Escaping the pitfalls of remote data center management

Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) continues to be a hot topic for data center managers in 2012 and while it’s important to keep up with new tech developments, it’s equally important to once in a while stop, and make sure that your basic management needs are really covered.

When dealing with IT infrastructure in a data center, remote access methods have become a key part of the IT manager’s tool box. But managing these tools is a sizable job in itself. In every IT environment there are a variety of remote access tools that have been purchased departmentally or have come into the data center or network closet as a result of the preferences of different technical teams, who've chosen – and don’t want to relinquish – these tools to accomplish specific tasks. All of this brings significant complexity to the overall data center management process. 

Data centers are highly dynamic and complex environments. They are multi-disciplinary, multi-vendor and multi-user to name just a few. New equipment is added at an astounding rate, in some cases to geographically disparate locations. All of this has to be accessed and managed in a remote, efficient and secure manner that doesn’t leave you relying on the glue on the back of a post-it note to be able to find critical information in the event of an IT emergency. 

A few weeks ago, we described how a DCIM system is compromised if you cannot manage the access to your data center infrastructure. When you’re faced with downed systems and are in a somewhat helpless state, having a readily available solution that enables you to diagnose, access, troubleshoot and fix a problem remotely over the LAN or Internet can be the difference between an ordinary workday and one that leaves you anxiously scrambling for answers and wasting precious time.

In our upcoming live webinar ‘The Secret Behind A Bulletproof DCIM Strategy’ on Tuesday, January 24th @ 2pm EST, we discuss more about remote data center management and how Remote Access Management is a critical piece of DCIM, used daily by IT admins to run, maintain and fix their data center's IT infrastructure. Register Now!

Data center security - a look at the other side of the firewall

In today’s cyber world nobody in his right mind, business or individual, operates without a firewall. But – did you know that around 80 percent of all security threats to organizations come from the inside? Astonishingly enough most companies focus their security resources on preventing external hackers from causing them harm, and no matter how successful firewalls and various intrusions detection/preventing systems are, they are not of much help when the attack/intrusion comes from within the organization, behind the firewall doors…

While people, or workers from within your organization can actually do far more damage to your business than any hacker, this threat is often over looked, not given enough attention or forgotten all together. A recent global study with more than 5.500 IT personnel reveals that increased threats to sensitive and confidential data are caused due to a lack of control and oversight of privileged users.

Think about it for a moment, do you (or anyone else inside your organization) really know how many of your employees, IT personnel, external contractors - or even former IT staff – have access to your critical systems and data? Or, for that sake, do you know how many of your company’s IP addresses, passwords and user names are currently floating around inside your IT department on various spreadsheets and post-it notes?

One security layer that could easily be implemented to protect against such threats is an application that manages remote access inside, as much as outside, of the organization’s data center. This would provide you with a simple way to administer IP addresses, user profiles and user rights while avoiding password sharing with external service providers. Think of it as a firewall behind the firewall - it will allow you to centrally manage and control who has access to what, and with what level of permissions, while it at the same time you can see which privileged users entered which target, from which IP address, through which access method. This will also ensure you that the right access, to the right equipment is given ONLY to the right people inside your organization. 

To learn more on how easily you can protect your internal passwords and increase the security to your own IT infrastructure, watch this video!

KVM over IP – the IT manager’s life insurance

It’s a known saying that your customers are the best advocates of your solutions and products. When that happens, your chances of closing the deal rise dramatically. In a recent sales meeting with a prospect customer one of our sales managers, Moti, experienced just that!

The customer is fortune 1000 company in the insurance industry that is consolidating its three legacy data centers into a new “lights out” data center, looking to streamline operational costs, increase efficiency and productivity of their IT staff and of course provide better service to their on-line customers.

