Is it Time to Accessorize your Data Center?

Fashionistas aren't the only ones who have need to accessorize; sometimes data center managers rely on certain accessories that are designed to smooth a data center's daily operations, help things run more efficiently, and even extend the lifespan of their assets. Alongside the main components of a data center, there are other factors that need to be addressed to keep things running, including uninterruptible power, efficient cooling systems, and fire protection, to name a few. Beyond these mission-critical systems, there exists a variety of add-on products that serve specific needs that may apply to your situation.

A few of PTS' recommended data center accessories are as follows:

• PTS Aurora Wireless Temperature Monitoring Strips
• IEC Secure Power Connections
• Dycem CleanZone Mats
• Glass Apps Switchable Glass and Film
• Rackstuds: The Smart Rack Mounting System
• AirBlock Curtains and Strip Doors

Use of these accessories may save you time, may save you money, and may even change the way you run your data center's daily operations.  In any case, these, and other accessories, should be considered in all data centers.

Tintri: Smart Storage that Sees, Learns and Adapts

High-Performance VM-Aware Hybrid-Storage 

Our clients often come to realize that the performance demands of their virtualized databases, applications, and VDI are not being met by their current IT infrastructure technology. In our experience, we find the culprit to be the storage technology itself.

Introducing the Tintri VMstore Storage Systems

Tintri is a near "zero" management NFS storage solution built specifically to manage virtual environments for servers, desktops, test development, and production workloads. This means no LUN's, volumes, or tiers to manage. Tintri's file system is built from the ground up, allowing you to solve a lot of the complexities and inefficiencies traditional storage brings to the table.

Download Informative Tintri
White Papers,Videos, and Case Studies

PTS has partnered with Tintri to make available a no cost nor obligation, proof-of-concept (POC) array to test for yourself. Please contact PTS today to see if you qualify: (201) 337-3833 or email us at: TintriPOC@PTSdcs.com

Slideshow: PTS Data Center Solutions Headquarters and Cloud Data Center (Oakland, NJ)

PTS Data Center Solutions has a new Office Headquarters and Cloud Data Center in Oakland, NJ. To complete the project, PTS relied entirely on in-house expertise to perform planning, facility architectural and engineering through equipment migration planning and execution, and all phases in between. The PTS Headquarters now showcases cutting-edge office space, multiple conference rooms, a functioning NOC (network operations center), an IT build room, and warehouse facilities for PTS’ growing staff of experts.

View the slideshow below or request a personal tour.

PTS Announces Partnership with Intelligent Power Management Provider Enlogic

PTS Data Center Solutions, Inc. is proud to announce a partnership with intelligent power management provider Enlogic Systems. Enlogic continuously releases new & innovative products and their efficient product line reduces energy consumption, which, in turn, cuts utility costs. Enlogic’s award-winning product line of intelligent Power Distribution Units (iPDUs), Energy Meters, Locking Power Cables, and Environmental Sensors are designed to simplify rack management by providing automated real-time threat alerts, and capacity and load balancing data for energy use optimization and control.

Enlogic iPDU Features

For more information, please call us at (201) 337-3833 or visit:

• Enlogic Products Page
• PTS and Enlogic Partnership
• Enlogic White Papers
• Press Release: PTS/Enlogic Partnership

Issue of Comatose Servers & Findings in Uptime's Data Center Survey 2013 Report

In reading Uptime’s Data Center Survey 2013 report, the below stats from the report seem silly since there are simple inexpensive solutions to audit, identify and eliminate comatose servers.

 • 43% of respondents have no scheduled audit of their server environment
 • 33% of respondents report > 5% comatose servers
 • Decommissioning (1U) servers can result in a savings of $500 per year in energy costs, an additional $500 in operating system licenses and $1,500 in hardware maintenance costs.

In the Northeast, utilities such as ConEd, NYSERDA and PECO offer attractive incentives for eliminating comatose servers as well as virtualizing underutilized IT equipment so why are many still sitting on the sidelines in addressing this issue?

PTS Data Center Solutions Moves to a New Headquarters and Cloud Data Center in Oakland, NJ

PTS Data Center Solutions, a turnkey solutions provider offering expertise in IT, cabling, and facilities, relocates its headquarters to 16 Thornton Road, in the McBride Corporate Park in Oakland, NJ, 07436, to facilitate its growth and expansion in a wide array of services available to its customers.

After almost 15 years of operating out of Franklin Lakes, NJ, the PTS companies including PTS Data Center Solutions, Inc., PTS Information Technology Solutions Group, Inc., and PTS Design & Engineering, Inc., relocated its headquarters to a completely renovated 45,000 square foot facility located in nearby Oakland, NJ.

