Physical Infrastructure Management Basics Outline

Course Description:
While considerable effort is focused around maintaining and managing the software and hardware
aspects of a Data Center, managing the physical infrastructure is often overlooked. This
foundational module identifies the physical infrastructure challenges for incident, availability,
capacity, and change management. It also explains basic information and strategies concerning:
Physical Infrastructure Enterprise Management Systems, Building Management Systems, Element
Managers, and an Physical Infrastructure Element Manager.

Course Outline:
Learning Objectives
At the completion of this course, you will be able to:
Identify physical infrastructure challenges for incident, availability, capacity, and change
management
Summarize physical infrastructure management strategies for Enterprise Management
Systems (EMS) and Building Management Systems (BMS)
Recognize physical infrastructure management standards
Provide examples of physical infrastructure management solutions

Agenda
Introduction
Physical Infrastructure Overview
What is Management?
Physical Infrastructure Management Challenges
Physical Infrastructure Management Strategy
Physical Infrastructure Management Solutions
Summary

Course Content or Material

1) Physical Infrastructure Overview
a) Physical Infrastructure is the foundation upon which IT and telecommunications networks
reside.
(a) Physical Infrastructure includes:
(i) Power
(ii) Cooling
(iii) Racks and physical structure
(iv) Cabling
(v) Physical security and fire protection
(vi) Management systems

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 (vii) Services

2) Physical Infrastructure Management Challenges

a) Key to managing Physical Infrastructure
b) Employ the same strategies used in the management of servers, storage, switches, and
printers.
c) Core issues of maintaining system availability, managing problems and changes
d) Essential categories of management include:

3) Incident Management
a) Identify problem location
b) Identify resolution owner
c) Prioritize incident urgency
d) Execute proper corrective action

4) Availability Management
a) Concerned with systematically identifying availability and reliability requirements
b) Comparing to actual performance,
c) Introducing improvements
d) Achieve and sustain optimum quality IT services at a justifiable cost.
e) Monitoring service levels
f) Specific Availability Management challenges include:
(1) Availability metrics reporting
Advance warning for failure
Planned downtime
Infrastructure improvement

5) Change Management
a) Methods and procedures for making changes to infrastructure with the lowest possible
impact on service quality
(1) Increasingly critical for optimizing business agility.
b) Maximizing the ratio of planned to unplanned work in a data center
(1) Requires formalized change management processes for all aspects of operation.
c) Changes requiring preparation, planning, simulation, and an audit trail
(1) Relocating a server, rewiring a patch panel, or moving equipment from a warmer
area of a data center to a cooler area

6) Capacity Management
a) Monitor and record data center equipment and infrastructure changes
b) Provide Physical Infrastructure capacity
c) Optimize physical layout of existing and new equipment
d) Scale data center infrastructure incrementally

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7) Management Implementation
a) Implement an incident management strategy
b) Set and measure availability targets
c) Monitor and plan for long term changes in capacity
d) Put change management processes in place

8) Physical Infrastructure Management Strategy

a) Ability to identify availability issues
b) Easier management
c) Lower downtime risk
d) Increased IT personnel productivity

9) Management Focus
a) Physical Infrastructure focuses on the availability
of computing resources
b) Building systems management focus on the comfort and
safety of people

10) Enterprise Management Systems (EMS)

11) Building Management Systems (BMS)

12) Physical Infrastructure Management Standards

a) Easy to deploy and maintain
b) Provide advance warning of critical events
c) Able to analyze performance and predict failure
d) Adaptable to business change

13) Element Managers

14) Data Points and Building Management Systems

15) Integrating Physical Infrastructure Management

16) Physical Infrastructure Element Manager

a) Benefits:
i) Cost effective installation and maintenance
ii) Easy integration with existing enterprise and building management systems
iii) Optimized functionality for Physical Infrastructure management
iv) Cost effective management of the large amounts of Physical Infrastructure data

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17) Summary

Course Assessment: Test Your Knowledge

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©2013 Schneider Electric. All rights reserved. All trademarks provided are the property of their respective owners.