Moti started off the meeting presenting the many benefits of an KVM over IP switch, emphasizing in particular on the critical aspect of out-of-band access - that while day by day maintenance will be done using applications like RDP, VNC or SSH (to name just a few), when disaster hits once in a blue moon, can be even once a year, in the form of an OS crash (blue screen of death ring a bell?) THEN, the ONLY means of accessing the server’s BIOS and attempting a fix is through the KVM over IP switch…

At this point in the meeting the customer politely intervened saying something like "Moti, you don’t have to sell us on this, we are in the insurance business…we sell products that in some cases are never used (!) And in other cases are used only once…but still, the mere thought of not having an insurance for when disaster happens once in a lifetime is so horrifying that everyone buys them”

Now, take out the word “insurance” from the quote above and replace it with “KVM over IP switch” and you have an elevator pitch for convincing your CFO why you need the most reliable and secure KVM over IP solution, whether you are a fortune 100 enterprise or a doctor’s clinic.

Mixing Up The Future Data Center

As we get into December, end of the year in sight, its summary and predictions time. We look back, evaluate and learn, and more excitingly we look around and try our best to foresee what the future holds for us. Data centers are no exception. Last week, at the Gartner Data Center conference in Las Vegas, Dell VP of Enterprise Marketing and Strategy Praveen Asthana presented a very insightful look on just how mixed the Data Center of the future will be. According to Dell, the race of technologies to win over the data center won’t be won by any single discipline, but rather the result will be a hybrid, mixed environment, bridging legacy and new technologies. In the future data center virtualization, private and public clouds will live peacefully together, on top of a mixed physical and virtual infrastructure.

What this calls for is, in Dell’s words, products that are simple, that integrate well with existing IT environments and which will allow choice.

Minicom, for one, is taking a similar approach with its product development. We believe that every IT pro should enjoy the freedom to choose IT infrastructure products based on value, performance and quality, without being forced into vendor-lock in. Being open and vendor neutral, our Remote Access Management systems provide access and control to the data center’s mixed IT infrastructure in a central way, allowing choice as mentioned above. With our KVM over IP technology we offer seamless integrating with legacy analog KVM switches from hundreds of vendors, thus preventing forklift upgrades and yet again allow choice. We call this approach the Real Needs of IT.

Happy Holidays and have a great 2012!

How long does the glue on DCIM post-it notes last?

As a top IT pro in the data center, you’re probably chuckling because you actually know the answer to that question!

When it boils down to Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) monitoring your equipment is just not enough. Even the most organized IT manager has innumerable sticky notes papering their walls.  Accompanied with a host of homegrown spreadsheets dedicated to organizing the long lists of IP addresses, passwords, and multivendor equipment information you need to access and control your IT infrastructure smoothly, on a daily basis.  And that makes perfect sense – those IP addresses and passwords are things you need at your fingertips on a moment’s notice – no time to search for them when something goes wrong.

Chances are, you’ve been through this nightmare scenario before: IT is notified of an issue.  The first course of action is to open the spreadsheet, locate the name of the server, and copy and paste its IP address, password and user name info. This can require opening and closing numerous browsers and applications – something that takes dozens of mouse clicks and many minutes – before a device can be found and accessed.  Once the device is located, you’ve got to fix the problem. You may go for an RDP session and fail, attempt a KVM-over-IP connection, or even worse – need to force a reboot through the PDU, each of which starts the copy and paste process all over again. This kind of downtime adds up. Over a typical shift, the wasted minutes can easily turn to wasted hours of valuable work time just searching for the right information.

What you need in order to safe guard your DCIM system, is a central access console, a singular control panel, where you can see and capably manage all of your computing resources no matter where they are physically located –from the network closet to an off-site data center to a co-location facility in another city or state. - But make sure to choose the right solution!