PTS' New Cutting-Edge Office Environment

From start to finish, PTS relied entirely on in-house expertise for the new innovative and technology-centric headquarters. PTS staff handled planning, facility architectural and engineering, network and IT systems design and implementation, data cable plant and pathway design and installation, facility construction management, commissioning, and equipment migration planning and execution.

Read the Entire PTS Press Release here

Got Cabling?

Not all data cabling contractors are the same. There are many companies and individuals who can perform adequate data cabling for data centers, computer rooms, server rooms, IDFs, desktops, etc. However, not all can capably manage a complex project with many moving parts such as demolition, construction, deployment, testing, troubleshooting, and integration. This is where PTS Data Center Solution's Data Cabling team excels.

Unlike many other contractors, PTS understands the keys to becoming your trusted data cabling provider:

• Be competitively priced
• Respond quickly to requests for quotes (RFQs)
• Produce quality work on time and on schedule
• Perform exceptional data cabling project management
• Deliver superior quality control
• Supply outstanding project closeouts with proper documentation, as built drawings, and test results

PTS has RCDD staff engineers, expertise installing cable per ANSI / IEEE / BICSI standards, 30+ years of industry experience.  Services include:

• Structured Cable Plant & Pathway Design Services
• Data Cabling Project Management Services
• Data and Voice Cabling Installation
• Fiber Optic Cabling Installation
• Video and CATV Deployment
• WIFI, Physical Security Installations
• PA & Noise Canceling Systems
• Aerial and Underground Deployments
• Data Center Cabling Installation
• Campus Environment
• Fiber Fusion Splicing

To learn more, check out our new website, Data Cabling Services

Are Company Owned Computer Room Deployments Making a Comeback?

Like many other market sectors, the data center space has its ebbs and flows. The latest trend and forecast is that cloud computing and colocation are continuing to grow in popularity and one day, due to cloud's promise of ubiquitous computer platforms, could nullify the need for company-premise-built data centers or computer rooms. That said, this promise has lingered for some time now without being realized. In fact, at PTS Data Center Solutions we see a different, more recent trend.

For example, in the last several years, the northeastern U.S. has experienced substantial utility outages due to inclement weather (Hurricanes Irene in 2011 and Sandy in 2012). Given these extended outages, for over a year now, PTS has been called upon to engineer and install more whole-facility backup power generation systems than ever before. Further, and in keeping with Levitt and Dubner's position in their book Freakonomics, that there is a hidden side to everything - so it seems to be the case with this whole-building generator boom.

For small- and mid-size companies, installing a generator is the single highest CAPEX obstacle to realizing a corporate computer room (what PTS refers to as a "Tenant-Space Computer Room"). However, it's those very companies that have realized their operations (much less their computer rooms) cannot go without power for an extended period of time and as a result are installing whole-facility backup power systems. What was once the largest financial impediment to computer room ownership is now gone. Along with this is the promise of eliminating the ever increasing OPEX of an outsourced IT model.

At the same time, given IT's ability to deliver operational resiliency, CIOs and CFOs alike are realizing not every data center facility needs to operate as a Tier IV bunker. It's even more premature to state that cloud computing is taking over. PTS is actually experiencing a resurgence in company built and operated data centers and computer rooms. As such, you can almost hear Yogi Berra's immortal words, "it ain't over 'til it's over".

It is likely the industry will hit a stasis point between in-sourced and out-sourced data center facility and IT operations. Many enterprises already have (or will have) a hybrid model whereby some applications are cloud based (i.e. Salesforce.com), while others are housed in company owned and operated data centers.

PTS, too, is currently undergoing a transformation by including our own cloud data center site and services offering as part of our new HQ facility build. This offering will complement our client premise-based IT and facility solutions. This way, PTS will be prepared for whichever way the wind blows (pun intended).

If you are considering expanding your data center or adding a generator to improve expected uptime, it may be prudent to reach out to a professional data center design & engineering team to discuss your requirements, options, and costs. Also, there are a variety of issues that should be discussed prior to considering a generator deployment for any enterprise.

Contact us to speak with a data center design professional. 

The Storm Is Coming: Check Your Generators, UPSs, and DR Plan

This year, don't leave your customers out in the rain. With the recent history of Metro New York hurricanes and storms, PTS Data Center Solutions engineers recommend you consider testing and verifying your generator, UPS, and Disaster Recovery solutions and systems. Make sure everything is in good working order well before any announcements of pending storms, power outages, or downed network services.

PTS provides Data Center Maintenance Management services for generator and UPS servicing as well as Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery Assessment services. If you need help in procuring and commissioning the right solution for your IT environment, we can also help you validate your requirements for an emergency generator and make the right choice.

In addition, PTS recommends you perform a recover from backup or test your DR infrastructure whether it is at a DR co-location facility or offsite in another of your facilities. If you don't have offsite backup and DR functionality today, give us a call and we can discuss relatively inexpensive High Availability and DR appliances that might fit your budget and help you avoid soaking your customers.

