What to Do for Data Centers in Summer

By Jeff Feinman

June 18, 2008 —  (Page 1 of 2)
As the summer sun sends temperatures soaring, power consumption by air conditioners spikes just as high.

Organizations are asking what they should do to keep their data centers running smoothly through the summertime heat. Representatives of data center supply companies said that having proper generator and backup capabilities that have been tested are one of the main ways of avoiding problems.

Sam Somashekar, director of product management for CA, said that summer months usually signify a dramatic increase in power consumption at the power grid due to increased load on cooling equipment. For a data center that is not monitoring power usage and does not have proper power backup policies in place, the effects of the increased load “could be disastrous,” he said.

“One should test their backup power setups to ensure that in the event of a failure, power is readily at hand—whether in the form of UPS (uninterruptible power supply) devices or backup generators,” Somashekar said. “Also, due to the potential need of extra cooling, it is wise to inspect your HVAC equipment to ensure it has been serviced and is fully operational for the potential increase in load.”

Added pressure on the power grid from more use of air conditioning can lead to blackouts, like the 2003 power outage in the northeast region of North America, which left an estimated 50 million people in Canada and eight U.S. states without power. Ashish Moondra, senior product manager at Avocent, said that data centers should be prepared to handle possible blackouts.

Organizations should ensure that a UPS is backing up all mission-critical equipment, Moondra said. A UPS is the “first line of defense” during blackouts, he noted, and batteries for UPSes should be tested at the beginning of summer and replaced if they do not function properly.

A backup generator should be available to handle longer outages during the summer. Organizations should test the switchover to generator prior to summer months and should always make sure there is a good supply of fuel available for the generator.

Related Search Term(s): Backup & recovery, data centers, power, Avocent, CA

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