Here is a checklist you should use when selecting a remote access management (RAM) solution that will strategically fit your DCIM system in place. Ask yourself if the solution does all seven of these things:

1. Supports a wide range of vendors: Select a solution that prevents vendor lock-in; make sure it supports all the equipment acquired over the years and offers the ability to add any brand of IT equipment – PDU, IP KVM switch, console server, or other network device in an unlimited array of vendor options.
2. Integrates in-band and out-of-band access options: A seamless combination of the two means, even if the blue screen of death appears, crashed servers can be restarted and downtime minimized with one-click KVM over IP access from the same pane of glass used for everyday maintenance.
3. Simplifies access: What makes a remote access solution truly powerful is a combination of one user interface, one url and one set of security rules.  When it comes to remote access management as part of DCIM, simplicity is king.
4. Provides seamless access to power control: The only way to avoid disastrous mistakes like rebooting the wrong server is to have full control of the PDU from within the remote access management solution’s user interface.
5. Maximizes tools that have already been deployed: Don’t throw out what works!  A must-have in remote access management is the ability for the IT staff to continue to use the existing remote access tools they find most effective and comfortable under a larger, more efficient and secure remote access umbrella.
6. Overcomes implementation challenges: Look for a solution that can be installed in hours – not a month and not a week.
7. Increases IT efficiency while maintaining security: Select a secure remote access solution that authenticates users with the organization’s own active directory, assigning user names and passwords created according to profile and task assignment.

What this all means is that Remote Access Management and Data Center Infrastructure Management are inextricably linked! Or in other words - if you don’t have a RAM, you really don’t have DCIM.

And if that’s not enough, just think how nice your wall will look without all those post-its on it...

What do slices of a hot Pizza have to do with DCIM?

No Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) is complete without a Remote Access Management system in place!

The Full DCIM Pizza

Yes, you heard right. Now, you are probably asking, what does Remote Access Management have to do with DCIM?

The answer is - A lot! Today infrastructure equipment at all levels is becoming more important and more critical to the smooth operation of data centers, in other words, it has direct impact on lowering costs, tightening security and increasing efficiency. But DCIM is not only about monitoring and planning, it is also about managing all your access control tools and methods.

Remote Access Management (RAM) is one of the most vital slices of the DCIM ‘Pizza’ that is not getting the full attention it deserves. So let’s cut the chase and state it clearly: All other DCIM slices, as important as they may be, are compromised if you cannot manage the access to your data center infrastructure!

Think of the ordering process of a hot, sizzling family Pizza – the pictures on the website look awesome, you can practically “smell” the Pizza over the phone. The person taking your order is sweet and polite, you get all the flavors you asked for and you even get a special price for being such a nice guy, but – all this is worthless without a fast and reliable delivery that brings the Pizza hot and sizzling to your doorstep…  

So why don’t you take a closer look at your overall DCIM strategy and make sure that you have all the slices in place, and not missing the management of your remote access!

KVM over IP Switch or HP iLO? That’s the question – Or is it??

Posted by:
Tobias Silber

8 Points To Consider When Evaluating the Best Remote
Out-Of-Band Access Solution For Your Data Center.

Lately we have been getting a lot of questions from IT managers that are consolidating their data centers on the issue of an IP KVM switch versus a service processor. While IP KVM switches and embedded service processors, such as iLO from HP, often are looked upon as competitive, the reality is however much more complex. So let’s shed some light on what needs to be taken into consideration before deciding which (or both?) solution is right for your data center.

• Local KVM Access: In the data center, certain situations can arise where you would need to have direct server access independent of potential network disruptions. - In other words, to have local access at the rack level. While iLO can be a good option for remote administration it does not provide local access at the rack. Only an IP KVM switch provides you with this important feature, allowing you to physically connect to multiple servers from one console, at the rack.

• Centralized Server Management: By definition iLO is a one port solution, providing remote access to a single server. An IP KVM switch on the other hand can be connected to a bank of 10s or 100s of servers, providing for a tighter control and more efficient work flow.

• Cost: In order to benefit from the iLO vKVM features, there is a licenses fee. While the license itself can be bought from $130, the true cost of using iLO can easily total over $400 per server when you include all the hidden costs. Compare this to the price per port of an IP KVM switch at $140-170 (including dongles/cable) – and you have easily saved a few thousand dollar per rack!

