Data Center - Reference Guide

Starting Your Own Server Room

The information systems in your organization are a crucial cog in your day to day operations. Ensuring that they are organized and properly maintained may as well be vital to your success. The data center or server room is the heart of your information system and keeping high standards for keeping the integrity and functionality of its environment is an investment worth every dollar. Starting out your own server room must start with lots and lots of planning. This guide tackles the following topics on how to plan out your server room properly

1. Size & Space Requirements – Your server room size and space is dependent upon your organization’s computing requirements. Smaller data centers will need a smaller floor area and fewer equipment, larger data centers will need more room but both should make room for expansion based on your business’ growth.
2. Temperature/Climate Control – Just as server room size is dependent on organizational needs, environmental controls for your server room are dependent on several factors as well. Factors such as the heat load for room size, occupants, equipment, and lighting are important considerations. There are also optimum temperature and humidity levels to be maintained.
3. Racks & Mounting Options – Environmental controls are important in maintaining the optimum conditions for server operations but these will be negated without the proper racks and mountings. Rack and mounting options can help improve on air flow and make maintenance and troubleshooting work easier.
4. Cable Management – A well organized server room goes a long way in keeping the continuity of operations and longevity of your equipment. This article enumerates cable management pointers that will help maintain your investment.
5. Service & Accessibility – talk about how often servers need to be serviced on average and what type of accessibility options will be needed (virtual and physical).

A balanced investment in your server room and the equipment it houses will help ensure continuity of operations for your information systems. Start out your server room properly by carefully planning for the five topics enumerated. Global 1 Resources offers a number of solutions that will help you build a well-designed server room. Our offerings for racks, mounting, and cable management all contribute towards the successful management of your information systems and ultimately your business.

Next: Size & Space Requirements