Contact PTS.

Application of Nanotechnology to Cool a Data Center

As the latest heat wave in the Northeast passes, PTS Data Center Solutions engineers came across an interesting use of nanotechnology to overcome heating problems within a data center.

Mexico's Social Security and Health Administration (IMSS) had an issue with its data center in Monterrey, Mexico which holds patient medical records. Even though their data center was air conditioned, the heat coming through the roof during the summer raised the data center temperature enough to cause the servers to automatically shut down to prevent heat damage.

Nansulate® insulating coating, a patented, award winning clear coat technology, was used on the roof of the Cenati Data Center, applied at a 3-coat coverage. After application of Nansulate® effectively reduced the data center temperature to a safe level for the servers. The coating insulated the roof from excess heat transfer and stopped the server shut down due to high temperatures.

Read the Full Nansulate® Crystal Case Study

DCMMS Online Demo Video - Data Center Maintenance Management Platform

PTS Data Center Solutions has released a demonstration video for the popular Data Center Maintenance Management Software (DCMMS) solution. Using the unique Demos on Demand service which provides complete, in-depth, and on-demand demonstrations of popular IT and Data Center solutions, PTS President, Peter Sacco, provides a complete demonstration of the DCMMS solution in 14 user-controllable chapters with overviews of:

• Login
• Calendar
• Dependencies
• Asset Management
• Services
• Work Orders
• Recurring Tasks
• Reports
• Documents
• Administration
• Help
• Mobile Functionality

Demos on Demand presents in-depth product information videos using advanced streaming video technology. These clips assist viewers by showing them what the product is, what it does, and how it does it. Demos on Demand serves the communication needs of tech vendors and resellers across vertical industries with their video platform and content library. The video platform is comprised of a number of integrated components, including advanced player technology, delivery tools, and analytics and reporting.

Watch the DCMMS Demos on Demand Video
Additional DCMMS Information
Sign Up for Free Trial
Browse All Demos on Demand Available through PTS

Tips for use of VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager

There are various ways to deliver Backup & Disaster Recovery for your enterprise. Backup, which is a necessary requirement for Disaster Recovery includes tape, local disk, remote disk, or some other means of storing your data in case of IT equipment failure or loss. For Disaster Recovery,  PTS Data Center Solutions has presented solutions which include all-in-one appliances, co-location disaster recovery service providers and Storage Area Network or SAN replication. VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is an excellent approach to consider given:

• Automated migration and site recovery
• Integration with your virtualized environment if you already leverage VMware solutions
• Non-disruptive testing on the site recovery environment
• Simple recovery plan management 

vCenter SRM will require replication of your server and storage environment offsite at a secondary, disaster recovery site. However, with the right expertise and experience, the control and consistent failover results in a manageable disaster recovery plan. VMware provides a series of technical tips for consideration when you are ready to move forward:

1. Start small with a single application or service before implementing across your entire enterprise
2. Learn and address application dependencies to confirm applications are available at the recovery site for the services that must run there
3. Determine the best replication tool (VMware or a 3rd party) for your situation
4. Load the recovery environment with data even if it is slightly stale to synchronize quickly.
5. Organize data by logical failover groups
6. Make sure storage replication adapters are up to date
7. Orchestrate the sequence in which VMs start at the recovery site to prioritize key groups and their dependencies
8. Build multiple recovery plans with common protection groups that fail over together
9. Make sure your VMware software is up-to-date at all times
10. Perform frequent recovery plan testing, particularly in advance of any storm warnings

To learn more, contact PTS or download the VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager Tech Tip (registration required).

E&Y Names PTS President a Finalist for the 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year Award

PTS Data Center Solutions is proud to announce it's President & CEO, Pete Sacco, has been named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® 2013 Award in the New Jersey Region.

The awards program recognizes high-growth entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. These finalists were selected by a panel of independent judges. Award winners will be announced at a special gala event on Thursday, June 13, 2013 at the Hyatt New Brunswick.

Pete was surprised and excited to learn about being named a finalist for such a prestigious award. He's had the entrepreneurial bug for many years and has started or been a part of a founding team for five startups in the last 16 years.

PTS Press Release

Critical Considerations during a Data Center Migration

If you've got more than a rack or two in your data center or computer room, a data center migration is rife with risk. Who wants to lie awake in the weeks before the migration wondering if they've missed something? Will everything go smoothly? Did I make the right choices for services companies, infrastructure upgrades, network service providers, etc.?

In a nutshell, planning and perspective are good critical as data center managers when it's time to complete a migration (or consolidation) of data center assets. Planning and perspective allow you to take a step back and make sure your approach holds water, allow you to check with peers in the industry for accepted best practices, and allow you to keep your job when the migration goes smoothly.