• Ethernet Ports & Cabling: iLO requires the use of additional cabling and an additional Ethernet port at each server in order to be connected to the network. These requirements are translated into more routers and switch ports, which mean more money spent (part of the hidden cost).  This is in contrast to a KVM over IP switch that consolidates a large number of servers into one ethernet (or two, for redundancy) port.

• IP addresses: Each server equipped with an iLO requires two unique IP addresses!one for the server and one for the iLO. This can dramatically increase the number of IP addresses the organization has to purchase (another hidden cost), and not all data center can meet this challenge. An IP KVM Switch on the other hand, centralized the remote management of up to 32 servers via a single IP address.

• Performance: The KVM over IP video performance is superior to the iLO performance with a better video refresh rate at reduced bandwidth.  To benefit from the best mouse synchronization you need the best video resolutioin support. iLO supports up to 1280x1024 video resolution whereas an IP KVM Switch goes up to HD resolutions. Users of iLO are also limited in their choice of browsers, as it only support IE for Windows and Firefox for Linux in comparison to IP KVM users that can use a whole range of remote clients.

• Ease of Operation: To install the IP KVM Switch you will only need to connect it to the servers, power up and assign to it an IP address. The time spent on configuring a single IP KVM switch in order to access 32 servers remotely is much less than the time you will need to setup 32 individual iLO servers. Think about the time difference when the need for a firmware upgrade arises!

• Security: Another big aspect of keeping IP addresses to a minimum is data security. The less public IP addresses out there, the easier it is for IT to keep the lid tightly closed and avoid the horror of security breaches, just because there are so many IP addresses to look after.

...And just to summarize: IP KVM switches provide centralized remote access to servers, regardless of brand, generation or OS running, whereas iLO is only relevant for HP servers. This however does not necessarily make them competing technologies for out-of-band access, but rather the contrary - HP iLO is a good complementary solution to the KVM over IP Switch in the data center.

Click Here to See iLO and IP KVM Managed Side-by-Side

Make IT smile!

So, you want to access your data centers remotely, butyou have a ton of servers from different brandsand they all have different control panels & passwords?


.....Now that you have many servers, you're IT managers are going "bananas" trying to keep everything under control!

Well, what can you do?Say hello to AccessIT®!!!

Why wait? schedule a live demo now >>

Why Remote Access Management? Security and Efficiency

The benefits of remote server access

Post by Eran Kessel (VP Marketing & Products) - Years ago, the idea of operating and maintaining data centers remotely, or with “lights out” in the server room, seemed radical. Now it’s standard procedure. Why? Because of three compelling advantages:

1. Increased data security—with remote access, the data center can be secured from unwanted visitors.

2. Improved operational efficiency—with remote access, your IT staff can fix problems from their computer screen—they don’t have to be onsite. Remote access means doing more with less.

3. Better cooling/power efficiency—one of the major causes of cooling inefficiency is service staff who open doors and wander around. With remote access, server rooms are sealed tight.

Remote Access Management™: maximizing the benefits, minimizing the risks
Despite the above, many companies are not maximizing their benefits. Worse, they may have actually created new security risks. This comes from the fact that remote server access tools have been adopted gradually, one at a time, often supplied by the manufacturers of the data center’s existing equipment. To maximize the benefits of remote server access, while minimizing the risks, companies need a strategy and a dedicated software solution for Remote Access Management.

What are the new security risks?
A critical security risk lies in access management: the vast majority of organizations store their passwords, user names, IP addresses, server names and more in a single spreadsheet or homegrown database. This provides IT personnel with almost unrestricted access to security-critical data, even data that has no relevance to their tasks. Windows admins can see how to access Unix machines, network admins can see how to access servers etc. There is no benefit to this, and considerable security risk. All an employee, intern or consultant needs to do is download the spreadsheet to a flash drive, and they can carry a corporation’s secrets out of the building.

