A modern data center design should reduce carbon emissions. The carbon footprint of a data center is getting bigger by the day as more and more people are using the internet. The internet has become a necessity in our lives today.
The Different Between Traditional and a Modern Data Center Design
Data centers have evolved over the last few years, and new designs are changing the way companies can deploy their applications. The traditional data center design model is being replaced by more efficient, green methods better equipped to handle today’s workloads.
The main difference between traditional and modern data center design is in the power of the equipment and cooling systems.
Traditional data center designs are generally large and expansive, occupying ample space, which translates into high power usage. They also have difficulty adding extra capacity when needed and require a lot of maintenance work.
However, modern data centers are highly flexible, scalable, and easy to manage. These new designs are more energy efficient than the traditional ones, but they come at a cost premium compared to their predecessors.
Traditional Data Center Design
In a traditional data center design, each server has its dedicated cooling unit, which means there is a cooling unit for each rack of servers. The cooling units are usually located at the top of the racks because they require space above them for airflow. This can leave limited space between racks.
The energy used by traditional data centers is snowballing because they are becoming more densely populated with more computing power per square foot than ever before.
Read more about: green data center energy use
Modern Data Center Design
Modern data centers use a heat sink approach instead of the traditional water-cooling approach.
A heat sink approach uses heat pipes to transfer heat from one place to another. A modern data center moves hot air away from servers and into the walls, where the walls can cool it through natural convection processes like wind tunnels or fans.
The modern data center is a well-balanced ecosystem of people, processes, and technology. Its design aims to be flexible, scalable, and efficient.
The modern data center design relies on three pillars:
People - a well-trained and skilled workforce who can oversee all aspects of the data center operation, from physical infrastructure to software application management. The staff also need to be flexible and willing to work in a variety of roles as they move through different phases or projects within the facility;
Process - robust processes that ensure repeatable results are achieved consistently over time;
Technology - state-of-the-art hardware and software solutions that provide maximum efficiency while reducing costs
In a modern data center design, you can reduce power consumption by an average of 20 percent by using more efficient servers, cooling systems, and software tools, according to Green Grid, an industry group focused on improving data center efficiency.
This reduction translates into a reduction in carbon emissions by about 2 million metric tons annually in the United States alone.
Modern data center design is a complex process that requires careful planning and coordination between many different parties. Implementing a new data center can be a long and challenging process, but it also has enormous potential for improving the efficiency of your IT infrastructure.
Conclusion
The cloud computing industry is increasing, a growth the sector expects to continue for years. As this trend continues, it will be necessary for companies to focus on reducing their carbon footprint from these facilities.
As we continue to use the internet, our data centers will require more energy to power servers and other equipment.
A recent study by Greenpeace revealed that data centers account for 2% of global electricity consumption and 1% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., equivalent to all U.S. commercial aviation and maritime shipping combined.
Data centers can become more efficient using renewable energy sources, such as solar panels or wind turbines. However, even if you can't use these sources, there are still ways to make data centers more environmentally friendly.
These days, it's not enough to have a data center that can house all your hardware — it has to be able to do so efficiently and at a reasonable cost. This means you must think about managing your servers, storage, and network infrastructure.
Comments