Critical Considerations in Preparation for a Data Center Migration include:

• Think About the Layout. Flow through a data center is critical to develop efficiencies. Flow includes power from utility through distribution to feeders to PDUs as well as battery backup and utility backup (generators) and is driven by a coherent data center design. In addition to power, think about network connectivity from the ingress at the street through to the network core. Also, how will data flow from core to distribution to access out to server/storage assets. A simple rule of thumb: Firewalls, DMZs, and network termination equipment should all be located close to the network entrance and/or network rack.
• Plan for Growth. It isn't enough to plan for growth within today's paradigm and technology. Rather, if at all possible, it's critical to consider the next two life cycles in technology. This means performing research on expected future rack power requirements as well as the data center key design criteria for today and 2-3 years into the future. Who would have thought 5 kW of redundant power at the rack may not be enough now if you're organization is planning to roll out blade server cabinets? Don't get caught having to migrate yet again.
• Plan the Cable Plant. Cabling architecture is the backbone of the data center network infrastructure. Careful planning and consideration is important when deciding on a data center cabling architecture. Key concerns are scalability, flexibility, manageability, availability, and total cost. Therefore, it is critical to plan in advance, leave space for core switches and future growth for the core and distribution switches and cable plan. Also, particularly if you are using a raised floor approach, deploy your cabinets, pull fiber to the cabinets, and run branch circuits for power. The incremental cost of the fiber and power cables waiting for use is minimal, you already have the labor onsite, and who wants an invasive change or upgrade several years down the road.
• Confirm the Asset Inventory. A data center migration gives you the opportunity to "clean out your attic". Like moving between homes, you shouldn't migrate or relocate assets that are decommissioned or not in the data center inventory list. Assets should be in the your Configuration Management Database (CMDB) including owner, department, business processes, applications, and dependencies. In fact, all data center assets should be tracked and maintained before the migration and after it takes place.
• Develop a Complete Relocation Plan. The final step in the data center migration is the relocation itself. Data Center relocations are expensive and require specific expertise and experience. Elements of a solid relocation plan include: Pre-planning and project management, pre-move site preparation, move plan creation, and post-move reviews.

Ultimately, a Data Center Migration requires careful planning, continuous communications, solid contributions from internal and external team members, and risk mitigation plans if/when the unexpected happens. Data Center Consulting Services are available from the consultants at PTS Data Center Solutions.

Have You Made the Move to Wireless Monitoring?

PTS Data Center Solutions Consultants are finding most data center facilities operators don’t want to burden or use their expensive network infrastructure to address environmental & power monitoring solutions. We all know we can’t manage what we don’t measure, but often the resistance of facilities and IT wanting to work together to address the problem, prevents both groups from effectively monitoring environmental conditions on the network to optimize our Data Centers.

Wireless sensor solutions can not only eliminate the resistance we might get in trying to get network infrastructure allocated for environmental monitoring, but wireless sensors provide the ability to quickly deploy, scale the solution and the flexibility to move sensors around for testing or as we are deploying new equipment. The wireless environmental market is growing quickly and here are some of the solutions PTS has evaluated and implemented. Some solutions just provide the monitoring while others provide analytical analysis and/or control software. We are interested in hearing from others on their experiences and why wireless monitoring has or has not worked in your data center.

Aurora
Innovative patent-pending technology couples a series of 8 temperature sensors with an array of high intensity LEDs. This design provides the appearance of a “live” CFD by visually displaying a range of cool (blue) to hot (red) and a blend of 129 colors in between. The Aurora is the perfect self-policing, real-time troubleshooting tool to clearly identify potential cooling or heat-related issues in your racks. Aurora is extremely accurate because it measures air temperature, not surface temperature. The 3 User-Selectable Sensitivity Settings allow you to fine tune the monitored temperature range of the full 129-color spectrum. Because temperature is monitored over the entire height of the cabinet, Aurora is perfect for Aisle Containment and areas susceptible to temperature stratification. Optional Wireless Communication and Management Interface enables the temperature readings for all 8 sensors per strip to be captured for trending and alerting purposes.

Packet Power
Uses a Wireless mesh network to monitor inline power meters, temperature, humidity and air pressure that the management of complex facilities require. The data collected from these sensors can be managed in a Cloud portal called EMX, or you can run Power Manager from Packet Power or you can just use a gateway for SNMP Connectivity and Modbus TCP/IP Connectivity link the wireless monitoring devices to your existing data center monitoring software.

