutional,” meaning that most of the other EU bodies will use the framework for buying their x86 servers in upcoming years.  This contract will run for two years with the possibility of extending it up to four years. Within the contract, over 45,000 man-days could be made available for additional “professional services,” which will be provided in close cooperation with specialized service providers.   The contract covers a range of IBM Flex System compute nodes and IBM System x rack server configurations, as well as related maintenance, installation and professional services. This enables IBM to provide highly reliable and flexible platforms that can scale quickly, easily and inexpensively, and are adaptable to the needs of each individual institution or agency. (Comment on this)
3:30p	Interxion Building 7th Amsterdam Data Center European data center provider Interxion announced it is building its seventh Amsterdam data center, ABB selects Green Data Center in Switzerland, and Chinese content provider Tencent expands with Equinix. Interxion to build 7th data center in Amsterdam. Interxion (INXN) announced that it is constructing its seventh data centre in Amsterdam (AMS 7). AMS 7 will be built in six phases, with the first four phases providing approximately 4,600 square meters of equipped space and approximately 8.2 MW of customer available power. With all six phases complete, the facility will deliver approximately 7,300 square meters of equipped space and more than 13 MW of customer available power.  “The continued demand for carrier-neutral data centre space that Interxion is experiencing in Amsterdam is largely driven by cloud service providers looking to serve the developing European cloud market by utilizing the international connectivity present in the Amsterdam area,” said David Ruberg, Interxion’s Chief Executive Officer. ”AMS7 is being built in response to clearly defined specific customer demand that has resulted from our focus on acquiring magnetic applications and then working to develop the communities of interest around them.” ABB selects Green.  Swiss service provider Green Group announced an agreement with automation technology provider ABB to migrate an important part of its IT infrastructure into Green’s newest data center located in Lupfig in the canton of Aargau, Switzerland. ABB will taking IT infrastructure currently spread across Europe and consolidating it into greenDatacenter.  The business agreement builds on an already extensive technology partnership between the two companies. “We want to take advantage of the high performance and reliability that the direct current power infrastructure at greenDatacenter provides,” said Andy Tidd, CIO of ABB. “This cutting-edge facility fulfills all our selection criteria in the minutest detail and therefore offers ideal conditions for our demanding data center infrastructure.” Tencent expands with Equinix. Equinix (EQIX) announced that Chinese content provider Tencent,, has deployed in Equinix’s Hong Kong data center, with plans for future expansion in additional markets globally. The deployment will enable Tencent to expand the availability of its Internet services internationally while delivering high-performance services and applications to its users globally. With this expansion Tencent has access to Equinix’s carrier-dense ecosystem of more than 950 network providers globally, giving the company the freedom to choose the best provider to fit its needs and expand services outside of China rapidly and cost effectively. ”With the international demand of Tencent’s services, it is critical that it has the necessary connectivity options and infrastructure to support its growth around the world,” said Samuel Lee, president at Equinix Asia-Pacific. ”Through Equinix’s global footprint in Hong Kong, we are committed to helping Tencent realize its expansion goals. The deployment will provide Tencent with industry-leading colocation services, the broadest interconnection options to the world’s top networks and access to an increasing number of large enterprises and expanding ecosystems of providers, enabling Tencent to accelerate growth and the delivery of its services to more users overseas.” (Comment on this)
6:06p	Internap Opens New Data Center in New Jersey With its 75 Broad Street facility in Manhattan nearing full capacity, Internap is adding some much needed space in the New York metro market. Internap is opening a hybrid data center in Secaucus, New Jersey, the third company-controlled facility in the New York area and 12th nationwide. The new facility features high power densities of up to 18kW per rack and will allow customers to scale in place by scaling power densities within their rack rather than consuming additional floor space.st The Secaucus facility will add 55,000 net sellable square feet over time to Internap’s existing data center capacity. This is valuable space given the strategic importance of the New York market for key data center customer segments. According to 451 Research, multi-tenant data center utilization in the New York metro market is expected to reach 94 percent by 2014. Internap’s 75 Broad Street facility in nearing full capacity. The company has also announced plans to move out of its space at the prominent 111 8th Avenue. Internap says it will be migrating customers out of 111 8th Avenue and into Secaucus throughout 2014 until the lease expires at the end of 2014. Internap’s decision to migrate its operations out of 111 8th Avenue illustrates the shifting tides in the greater New York data center market, which has seen a flurry of new projects emerge in the wake of Superstorm Sandy and questions about Google’s plans for 111 8th Avenue. “IT infrastructure services are playing an increasingly powerful role in