Data Center

Operational and
Services
Data Center
Site Selections
&
Space/Sizing
1
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Selecting a Geographic Location

1. Safe from natural hazards
2. Safe from man-made disasters
3. Availability of local technical talent
4. Abundant and inexpensive utilities such as power
and water
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Natural disasters
Ice storms
Hurricanes
Tornadoes
Flooding
Landslides
Fire
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Pollution
Example:
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Electromagnetic interference
Example:
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Vibration
Example:
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Political climates
Example:
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Site Selection
Site Risks Factors
Flight paths
At least 50km away from airport
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Evaluating DC Physical Site

Where is the site
Is it easy to reach
Does it have existing structure
How suited are they to housing a server environment
How well does the site support the key design
strategies for constructing a productive DC
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 46, Douglas Alger (2005)
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Evaluating DC Physical Site

Attributes
Relative Location
Pre-Existing Infrastructure
Amenities and Obstacles

Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 46, Douglas Alger (2005)
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1. Relative Location
Accessibility
Is the site visible from a major roadway?
Are their multiple routes to reach the property or just one?
Could a hazardous materials spill or major traffic accident
at a single intersection block access to the site?
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 46, Douglas Alger (2005)
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1. Relative Location
Disaster Recovery Options
Are the locations close enough that network latency won’t be a
problem?
Can employees travel from one site to another in a reasonable
amount of time, even if major roadways are blocked or airline
flights aren’t operating normally?
Are the locations far enough apart that they are both unlikely to
be affected by a single disaster?
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 46, Douglas Alger (2005)
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2. Pre-Existing Infrastructure
Power analysis
How much power?
Enough electrical circuits?
Enough physical capacity to add more?
Power feeds come to DC at more than one location?
Alterations to accommodate battery backup systems & standby
generator?
Redundancy present in the electrical infrastructure & single
point of failure?
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 47, Douglas Alger (2005)
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2. Pre-Existing Infrastructure
Cooling Capabilities
Can provide adequate cooling for DC?
Adequate space & structural on site support to
support air chillers, condenser or cooling towers?
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 47, Douglas Alger (2005)
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2. Pre-Existing Infrastructure
Structured Cabling
How much and type of structured cabling already
exists in and to the building?
Distance limitation?
How much redundancy is present & what single
points of failure exist?
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 48, Douglas Alger (2005)
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3. Amenities & Obstacles

Clearances
Weight Issues
Loading dock placement
Freight elevator specifications
Miscellaneous problem areas
Distribution of key systems
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 49, Douglas Alger (2005)
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Prioritizing Needs for DC Site

Which came 1st
Risk factors VS DC infrastructure
Build the Best Data Center Facility for Your Business, Pg. 54, Douglas Alger (2005)
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Data Center Sizing

Determine the size is challenging to decide how large and small
your server environment must be.
Consider the following:
How many people the data center supports
The number and type of servers and other equipment the DC hosts.
Size that non-server areas should be depending upon how the room’s
infrastructure is deployed

Build the best data center facility for your business, A. Douglas (2005)
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Quantifying DC Space
Sizing the DC
Financial and other considerations when sizing the DC.
Employee-based sizing method
Equipment-based sizing method
Other influencing factors when sizing DC
Determining shape and placement of DC
Desirable and undesirable spaces to place your DC.
Growth paths for your DC’s space
Consolidation options for your DC

Build the best data center facility for your business, Pg. 57, A.Douglas (2005)
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Quantifying DC Space
Structure and finishes of the DC
The shell that surrounds your DC must insulate the room from undesirable
external conditions.
Think of it as a protective cocoon around your company’s servers and
networking devices.
To help this cocoon as strong as possible, avoid windows or transparent walls
in your DC. Windows or transparent walls make the room more vulnerable to a
break-in, enable unauthorized personnel to potentially view sensitive data, and
if they are located within an external building wall it can increase the chance of
incurring damage during a major storm or high winds.
If your DC must have windows facing the outside? How about that?
Build the best data center facility for your business, Pg. 72, A.Douglas (2005)
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Quantifying DC Space
Associated DC support rooms
Set aside an additional area for several support rooms
or areas. E.g: electrical room, networking room,
loading dock, build room, storage room, operations
command center, etc.

Build the best data center facility for your business, Pg. 73, A.Douglas (2005)
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Placement and finishes of Data

Center
Determine and undesirable spaces to place your data
center
Growth paths for your data center’s space
Consolidation options for your data center
Structure and finishes of the data center

Build the best data center facility for your business, A. Douglas (2005)