RF Code
Manufacturers RFID environmental tags, temperature, humidity, pressure and PDU tags that work with ServerTech, Geist, Raritan metered and switched PDU’s. They have RFID asset tags as well if you want to monitor where assets are even down to what U they are installed in your racks. Each 433.92MHz RFID reader can support up to 1,400 RFID tags and the reader can support communications to multiple wired or wireless networks to report the sensor information into various software packages or you can use Sensor Manager to collect information from all types of RF Code wire-free sensor tags. Sensor Manager organizes all sensor information according to sensor type as well as sensor location. All information collected by Sensor Manager can be viewed interactively in real-time via an easy to use web browser based console. All information can be accessed via customized table views as well as graphically via map views. All historical data can be easily organized into reports and graphs using the standard reporting and graphing capability as well as RF Code’s Advanced Reporting Module which utilizes the powerful open source BIRT reporting engine.

SynapSense
Uses a Wireless mesh network to monitor:

• Server inlet temperatures
• Delta T across CRAC units
• Humidity and calculate dew points
• Subfloor pressure differentials

SynapSense wireless environmental monitoring and Data Center Optimization Platform software provides real-time visibility to assess current data center operating conditions, including generating a temperature gradient to identify operational or energy efficiency opportunities, and quantify improvements.

Vigilent
Vigilent energy management systems are built upon a sophisticated, wireless mesh network using technology developed by Dust Networks®, the leader in industrial wireless networking. This implementation is designed for the most demanding industrial applications, in harsh environments where packet delivery is critical.
These wireless sensors are installed at CRAC/CRAH supply and return as well as rack inlets to determine the zone of influence and the impact as air handlers are cycled down or turned off to optimize the cooling to the demand of the IT footprint.

Wireless Sensors
The SensiNetRack Sentry is a wireless temperature monitoring device and component of the SensiNet wireless sensor network. It reports highly accurate, real-time ambient level temperature measurements, without wires, and is FCC and CE-approved for license free operation worldwide. The Rack Sentry utilizes a solid state sensor in a unique configuration for ultimate installation flexibility. Individual sensors are “daisy chained” using standard CAT5 patch cables. Up to three sensors are supported as standard and these sensors can be added and or reconfigured in the field. The system simply recognizes the attached sensors and reports temperature with virtually no user configuration.

The Rack Sentry utilizes highly accurate, MEMS solid state sensors and a replaceable “C” size battery provides years of reliable operation. The SensiNet Services data acquisition Gateway is a powerful appliance providing network management, user interface, data logging, trending, alarming and communications without any complicated software to install. A standard browser and network connection is all that’s required to access and configure the system. The GWAY-1022 also operates as stand-alone data logger with real time views, trending and e-mail alerts.

With the various choices and solutions described above, it may help to discuss your requirements with a Data Center Solutions professional from PTS.

Is Single Pane of Glass Overemphasized by the Data Center Infrastructure Management Industry?

I believe many seeking the "Holy Grail" of Data Center Management, a Single Pane of Glass to manage and monitor their Data Center and IT infrastructure are about as successful as the archeologists seeking the divine cup. I've seen many enterprise Data Centers come to the conclusion that they aren't ready for a Single Pane of Glass tool after sending out RFI's seeking such a tool. Is it realistic to think that an enterprise Data Center can get everything it needs to effectively monitor, manage and optimize on a Single Pane of Glass? Does this single pane then become such a crowded screen that the alerts and alarms become lost? Can a single pane be used to monitor, manage and optimize all of the assets and systems that are critical to the success of our Data Center's performance and availability?

Can a Single Pane of Glass Realistically
Manage your Data Center Infrastructure?

Where I think we first need to focus our attention in the evolution of Data Center monitoring and management is getting all data from systems that are discovering assets, monitoring system conditions and performance into a CMDB so all of our software tools can utilize this important data. IT, Facilities and executive management then are all using the same data to work as a team to address issues and optimize the Data Center and IT infrastructure's performance. Obtaining this data and verifying that this data is correct before it is entered into a CMDB is a huge challenge and few organizations have accomplished this feat. Many have failed in attempts to gather too much of this data manually. Organizations can typically expect a 10% error rate in manual data entry due to typing and transcribing errors. Can we afford to be making decisions about the capacity, performance and availability of our Data Centers with a 10% error rate? Before we can even think about Single Pane of Glass we have to implement a CMDB strategy that includes real-time data collection and accuracy validation.

I'd be interested in hearing where your organization is at the evolution of your Data Center & IT infrastructure management and whether you agree or disagree with my focal points for success.

PTS Exhibiting at 3rd Annual HITECH Symposium for Healthcare Related IT Solutions

PTS Data Center Solutions is exhibiting at the Third Annual Mid-Atlantic Crossing the Infrastructure & HITECH Meaningful Divide Symposium. 

The event is Entitled: “Patients, Care Givers, and Technology: Partners in Care" and will take place on March 21st and 22nd at the Radisson Valley Forge in Pennsylvania.