The solution: task-appropriate access
To improve corporate security, a Remote Access Management solution should limit servers and IT tools to task-appropriate access, e.g. Windows admins should be able to access Windows servers only. An admin that only require RDP access should not have access to power and KVM.

Measuring operational efficiency: resolving critical issues faster
When a server goes down, resolution speed is what matters. With a spreadsheet or custom database, speed is a problem: first, the IT admin is notified of the issue. Then they have to open the spreadsheet, locate the name of the server, and copy and paste its IP address and password and username info. Dozens of mouse clicks and many minutes can pass before a device can be found. If, for example, an attempted RDP solution fails, the operator may try a KVM fix, and the copy and paste process begins again.

Over a typical shift, the wasted minutes can add up to wasted hours of valuable work time.

The solution: a minimum 6x faster server access and resolution
Minicom compared the mouse-clicks required to access a server with RDP and a spreadsheet, vs RDP and our AccessIT dashboard.
The spreadsheet took 37 clicks simply to access a server. AccessIT software cut the number of clicks to six. And that was a best-case situation. For each service attempt—KVM, iLO, PDU—the number of clicks, and the server downtime—jumps drastically.

A proven solution: AccessIT® from Minicom
AccessIT from Minicom was designed from the ground up to meet IT managers’ mission-critical requirements for secure web-based, centralized remote access management.

AccessIT provides fast, secure, trouble-free access to every aspect of a data center’s infrastructure, and streamlines access to remote access tools such as RDP and KVM. It supports all major manufacturers of KVM switches, PDUs and console servers, and supports the industry’s leading in-band and out-of-band remote access services, including RDP, VNC, VMWare, SSH, Telnet, HP iLO, KVM IP, and any proprietary web-based or customized applications.

For complete details, and to read how major customers have deployed Minicom solutions,

visit www.minicom.com

Schedule a live demonstartion now >>

Viridity Software Joins the Data Center Alliance

The Data Center Alliance (DCA) welcomes Viridity Software, and is excited to add their data center energy resource management (ERM) solutions to the DCA’s offerings.

The Data Center Alliance brings together the best-in-class IT infrastructure manufacturers into one place, where IT decision makers can find the data they need to make smart decisions about their growing data center needs. For companies looking for balanced, factual data to improve productivity in the fields of power, KVM, network management, remote access, environmental monitoring and air flow, the DCA is the answer.

After the successful DCA kick-off event in California in July, we have already begun planning for the next DCA event – watch this space!

Join the DCA

Send me DCA updates

Minicom Will Introduce New Version of Remote Access Management Solution at Data Center World

We are introducing an Enterprise Edition of our remote access management platform, AccessIT™, at Data Center World, presented by AFCOM, Las Vegas, October 3rd - 6th.

AccessIT Enterprise Edition is ideal for:
· Businesses with remote branches
· Testing labs with a large number of servers and simultaneous remote users
· Large, "lights-out" data centers where remote access is the only means of accessibility
· Any organization that relies heavily on IT uptime

Designed to meet the needs of large organizations, AccessIT Enterprise Edition can accommodate more than 250 servers and network devices, and more than 10 users.

Visit us at Data Center World (AFCOM), Las Vegas, Nevada, October 3rd through 6th, 2010, Booth #329.

Webinar: Increase Operational Efficiency with Strategic Remote Access Management

Space is limited.Reserve your Webinar seat now at:https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/346894848

In this webinar, co-hosted by Data Center Alliance members Digi, Minicom and Server Technology, you’ll learn:
• How the integration of Digi, Minicom and Server Technology’s solutions can dramatically increase your IT staff's efficiency and reduce server downtime.
• How you can provide IT staff with a secure, single pane of glass for seamless, single click access to your servers and devices using both in-band and out-of-band access (i.e. KVM and service processors).
• How to increase operational efficiency and security with a remote access management strategy, while leveraging existing hardware and software tools.
• A demonstration of the integrated solution in action.
• What the Data Center Alliance is, why it was formed, and its value for data center end-users, VARs and consultants.


