Managing Data Center

1. Managing Data Center Chapter 12. Stocking and Standardizing

2. Equipping a Data Center • The main idea for this book is to make Data Center robust, flexible, modular, standardized, and intuitive to use. • Data Center consumables are the everyday materials needed by administrators and network engineers to make their equipment function. So you need to Stock a server environment with carefully chosen consumable. Example: Pallet jacks, power tools, and tile lifters • If your company has multiple Data Centers, be consistent with the consumables and tools that you provide in each room, for space and can find your needs easy. • Data Center users can rely upon what materials are available for them. • Providing the same consumables and tools in multiple Data Centers also lends itself to purchasing those items in bulk

3. Patch Cords and Adapters • Always try to keep Patch cords (a pre-terminated fiber and copper cabling bearing connectors at either end). • The patch cords should match whatever structured cabling exists in the server environment. • fiber patch cords are generally defined by their diameter (62.5, 50, or 8.3 micron) and type of connectors. • copper patch cords are defined by their rating (Category 6 or 5E) and the orientation of the wiring pins within their RJ-45 connectors

4. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • many servers and networking devices come with their own patch cords. However, there is no guarantee that they are made in the same configuration as the structured cabling that exists within the Data Center. • The patch cord might be built to lesser specifications, which would then lower the performance of the device it is plugged in to. For example, if a Category 5 copper patch cord is deployed in a Data Center equipped Category 6 structured cabling. • Stock an array of patch cords in the server environment. Provide cords with connectors that are compatible with both the room's structured cabling and as many incoming servers as possible.

5. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • Keep cords in multiple lengths. There should be enough variety so that a Data Center user isn't forced to use a long cable to make a short connection. Using overly long patch cords creates clutter and snagging hazards. • stock a Data Center with patch cords in lengths of 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 20, and 50 feet. • The cables in greatest demand are those 2 to 6 feet, Because most connections are made entirely within the patching field of a networking cabinet. • Slightly longer cables, 8 feet (2.4 meters), are for connections running from a device in a server cabinet to the structured cabling either below the raised floor or in a raceway suspended from the ceiling. • Last are the patch cords 20 and 50 feet (6 and 15.2 meters). Because the Data Centers you might manage are equipped with structured cabling at each cabinet location, there is rarely a need for such long patch cords. They are strictly for emergencies or temporary use, such as keeping a server connected to a networking device while relocating from one server row to another.

6. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • Providing your own patch cords also enables you to color-code them for greater clarity and organization.(u can know the connection type and what they connect) • Businesses typically color-code their Data Center patch cords in one of two ways, • Either by configuration—how their internal wiring is arranged— • Or by function—how the cable is used.

7. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • Establish a system of color-coding patch cords for your entire business, not just those used in the Data Center. Example: Data Center and lab groups happen to choose the same color for different patch cords. Their cables might appear identical on the outside but have different wiring inside, which can lead to considerable confusion. • Adopting one system of color-coding also facilitates ordering patch cords in bulk, at a significant cost savings, and then distributing them as needed to the respective rooms and support groups. • Because patch cord connectors aren't always compatible with the data jacks found on servers, stock adapters in the Data Center as well.

8. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • Adapters can be used to connect patch cords to servers, network devices, patching fields, or even other patch cords. So-called straight-through adapters, which have the same jack on either side, can be used to connect two short patch cords and make them serve as one longer one • prefer color-coding patch cords and adapters according to their configuration because it reduces the chance for confusion

9. Patch Cords and Adapters (Cont.) • To properly care for your patch cords, do the following: • Use care when plugging in or unplugging patch cords. Excessive pressure can damage the cable. • Keep caps on fiber patch cords and the jacks they plug in to. This keeps away dust, which can cause signal loss or even scratch a fiber cable's polished end. • Don't drop patch cords, especially fiber patch cords. Connectors might become damaged. • Apply the same minimum bend radius to your patch cords that you apply to your structured cabling. Recommend 2 inches (5.1 centimeters). • Before reusing a fiber patch cord, clean it at each end and recheck it with a fiber tester. Cleaning is typically done with a lint-free wipe and a drop of 99 percent isopropyl alcohol. Lightly pass over the fiber tip in a figure-8, once with a moistened part of the wipe and then again with a dry part of the wipe—don't rub hard or you might scratch the fiber. After cleaning, test the patch cord to confirm that it meets the same performance standards you specify for new cords.

10. Server Cabinets • The next most valuable items to stock in a Data Center are server cabinets. Cabinets can often be provided by the manufacturer whose servers your company buys • Before you accept a manufacturer's proprietary cabinets, however, make sure that they are compatible with your Data Center. • A preferable alternative to this is for your company to standardize on a generic cabinet design and deploy it in the Data Center as much as possible. A Data Center that houses only one model of server cabinet is much easier to manage. • If an older cabinet model becomes less compatible for newer servers, perhaps due to changing equipment footprints or increasing weight, consider standardizing on a newer cabinet style.

11. Server Cabinets (Cont.) • How many server cabinets to keep on hand depends on the size of your server environment, how quickly new equipment might arrive for installation, and how fast an order for additional cabinets can be filled. • Server cabinets can come pre-equipped with their own power strips or be outfitted with others. If you stock power strips as a distinct item be sure to include them when stocking, ordering, calculating lead times, and so on. • Stock an ample supply of cabinet shelves in the Data Center, too. Depending upon the size, type, and number of devices that are installed within it

12. Tools • Provide a common group of tools in your Data Centers, This isn't just a convenience issue—when downtime occurs, every minute that doesn't have to be spent retrieving tools is hopefully how much faster devices can be brought back online. • Anything that helps a Data Center user complete their work in the room should be considered a tool not only handheld tools. • Next slides will describe helpful Data Center tools.