For those of you unfamiliar with HITECH, the HITECH Act was established with the primary goal of improving the population’s health and the quality and cost of healthcare. One particular focus area is in the ability to provide electronic medial records for patients to service providers anywhere in the world via proper, HIPAA-compliant, sharing of these records anywhere the patient may happen to be.

The symposium includes a series of seminars and presentations related to IT issues and problems experienced by IT professionals in the healthcare sector. In addition, there is an exhibit hall for vendors to present solutions targeting healthcare IT.

PTS has world class design, engineering, construction, and management staff across both facility and IT disciplines. This integrated data center facility and IT expertise affords PTS a unique vantage point for executing data center, computer room, and network operations center projects for both healtcare service providers and hospitals as well as many other market sectors. We can build, redesign, consolidate or relocate your computer room as well as provide many IT-related services and solutions:

• Routing & Switching
• Information / Network Security
• Servers & Systems
• Virtualization Technologies
• Data Protection & Storage
• Unified Communications
• Microsoft Exchange & Active Directory
• Application Development
• Software Development

Learn more about the HITECH Symposium or Register for the Event.

Data Center Energy Use

It can’t be denied that the amount of energy data centers consume is sickening and constantly growing on a daily basis, but the data centers themselves should not be held fully responsible for adhering to the demands of the consumer. Today’s society calls for 24x7x365 availability and the future for most companies lies in the hands of uninterrupted availability. For most data center technicians, their jobs rely on 99.99 percent availability and not saving on the electric bill. This fear of failure mixed with the high expectations of the end-user is what’s causing this massive surge of data center energy use.

James Glanz recently wrote a piece for the New York Times entitled, “Power, Pollution and the Internet.” Although his article lacks proof, it brings to light an important secret of the data center industry: data centers are gargantuan energy consumers. Personally, I think it was harsh for him to say corporations are wasting a good two-thirds of the energy they consume, because data centers for companies such as Facebook and YouTube need to be run around the clock.




Steve Dykes for The New York Times

INSURANCE A row of backup generators, inside white housings, lines the back exterior of the Facebook data center in Prineville, Ore. They are to ensure service even in the event of a power failure.

People don’t realize the vast amount of data it takes to allow them to watch a video on the internet through a website that is quite possibly hosting tens of millions of other users. Or how about that video game you’re playing on Facebook? And while we’re at it, how about your entire Facebook profile? All that data is stored for you in one of Facebook’s many data centers. They need to keep it accessible for you so you can play at anytime, anywhere.

So, who’s at fault? Can the answer be no one? We either need to accept the fact that data centers need the energy to meet the demands of the consumer or we, as consumers, must be patient and lower our expectations, but let’s face it, in the words of the mighty Queen, “I want it all, I want it all, I want it all, and I want it NOW!”

In the end, aside from risking potential downtime by reducing data center redundancies or powering down servers when not in use, data center operators can look to energy efficiency improvements aimed at avoiding increased risk of downtime. PTS Data Center Solutions performs Data Center Energy Efficiency Assessments on behalf of utilities and data center operators. However, reducing the number of data centers and their sizable energy consumption is not going to happen in the near future.

PTS Plays Role in Conservation by Building New Data Center for the World Wildlife Fund

PTS Data Center Solutions recently performed an assessment of the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) data center at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. That’s a pretty big deal considering WWF is the world’s leading conservation organization with total operating revenue of over $230 million. WWF networks through 100 countries with over 5 million members, so its data center is a very important part of overall conservation operations.

PTS was able to detect a critical problem with WWF’s data center environment. The data center was experiencing an increase in heat and the Computer Room Air Conditioning units weren’t getting the job done. WWF was in dire need of new power and cooling solutions. IT infrastructure availability and energy efficiency were also vital concerns as they are with all of PTS’ clients.

At first, PTS was considering renovating WWF’s aging infrastructure, but when the tenant on WWF’s first floor moved out, PTS determined an entirely new data center in that space would best suit WWF. PTS was tasked with design, construction management, procuring  equipment, overseeing installation, commissioning, and post construction services. WWF received a dynamic cooling solution which gives the data center the energy efficiency that was desired. PTS also installed a 100 KVA UPS which gave WWF critical power protection.

“The use of modular systems is an excellent strategy to address growth without major disruptions”, said Michael Petrino, PTS Vice President. “WWF is now operating a reliable, energy efficient data center. With the new, energy efficient cooling solution in place, the WWF data center is able to conserve significant amounts of energy and allow the WWF to practice internally its mission of conservation of natural resources.”

To read more about PTS’ success with WWF click here or contact us for a copy of the case study and the Press Release.

PTS Data Center Solutions Completes Planar Digital Signage Deployment in NYC

PTS Data Center Solutions recently designed and deployed the Planar Clarity™ Matrix LCD Video Wall digital signage solution for Prudential Douglas Elliman. The display is located on Broadway, between 9th and 10th Streets in New York City.