delivering a competitive advantage to Internet-centric organizations through agility, scale, performance and control,” said Mike Higgins, senior vice president of data center services at Internap. “Our new Secaucus facility will empower customers across a range of industries in New York and beyond – from mobile app developers and digital advertisers to financial services and Fortune 500 companies – with high-performance, hybrid infrastructure services designed to meet their application needs throughout the complete business lifecycle.” The facility employs an N+1 design with concurrent maintainability, ensuring maximum uptime and infrastructure redundancy. Other facility features include: Construction includes high-efficiency UPS system, outdoor air cooling system and reclaimed building materials, in accordance with Internap’s green building practices. Internap’s PlatformConnect service, with Layer 2 VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network) technology, allows for the seamless, cost-effective hybridization of its virtual and bare-metal cloud, managed hosting, colocation, storage and other infrastructure services within the Secaucus facility and between other Internap data centers. All IT infrastructure services are backed by a 100 percent uptime Service Level Agreement (SLA). Convenient location offers easy access to Manhattan, the N.J. Turnpike, the Secaucus Junction train station and the area’s three international airports; one of the only facilities in the region that is outside the 500-year flood plain. Internap will offer its entire portfolio of services out of the Secaucus facility. The company has increasingly shifted to a hybrid infrastructure focus over the years as well as has been touting the performance benefits of its bare metal cloud. Its two clouds are AgileCLOUD (virtual servers) and AgileSERVER (bare metal). Internap will also offer managed hosting, private cloud, IP route optimization and colocation out of the facility. Distil Networks Customer Win The company also announced a cloud customer win in the form of Distil Network, a cloud security provider that protects against malicious website bot attacks. Distil distilled its IT infrastructure from five different providers worldwide to Internap’s bare metal cloud and managed hosting in Atlanta, Dallas, New York, Santa Clara, Amsterdam and Singapore. Internap’s footprint and ability to provide hybrid IT infrastructure at scale was behind the decision. It also allows the company to go through a single provider rather than several, as well as save time and resources in terms of man-hours. It simplifies the logistics of running the previously more elaborate setup. Distil Networks says it’s already seeing benefits, including a double-digit performance increase, which proves critical in blocking malicious bots. The company’s net savings from moving was initially 10 percent for the cost of services alone, and the company expects long-term efficiencies and economies of scale to generate triple these savings over the next few years. (Comment on this)
7:03p	Google Opens Two Data Centers in Asia, Shelves Hong Kong Plans This facility in Singapore is Google’s first custom-built, two-story data center. The design saves money by allowing Google to build up, not out, in Singapore’s pricey real estate market. (Photo: Google) With Asia’s staggering internet growth, it’s no surprise that Google is investing heavily in building data centers in the region. Google’s facilities in Taiwan and Singapore are now up and running, but the company’s plans in Hong Kong appear to be shelved. The company has opened facilities in Changhua County, Taiwan, as well as in Singapore. As for Hong Kong, the online giant handed back the vacant Tseung Kwan O plot of land two years after the company held a groundbreaking there.  Google stated its intent to invest $300 million in the Hong Kong data center back in 2011. The larger of the two  new Asian facilities, the new data center in Changhua County in Taiwan sits on 15 hectares of land in the shadow of some of the 100 meter wind turbines at the coastal industrial park. Long term investment at the site is expected to reach $600 million, up from the original $300 million. Google built this facility to be one of Asia’s most efficient and environmentally friendly data centers. One of the ways it’s doing this is through the use of a nighttime cooling and thermal energy storage system. The system cools water at night when temperatures are cooler, then stores the water in large insulated tanks that retain the temperature before being pumped throughout the facility during the day. This allows Google to take advantage of the fact that rates for electricity are lower at night, reducing its power bill. The Singapore facility is unique in that the company built up, not out. Instead of building a sprawling data center, the company built a  multi-story data center. It sits next to a primary school and publicly run housing (called HDBs) There’s also a pretty cool robot theme to the place. Hong Kong Plans Shelved The company sees tremendous opportunity and potential in Hong Kong, but has decided to focus on locations where it can build for economies of scale, the company said in a statement to the Wall Street Journal.  The company handed back the vacant lot two years after a groundbreaking. Google had originally planned to invest $300 million in the facility. but chose to focus its efforts elsewhere. Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation granted 2.7 hectares to Google in 2011. Google used the name Allied Trade Holdings to obtain the site. The surrender request was processed in accordance with the conditions stipulated in the lease. (Comment on this)

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