13. Tools (Cont.) 1- Anti-tip brackets: • Some models of servers and networking devices are heavy enough to cause a cabinet to tip over, assuming that the cabinet isn't bolted to the ground. This can occur during the item's installation, removal, or regular maintenance. • Equip all Data Center cabinets with their own anti-tip mechanisms or provide independent rails that can be attached to a cabinet when these three functions are to occur.

14. Tools (Cont.) 2- Cabinet screws • Stock the Data Center with screws that are compatible with the mounting rails for your standard server cabinets. • The tiniest misalignment can lead to stripped screws, broken tools, scraped hands, and raised blood pressure. Don't rely solely upon the screws that come with individual servers and network devices. 3- Cable ties: • Cable ties, also called zip ties, are useful for neatly gathering excess lengths of patch cords and power cables, securing bundles of structured cabling, so that they don't drift from the specific server cabinet location they are to terminate at. 4- Flashlights [torches]: • While server environments are generally well lit, have a few flashlights available for working under the raised floor or within the recesses of large infrastructure items such as a power distribution unit.

15. Tools (Cont.) 5- Equipment lift: • equipment lift has a shelf that can be placed under a heavy object and then, typically by the use of a hand crank, raised to eye level. • This item is especially valuable at a small site with few employees, because it is less likely that a system administrator there can find someone to help lift and install a heavy piece of equipment 6- Handheld tools • Screwdrivers (slot and Phillips head) and wrenches are the most useful. A hammer can be helpful for tapping bent metal back into place

16. Tools (Cont.) 7- Information tags • These tags can be custom made at most print shops or office supply stores. Tags can also be used by Data Center support staff to alert system administrators and network engineers about conditions that need to be corrected with their machines, such as missing labels or power cords plugged in to an incorrect electrical receptacle.

17. Tools (Cont.) 8- Label makers • Label makers are also helpful for the Data Center support staff, enabling them to update immediately minor labeling in the room such as when a server cabinet is placed in a new location and needs new power circuit information. 9- Moving dolly, pallet jack, and equipment cart • Just as an equipment lift helps Data Center users raise and install heavy servers, so do dollies, pallet jacks, and carts make it easier to move items around the room. Stock one of each in a Data Center, perhaps two if the room is particularly large.

18. Tools (Cont.) 10- Power tools • Manual screwdrivers are acceptable for installing a few cabinet shelves and servers, but for more demanding jobs provide a power screwdriver or electric drill. Include a bit set and plenty of rechargeable batteries to prolong how often the tool can be used. 11- Stepladder • Having a stepladder in a Data Center is helpful for both system administrators and the room's support staff. They make it easier to reach servers installed high in server cabinets and hanging signs. • provide multiple stepladders in the room so that users always have one at hand.

19. Tools (Cont.) 12- Tile lifters • If your Data Center has a raised floor and infrastructure that terminates in the space below, provide tile pullers so that Data Center users can easily gain access to that area. There are multiple types of devices for lifting floor panels. • a collection of Data Center tools, wall-mounted near the room's entrance. Provide this cluster of helpful items immediately inside each door to make them readily available for users.

20. Accessories 1- Cable testers: • A cable tester is useful for double-checking the quality and performance of both structured cabling and patch cords. Available for copper and fiber media, cable testers can gauge the strength of a signal as it reaches the end of a cable, measure different forms of interference, as well as map the wiring within a patch cord. It is especially important to confirm the quality of any patch cord you intend to reuse. Patch cords that have been used or discarded or both can become kinked, dirty at the connection points, or otherwise damaged. 2- Electrical circuit analyzer: • Say that you've installed a new server in a Data Center cabinet and for some reason the device isn't receiving power. Is the problem with the server's power supply? The cabinet's power strips? Perhaps it is the power receptacle provided to that cabinet location in the Data Center? Provide a simple three-wire electrical circuit analyzer in the Data Center. Smaller than a pack of cigarettes, this device indicates how the hot, neutral, and ground wires are configured at a given electrical outlet.

21. Accessories (Cont.) 3- Clocks: • Having clocks in the Data Center makes it less likely for someone working in the room to lose track of time. This is helpful if a system administrator has arranged with their clients for a specific amount of downtime and must complete the upgrade of a machine on a deadline. 4- Fireproof Containers: • Provide trash cans to discard paper products into and a larger bin to place decommissioned equipment into. Both should be fireproof. 5- Hanging bins: • Cable ties, cabinet screws, and other minor Data Center items need to be stored should be Installed near each Data Center entrance to make them easily accessible and simple to keep in stock.

22. Accessories (Cont.) 6- Spare floor panels: • If your server environment has a raised floor, keep a handful of extra panels on hand to facilitate such adjustments by the Data Center's support staff. 7- Tacky mats: • Place these sticky mats just inside your Data Center entrances to reduce the amount of dirt and other contaminants that people track in on the bottom of their shoes. The mats contain several layers of adhesive sheets. When the top sheet becomes dirty, you peel it away to reveal the next clean sheet below.

23. Equipment Spares • At many large companies, servers are purchased and supported by distinct groups. Even if multiple groups are using the same model of servers, they might or might not coordinate their efforts to make bulk purchases or obtain companywide service maintenance agreements. • Take advantage of this perspective by stocking spares of those servers and networking devices that are most commonly used. Stocking a few extra power supplies or data drives for the most prevalent servers can let a system administrator swap out a bad one in minutes rather than having to wait for a replacement to arrive. This dramatically reduces how long a malfunctioning system remains offline.