The Clarity™ Matrix LCD Video Wall System delivers the ultimate display solution for digital signage applications. Optimized for uninterrupted 24/7 operation, Clarity™ Matrix is an ultra-thin bezel LCD media wall system that delivers outstanding visual performance, supports extended operation and requires minimal installation space.

Contact PTS to learn more about digital signage solutions as well as digital display solutions for Network Operations Centers.

Event Follow-up: Is Your Disaster Recovery Approach a Disaster?

PTS Data Center Solutions, in conjunction with Quorum, hosted a particularly relevant event on December 4th. With over 20 industry executives and Backup & Disaster Recovery experts meeting at the Chart House in Weehawken, NJ, PTS and Quorum discussed the need for improved backup and disaster recovery solutions aimed at the Small- to Mid-size business sector.

"The event was originally scheduled for November 7th but we all know what had just taken place the week before - Hurricane Sandy", said Larry Davis, VP, IT Solutions Group for PTS. "If we could have only spread the word earlier and gotten the Quorum solution out to clients without a clear Disaster Recovery plan, the solution really works for a reasonable price."

Developed by Quorum engineers several years ago as a simple to deploy and use alternative to expensive redundant server, storage, and virtualization platform approaches, the Quorum solution has been a hit within market sectors ranging from:

• Schools
• Banks
• Financial Services
• Law Practices
• Accounting Firms
• Manufacturers
• Municipalities

With premises-based appliances, cloud solutions available for offsite recovery, and archive systems for long term storage requirements, the Quorum onQ solution can be deployed rapidly without any other hardware or software needed.

At the event, Quorum engineers provided a live demonstration of a server failure and the One-Click Recovery™ inherent in the onQ solution's design:

• Current Forever: Each ultra-efficient update is merged into the onQ device which houses virtual machine recovery nodes, full current images of client servers and virtual servers.
• Ready-to-Run: The approach doesn't wait until you need to recover to build your virtual recovery nodes, allowing one-click recovery at any time.
• Point-in-Time Recovery: Even though changes are merged into the ready-to-run recovery node, you can restore files or an entire system to a prior state. This is a perfect fit for business and organizations needing the ability to store and recover 7 years of data for regulatory purposes.

To learn more, visit PTS' website, watch the onQ video on the YouTube Data Center channel, or contact PTS at sales@ptsdcs.com

NJ Tech Council: Adaptation of DCIM Tools Rages On

The first annual New Jersey Technology Council (NJTC) Data Center Summit was a real success. With upwards of 150 data center professionals attending, the first panel discussion focused upon Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) Challenges & Opportunities.

The first panel speaker, Peter Sacco, President of PTS Data Center Solutions, provided a solid overview of the DCIM sector, functional areas, and challenges faced by both manufacturers and end clients. He then put manufacturers on notice. Mr. Sacco stated there are 100+ companies producing hardware, software, and/or platforms for DCIM. The problem is that typically each company’s offering does one or two of the functional requirements well, others less well, and others not at all. Worse, little effort is made to work with one another although that is becoming less so as providers are realizing their own limitations.

As such, what data center managers really seek for DCIM, easy access to meaningful data that seamlessly correlates to actionable plans, has yet to be realized. In support of this supposition, Pete mentioned the Uptime Institute’s 2010 paper Data Center Infrastructure Management: Consolidation, But Not Yet which notes the market for data center infrastructure management systems will grow from $500 million in 2010 to $7.5 billion by 2020. So far, this hyper growth hasn't materialized as the holy grail of DCIM has been stunted by under powered solutions or solutions that are difficult to deploy.

The remainder of the DCIM panel discussion centered upon manufacturer and user challenges, new developments within the industry, and future directions as panelists compared existing solutions and viability of current deployments.

Beyond the DCIM panel, a second panel discussion focused on Lessons Learned from the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Various disaster recovery approaches, processes, and solutions were debated by the panelists. The event also included exhibits with lively discussions around many current hot topics in the data center community.

To learn more about Mr. Sacco's perspectives on DCIM, contact him via email, or download Pete's latest white paper Data Center Infrastructure Management - The Updated Elephant which provides a detailed review of the market for DCIM solutions. Additional DCIM solutions are available on the PTS website. More information on the Data Center Summit is available at Data Center Knowledge.

