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White Paper #150
Power and Cooling Capacity Management for Data Centers

High density IT equipment stresses the power density capability of modern data centers. Installation and unmanaged proliferation of this equipment can lead to unexpected problems with power and cooling infrastructure including overheating, overloads, and loss of redundancy. The ability to measure and predict power and cooling capability at the rack enclosure level is required to ensure predictable performance and optimize use of the physical infrastructure resource. This paper describes the principles for achieving power and cooling capacity management. Read White Paper #150

White Paper #107
How Data Center Infrastructure Management Software Improves Planning and Cuts Operational Costs

Business executives are challenging their IT staffs to convert data centers from cost centers into producers of business value. Data centers can make a significant impact to the bottom line by enabling the business to respond more quickly to market demands. This paper demonstrates, through a series of examples, how data center infrastructure management software tools can simplify operational processes, cut costs, and speed up information delivery. Read White Paper #107

White Paper #165
Types of Prefabricated Modular Data Centers

Data center systems or subsystems that are pre-assembled in a factory are often described with terms like prefabricated, containerized, modular, skid-based, pod-based, mobile, portable, self-contained, all-in-one, and more. There are, however, important distinctions between the various types of factory-built building blocks on the market. This paper proposes standard terminology for categorizing the types of prefabricated modular data centers, defines and compares their key attributes, and provides a framework for choosing the best approach(es) based on business requirements. Read White Paper #165

White Paper #166
Practical Considerations for Implementing Prefabricated Data Centers

Implementing prefabricated modular data centers results in well-understood benefits including speed of deployment, predictability, scalability, and lifecycle cost. The process of deploying them – from designing the data center, to preparing the site, to procuring the equipment, to installation – is quite different than that of a traditional data center. This paper presents practical considerations, guidance, and results that a data center manager should expect from such a deployment. Read White Paper #166

White Paper #114
Implementing Energy Efficient Data Centers

Electricity usage costs have become an increasing fraction of the total cost of ownership (TCO) for data centers. It is possible to dramatically reduce the electrical consumption of typical data centers through appropriate design of the network-critical physical infrastructure and through the design of the IT architecture. This paper explains how to quantify the electricity savings and provides examples of methods that can greatly reduce electrical power consumption. Read White Paper #114

White Paper #147
Data Center Projects: Advantages of Using a Reference Design

It is no longer practical or cost-effective to completely engineer all aspects of a unique data center. Re-use of proven, documented subsystems or complete designs is a best practice for both new data centers and for upgrades to existing data centers. Adopting a well-conceived reference design can have a positive impact on both the project itself, as well as on the operation of the data center over its lifetime. Reference designs simplify and shorten the planning and implementation process and reduce downtime risks once up and running. In this paper reference designs are defined and their benefits are explained. Read White Paper #147

White Paper #195
Fundamentals of Managing the Data Center Life Cycle for Owners

Just as good genes do not guarantee health and well-being, a good design alone does not ensure a data center is well-built and will remain efficient and available over the course of its life span. For each phase of the data center’s life cycle, proper care and action must be taken to continuously meet the business needs of the facility. This paper describes the five phases of the data center life cycle, identifies key tasks and pitfalls, and offers practical advice to facility owners and management. Read White Paper #195

White Paper #135
Impact of Hot and Cold Aisle Containment on Data Center Temperature and Efficiency

Both hot-air and cold-air containment can improve the predictability and efficiency of traditional data center cooling systems. While both approaches minimize the mixing of hot and cold air, there are practical differences in implementation and operation that have significant consequences on work environment conditions, PUE, and economizer mode hours. The choice of hot-aisle containment over cold-aisle containment can save 43% in annual cooling system energy cost, corresponding to a 15% reduction in annualized PUE. This paper examines both methodologies and highlights the reasons why hot-aisle containment emerges as the preferred best practice for new data centers. Read White Paper #135