Establishing a data center in a company is not a task that should be carried out lightly, so it must be known four key points so that the project can be a success.
Key point 1. The importance of an adequate design
When taking requirements and analyzing the needs of a project to design a data processing center, numerous parameters that allow determining the best technical-economic solution without forgetting important aspects such as growth, modularity, flexibility and ability to adapt to new technologies must be taken into account.
Therefore, to dedicate time to the initial phase is essential. Being accurate in this first stage of data center development will avoid many unplanned later problems that can translate into unforeseen costs or delays in the implementation time of the data center and its operations.
In this process the consultative work of GESAB is fundamental, who fully involved in helping and guiding the client so that they can make decisions and agree on power ranges, technologies, levels of security and availability, distributions, etc. It helps to understand the current situation of the data center and how far it could go in the future with the type of solution proposed.
It is essential to have the ability to make quick changes and adaptations of the project since in the definition phase there are many factors and people involved, so there can always be important alterations in the starting hypotheses.
Having experience, not only in the design of data processing centers but also in the execution, makes it easier to achieve the most optimal solution.
Key point 2. Types of data center
Nowadays there are different types of data centers and the appropriate choice could be made based on the particular needs of each project. GESAB works with all of them classifying them into conventional CPD, container CPD, micro data center and mixed CPD.
Conventional Data Center
It requires civil works as it is an installation made as a part of a building. This model is linked to the inconvenience generated by a work and a specific space. It is essential to plan the spaces very well, since once the dividing walls have been made they should not be moved during the useful life of the DPC.
Container Data Center
Two of the reasons why the Data Center Container appeared on the market was to avoid the inconvenience generated by works in the company’s facilities, as well as to have the possibility of moving the data processing center to other locations at any time by road, ship or train as it is not linked to a fixed space.
In a continuously changing world and in continuous digital explosion, it is an added value to be flexible, adaptable and modular in growth. For this reason, this type of solution is increasingly common.
Although these containers are designed to be located outside, more and more companies understand the advantages of using them inside the building. These solutions are factory-finished, so the optimization of space and the footprint they generate in the company’s premises is minimal, yet they cover and even exceed the technical needs of a conventional DPC.
Micro Data Center
The micro data center is a special rack that has all the necessary technology inside with the levels of redundancy required to be able to service IT equipment with the maximum guarantees.
The rise of Edge Computing has made the micro data center an ideal solution for the type of application in which it is necessary to be agile and have information close to the point of generation, reducing response time and latency.
Mixed Data Center
The mixed data center is a hybrid concept between the conventional one and the container. The IT area is carried out in a conventional way, but the facilities area is carried out inside container modules that in turn are integrated into the building structure.
The advantage of this solution is that when a technology change occurs or it becomes obsolete, the complete facilities module can be removed and replaced with a new one as a plug & play.
Key point 3. Data center flexibility
In the design and implementation of a Data Center, its ability to adapt to future modifications in the operation must be considered. The concept of flexibility and modularity acquires a lot of weight in a totally changing day to day that goes together with the growing needs of users.
Along these lines, scalable plug & play solutions such as the Container Data Center or Micro Data Center of GESAB provide a breath of fresh air to the problem, since by adding additional modules simply the problem can be solved either in a main center or in a center back-up.
Key point 4. Security of the Data Center
An objective that should be achieved in any project is the tranquility of the client, transmitting that all aspects that provide security to their data have been thought, not only from the field of cybersecurity but also everything related to physical security or with a good management of contingencies.
A good fire sectorization is very important for the installation of the data processing center, from applying suitable solutions to walls and doors to wiring passages. To carry out this type of protection, the factory-certified GESAB modular solutions once again offers added value due to the watertightness values compared to data center construction projects.
DPC security can also be affected by agility in contingency management. For this, dynamic KVM solutions such as GESAB’s DeskWall information management system for various platforms with a single keyboard and mouse will help operators share information, manage it remotely and be able to make decisions in a more efficient way, thus reducing the possibility of a critical event.