Asset Performance Management for IT and Data Centers

We are all likely using some tool to track IT assets. To that end, many use their asset management tool to manage the lifecycle of their IT and Data Center assets. However, most tools that provide lifecycle management of IT assets only look at the depreciation value of the asset or perhaps the cost to maintain the asset. Unfortunately, how can we really understand the lifecycle of an asset without also looking at the performance of this IT asset versus the costs to operate the asset and/or versus the cost to operate a new asset? With the rising costs of operating IT assets, PTS thinks it is time to borrow an idea from our manufacturing brethren who have developed tools to manage the performance and to optimize the production of their plant. After all, isn't a Data Center merely a manufacturing plant for processing and storing data? Much like a power plant wants to optimize electricity produced per unit of fossil fuel burned, we as operators of Data Centers need to optimize the IOPs (Input/Output Per Second) produced per kW (KiloWatt) consumed. The difference is there are numerous Asset Performance Management{APM} software tools for the manufacturing world to help optimize the plant by managing such issues as: • Reducing Operational Costs • Extending Asset Life • Delivering Higher Performance with Reduced Resources • Compliance with Regulations & Standards • Standardizing Asset Care Process or Practices • Dealing with Data Management & Islands of Data • Safety and Environmental Performance • Time-based PM tasks and the Need for CBM • Aging Workforce, Loss of Knowledge All of these issues addressed by today's manufacturing APM software tools, in PTS' opinion need to be addressed by APM tools for IT and Data Centers. In conjunction with several of our key partners, PTS has been leading the way with tools that provide the analytics to evaluate the performance of our IT and Data Center assets. Tools must analyze the performance of IT assets as well as quantify and recommend whether to retire, replace, consolidate, or maintain these IT assets:

Optimization tools should put facilities metrics on the same screen as IT metrics allowing data center operators the ability to view and close the gaps between planned capacity and IT and facility energy usage:

Tools need to go beyond a basic measurement like PUE (Power Usage Efficiency) that can be skewed by underutilized or rogue IT equipment and look at Server Compute Efficiency, which is the number of primary processes performed by the server versus the watts consumed by that server:

Finally, data center personnel cannot optimize the performance of their data center assets without managing the labor, tasks, parts and contracts needed to keep our entire data processing plant functioning 7x24:

We've highlighted just a few of the tools PTS has brought together to tackle the problem and build the foundation of Asset Performance Management for IT and Data Centers. It's comical when you think about how the IT and Data Center Industry prides itself on technology and software, yet one could argue there is better software available today to manage and optimize a paper mill than a data center. Wondering if lack of knowledge on the value and performance of IT and Data Center Assets are a problem in your organization and wondering what your organization is doing to address APM for your IT and Data Centers?

Preparing for the Next Disaster: Data Center Generator Deployment Considerations

PTS Data Center Solutions considers generators as a key to data center reliability. Supplementing a battery-based uninterruptible power supply (UPS) with an emergency generator should be considered by all data center operators. The question has become increasing important as super storms such as Hurricane Sandy in the Northeast United States knocked out utility power stations and caused many downed power lines, resulting in days and weeks of utility power loss.

Beyond disaster protection, the role of a backup generator to provide power is important when utility providers consider summer rolling blackouts and brownouts and data center operators see reduced utility service reliability. In a rolling blackout, power to industrial facilities is often shut down first. New data center managers should check the utilities contract to see if a data center is subject to such utility disconnects.

Following are questions to consider before, during, and after generator deployment.

What Should You Consider Before Generator Deployment?

• Generator Classification / Type. Will the generator be classified as an Optional Standby power source for the data center, a Code Required Standby power source for the data center, or an Emergency back-up generator that also provides standby power to the data center?
• Generator Size. When sizing a generator it is critical to consider the total current IT power load as well as expected growth of that IT load. Is specialized sizing software needed to properly size your generator?
• Fuel Type. Will the generators be diesel or gas powered? There are pros and cons to both.
• Deployment Location. Where will the generator be installed? Is it an interior installation or an exterior installation?
• Exhaust and Emissions Requirements. What exhaust emissions standard are required in your town, region, or state?
• Required Run-time. What is the expected run-time for the generator system? How much fuel needs to be on hand to support expected run-times?

What Should You Consider During Generator Deployment?

• Commissioning. What is your commissioning plan? What type of rigging is required? What documentation is needed?
• Load Testing. How will you perform load testing? Do you have access to a non-linear load bank with appropriate power factors for the generator to be tested?
• Servicing. What will the service schedule be for the generator? How will the initial servicing be performed during final commissioning and testing?

What Should You Consider After Generator Deployment?

• Service Agreement. Is a service agreement in place with the local generator manufacturer’s representative?
• Preventative Maintenance. Preventative Maintenance should be performed at least twice a year. Most generator owners who envision their generator installation as being critical to their business execute a quarterly maintenance program.
• Monitoring. How is the generator tied into the building monitoring system? Who is monitoring that system for generator and ATS systems failure?
• Regular Testing. How often should testing completed to confirm availability of the generator? How should the testing be done?
• Maintenance. What are the manufacturer recommended maintenance intervals, work plans, maintenance milestones? What other factors related to the operational characteristics of the generator need to be considered?

Learn more about PTS Data Center Generator Services and Solutions