LOAD TESTING
xxxxxxx
It’s not difficult to create a valid test environment, but it does require planning.
Focus on the edge cases such as peak
logon and backup times.
If designing or refurbishing
multiple data halls, create or
buy movable racks that will
hold the heat emulators. With
hardware refreshes taking place every
3-5 years and data centres having a life
of up to 25 years, it makes sense to
invest in equipment that will support a
rolling program of refurbishment.
8
Invest in or hire specialists in
computational fluid dynamics
(CFD) who will be able to see
how airflow moves as you alter the heat
load. This will quickly identify where
there is a risk of hot spots that are not
easily cooled and provide information
as to where certain types of equipment
with high heat load can/cannot be
located.
9
Ensure that you create a set
of baselines for the different
types of test load. This can
then be used to compare against
ongoing readings from the sensors
once the data centre has been
commissioned. Evaluating actual vs.
projected heat is a good indicator of
future problems and potential energy
waste.
10
24 NETCOMMS europe Volume V Issue 4 2015
These steps don’t form an exhaustive
list. The choice of whether to use some
or all will depend on budget and
availability of equipment. It is possible
to bring in a third party to do the
testing and they will supply more of the
equipment required to make the testing
realistic. Experienced testing vendors
will be able to advise on how best to
create realistic baselines for the types of
workload to be run. They will also help
create the processes that then compare
tests, projections and actual heat and
cooling figures gathered by sensors.
While these figures are significant in
maintaining future costs and efficiency
they are also indicators of non-IT
related problems. Poor housekeeping
practices, such as a build up of old
cabling or a failure to maintain cable
standards, can have a disproportionate
impact of the effectiveness of cooling.
The sensors showing an increase in
heat and regular use of CFD to test
airflow will also indicate hidden
problems, especially where
infrastructure is under the floor or
above the ceiling.
Conclusion
It’s not difficult to create a valid heating
and cooling test environment, but it
does require planning. The biggest
issue is often the communication
between the end-user clients, the
contractor creating/building the data
centre and the test team. In many
cases, while there is a contract and a
handover process, there is little real
communication over future use.
One reason for this is that those
commissioning the data centre are
not part of the IT team. There is
still a disconnect between facilities
management and IT and this will
always create opportunities for money
to be wasted. Another reason is
commercial sensitivity where corporate
customers want to prevent competitors
gaining an understanding of their
future data centre requirements.
Irrespective of why customer and
contractor do not talk to each other,
both parties must take responsibility
for historical poor practices in testing
data centres. Solving the problem is not
hard, will save money on energy costs
and is an important contributor to any
corporate environmental audit.
www.netcommseurope.com