Data centers today are oppressed with complexities and costs: Raritan

Data center optimization is one of the key agendas for DC managers globally as the demand for storage and capacity is constantly increasing. Sanjay Motwani, Regional Director, APAC, Raritan Asia Pacific, Raritan International explains that DC managers can optimize data centers using two different ways. Excerpts of the interaction:

How can data center managers optimize their current infrastructure to meet their immediate requirements?

Data center optimization can be taken care of in two ways- firstly the data center managers need to look at ways in which they can efficiently use the existing space and computing capacity. Secondly, they must look for spare power in the racks. They need to understand how much power and storage capacity is utilized at the per rack level. To meet the immediate needs, data center CIOs have to either optimize the existing infrastructure (which is an efficient solution and is cost effective), or consider expanding the data center space (which is costly and time consuming).

How can CIOs scale up their server utilization to optimum levels?

Data centers today are oppressed with increasing complexities and rising costs due to which optimum utilization of servers is gaining impetus. CIOs are constantly looking out for tools that will help them meet their growing needs of data expansion and cost optimization.

Most servers today operate at about 30% CPU utilisation, whereas they can easily scale upto 70 – 80%. By scaling up the following are achieved:

1. 2 servers operating at 30% each consume about 40% more power than 1 server operating at 60%
2. Saving on the cost of the additional server
3. Space – which is themost expensive component in DC – is saved.

The above can easily be achieved by measuring the power at server level. The idea is to understand the power consumption levels over a period of time and then increase the load on the server. Power measurement can be done deploying intelligent PDU’s with associated monitoring software which provides all the relevant reports.

What's 3 phase IPDU? How does it help CIOs or organizations?

A 3 phase intelligent PDU has 3 phase input and single phase output. By bringing 3 phase power to the rack, not only are the cabling costs reduced (as compared to running multiple single phase cables) but it also provides more power to the rack. As single phase 16Amp provides about 3.7KVA to the rack as compared 11.2KVA with a 3phase 16Amp. With this increased load one can easily double up the compute load in the rack thereby saving realty cost.

When can CIOs adopt 3 phase iPDU?

When there is a need for expansion and CIOs need to maximize the existing space by providing more computing power in less cost per square foot, adopting 3 phase iPDUs is always beneficial. This intelligent technology not only frees the space but also helps in vertical scaling of the data center. With ever evolving market trends, rising realty costs and increasing data, CIOs are opting for Vertical Expansion by bringing 3-phase power to the rack to allow rapid expansion of power density by extending power distribution all the way to the individual rack and cabinets, without undertaking any major structural changes in the data center. Power, being a critical and expensive resource needs judicious utilization, and 3 phase iPDUs help optimal utilization of power at each rack level and saves cost.