RACKS AND ENCLOSURES
cable and the fibre, both on the fixed data cabling and on the patch. This is generally why an 800mm wide by 800mm deep cabinet is used within a patching environment. A 600mm deep x 600mm wide cabinet for patching can be used, but start installing switches inside and the back of the switch could start interfering with the bundles of fixed data cabling at the back of the cabinet. As with all cabinets, if there are any sharp edges on the enclosure, this will cause an issue with cabling and engineer health and safety.
Lessons Learned So what can we learn from all of this for the smaller data centre? Where possible separate the active and passive equipment, i.e. servers and patching. To future-proof the server use 1200mm depth, otherwise install the minimum depth of 1000mm if there is the space. Depending on the number of data points available, 800mm wide cabinets
are, without a doubt, the industry norm, giving greater flexibility and if the active and passive cannot be separated, then use a hybrid of the two sizes, i.e. 1000mm deep by 800mm wide. As mentioned earlier there is a great
deal of interest in the power demands of the next generation of servers. At the extreme end we are looking at up to 30kW of power and in real terms we have to supply a potential of 60kW because of the A and B dual feed (30kW + 30kW). This is effectively supplying over 260 Amps of power into a single enclosure, which is a lot of power. We are starting to see a trend of customers moving away from single phase supplies and migrating onto 3 phase power strips and the rational for this is twofold: It keeps the input cable size down, therefore minimising the space used within the cabinet and load balance can be achieved.
Load balancing is important because placing too much more power draw onto one phase than the other two
decreases efficiency which, in turn, causes an increase in energy bills.
Monitoring More and more data centre managers are also asking for monitoring both locally and remotely, giving the ability to measure the power draw. This information can be used to load balance or prevent downtime, due to input power breakers tripping. Technically it is now possible to monitor each socket, giving greater control and flexibility to manage the power demands of each device. Remote control of the power strip
is now becoming economically viable for larger installs. Having the ability to power shed, in the event of a mains failure, allows maximum UPS up time. Also, more importantly, the ability to shut down sockets that are not being used prevents the local cleaner plugging in the vacuum cleaner and taking down the whole IT suite.
Conclusion So what can we learn for the smaller computer room? Know how much power is needed, which can be pulled from the manufacturer’s data sheets. Typically, in the smaller data centre, stick with single phase supplies. Three phase is only needed for high end solutions. If possible keep it modular. When mixing different types of servers or IT equipment they may not all require 13Amp UK sockets but may use the IEC socket instead. There is nothing worse than installing a new piece of equipment and not having the right socket or cable/power cords at the back of the server. Cables hanging in front of the server exhaust will impede the airflow. It is a fact that larger data centres
are driving the majority of innovations within the market. New innovations such as remote control power and thermal cooling will eventually migrate to the smaller data centre where the majority of the benefits will be felt. So to future-proof, keep things simple, scalable and more importantly, efficient.
To future-proof, keep things simple, scalable and efficient. 12 NETCOMMS europe Volume III Issue 3 2013
www.netcommseurope.com
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