Title: DCA Members Digi, Minicom & Server Technology present “Increase Operational Efficiency with Strategic Remote Access Management"

Date: Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EDT

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees:
Windows® 7, Vista, XP, 2003 Server or 2000

Macintosh®-based attendees:
Mac OS® X 10.4.11 (Tiger®) or newer

Minicom and Digi: Successful Remote Serial Access Management

In-band and out-of-band access of network devices such as routers, switches and servers are critical in designing and maintaining robust data centers. Console servers offer a secure method of accessing these devices, either through a web-based interface, or a serial or modem connection when the network is down or unavailable.

In order to deliver a high level of IT service and to reduce downtime, IT managers need a secure, efficient way of remotely managing access to their many console servers, such as Digi Passport, as well as their PDUs, KVM switches, and software access services. Using Minicom’s AccessIT, IT personnel get consolidated and seamless remote access to all their servers, routers, switches, firewalls and other network devices from one intuitive management console.

One click brings users directly to the desired serial device. IT staff does not have to maintain databases and spreadsheets listing the IP addresses and passwords for each Digi Passport anymore. They log in once, and get a “single pane of glass view” of all their computer systems and network devices.

Check out the application note for pretty pictures and more details.

When Virtualization Does/n’t Make Sense for the Data Center

There is much heated debate about the virtues of virtualization.

The blog post “Data Center Feng Shui” by Lori MacVittie provides a balanced, middle-of-road approach which cautions against unilateral adoption or rejection of virtualization. In the author’s words:

“There are certainly data center components across all four data center infrastructure tiers – security, network, storage, and application delivery – that can be (and perhaps should be) virtualized. There are also data center components in those tiers that should not be virtualized. Then there are the components that could go either way, depending on the specific organizational and operational goals, needs, and budget. \

In fact, there are times when the same component may in fact be deployed in both form factors simultaneously.”

This approach may be the wisest when it comes to virtualization, although it requires a bit more foresight and planning at the outset. The idea of having a virtualization strategy which examines what makes sense for each component isn’t rocket science. However, with all the hype surrounding the cloud, there’s a value to clearly advocating for the approach of weighing the pros and cons of virtualization on a case-by-case basis.

Have you:
a. Virtualized wherever possible?
b. Shunned virtualization wholesale?
c. Dipped your toes in the water just to check it out?

Move Over LinkedIn – First iPhone App for the Data Center Industry!

Calling all Data Center professionals – check out what the iPhone application has to offer (full story here):

 Latest Network Activity
 News (via the our network blog posts)
 Classifieds/Jobs
 Events
 Forums
 Videos - via our YouTube Channel (DataCenterIndustry)
 PUE/DCiE Calculator - (as defined by the Green Grid)
 Member List

What do you think?

Optimistic Outlook for US And Global IT Market

You many not want to shell out $1749 for the full report, but even the table of contents from Forrester’s take on IT trends is encouraging:

• The $741 Billion US Tech Industry Is Recovering
• The US IT Market Is Set For 8% Growth In 2010
• US Industries That Had The Biggest Declines Will Have The Biggest Gains In 2010
• PCs, Peripherals, And Storage Will Shine In 2010; Software Closely Follows
• Global IT Purchases In Dollars Will Grow By 7.7 % In 2010
  

This report cites numbers to document the upswing that people are talking about with cautious optimism.

Are you feeling the recovery? Is your data center getting what it needs to work the way it should?

Excitement Over Facebook’s New Data Center Tarnished with Coal Dust

Responses range from measured surprise to righteous indignation - after much fanfare about the opening of Facebook’s new Prineville, Oregon data center, the fact that they are using coal has been a cause for comment.

Is Facebook’s use of coal an unexpected, problematic development, or should they use whatever energy source makes the most financial sense for their needs?

Data Centers Go Mainstream

Gone are the days when data centers conjured up images of big scary machines in some isolated area. Data centers are enjoying a renaissance in popular culture, with an updated, hip image, and they are cropping up in some surprising places.

Taking the kids to Disney World? Make sure to hit IBM’s SmarterPlanet exhibit, which shows the practical application of the way computers affect and enhance daily life. According to the article on Data Center Knowledge:

“The exhibit is the latest sign data center technology is gaining a higher profile, slowly shedding the anonymity of the back-office server room or remote data center in a secure, undisclosed location. As the Internet becomes a more integral part of everyday life and the American economy, the back-end is moving out front.”

How about the fact that Facebook’s building of a data center (full story here) is considered newsworthy? If Facebook does not personify pop culture today, what does? Reassuring to know that your social network will now be managed by the company itself, and relax – Facebook plans on implementing lots of energy saving measure, so you can "friend" without guilt.

The Data Center in 2010

It’s still early enough in the year to get those last minute predictions in. What to Expect in 2010, by Mission Critical’s Kevin Heslin, covers the gamut in terms of what is coming up this year in the data center space. While most of his predictions are safe bets, there are a few riskier propositions that will be fun to follow. Have to respect someone who is not scared to put it out there, especially knowing the potential risk of public ridicule at the end of the year in the event of serious error. Funky choice going with nine predictions instead of the oh-so- expected ten…

What made the list?

1. More government involvement in the data center space (think this prediction is already coming true – see Uncle Sam Distributing Energy Goodies)

2. End users will try new ways to beat high energy bills, to ensure compliance, and to simplify their data centers. See how this trend is playing out in Taking Control of Your Data Center: New Approaches to Reduce Energy and Improve Efficiency.

3. The role of water will gain new prominence in the data center world.

4. Because IT and facilities personnel just cannot get along, enterprise problems like poor designs, security breaches and network issues will rear their ugly heads.

5. Outages and more outages. Smart Grid anyone?

6. Data center specific LEED certification

7. The proliferation of infrastructure products

8. Increased popularity of performance-based testing for data center systems

9. PUE will be a thing of the past, replaced by a more comprehensive metric

On a more general note, Reuters addressed the issue of how current expectations match up to the rate of technological advancements (full article here). Interestingly, despite all the technological advances recent years have seen, those pesky 18 to 30 year old boys/men want more toys more quickly.

Some people find technology is moving too quickly – this video from SNL’s Seth Myers takes a wry look at the downside of technological advances.

Bleak View from Gartner on Energy Expenditures for Data Center

Data Center Journal discusses Gartner’s view of energy costs for data centers continuing to rise rather than decrease in 2010.

Do not lose hope – there are some essential questions you can ask in order to meet the challenges of rising costs. For example:

“Do you have any pragmatic tips for helping me to cut my data center costs?

R: Gartner has several suggestions:

- Rationalize the Hardware. This involves taking out those systems that are underutilized or old, or where the workload can be run on more efficient hardware. Gartner clients have reported that rationalization and consolidation programs have resulted in 5 per cent to 20 per cent fewer servers being deployed.

- Consolidate Data-Center Sites. Consolidating multiple sites into a smaller number of larger sites will often result in financial savings.

- Manage Energy and Facilities Costs. Tools and techniques for managing the energy cost curve include: raising the temperature of the data center to around 24 degrees Celsius, which reduces the level of cooling required; using outside air as an alternative to air conditioning where possible; using hot aisle/cold aisle configurations, blanking and economizers; and using server based energy management software tools to run workloads in the most energy efficient way.

- Manage the People Costs. People costs still form the single largest cost element for most data centers, sometimes as much as 40 per cent of overall costs.

- Sweat the Assets. Delaying the procurement of new assets is a necessary step for all data center managers, especially as a server's useful life often exceeds its amortized life.”

Good to at least have the realistic heads-up on what the upcoming year holds, without illusions.