16 Apr 4 Data Center Management Tips
What are some useful data center management tips?
- Optimize storage space
- Conduct regular maintenance
- Regulate hardware temperature
- Consider fiber optic cables
In this day and age of computing and digitization, the advancement of technology has led to the creation of business-savvy network solutions for large companies across the world. As such, one way they’re able to integrate their information technology structuring and infrastructure is by investing in third-party IT solutions providers. Compounding this practice is the never-ending endeavor of companies equipping themselves with the latest data center management tips in order to make your data center hardware and network more efficient, and thus increase the level of operational productivity.
What is a data center?
Simply put, a data center refers to a single location where all of the company’s network peripherals, hardware, and software are located. This area is responsible for the computation, processing, distributing, and storage of large amounts of information and data, all in one centralized space. Data centers are typically considered to be one of the essential components in order for an organization to maintain its daily operations.
As such, companies have always been looking for innovative ways to maximize the way their data centers run and to improve and manage their information-processing capacities consistently. So what tips can you adopt to manage your data center better?
Optimize storage space
If you’re the owner of a large business, one way you can manage your data center operations is by investing in the storage phase, both in the physical and computing aspects.
Data centers are designed to hold large amounts of information and perform highly complex computing tasks. Inevitably, these computing processes would eventually have to end up dealing with terabytes or even petabytes of information. Some practices that can help you maximize storage are by investing in hardware and purchasing new equipment capable of performing these complex computations.
Another way you can optimize your storage space is by doing away with old, underperforming hardware such as outdated hard drives and old storage systems. With technological innovation, manufacturing smaller and more efficient devices with more memory has been possible. This shift away from bulkier machines can help you organize the space in your data center.
Lastly, when it comes to the installation of new equipment is to always correctly bundle up your cables through a cable organizer for a neater appearance.
Conduct regular maintenance
Many businesses rely on their IT infrastructure for their operations to run smoothly. However, there are some days when network problems tend to be inevitable. In this kind of situation, everyone at all departmental and organizational levels in a company ends up suffering. Despite this inevitability, a good practice that businesses and companies can adopt to reduce or mitigate the effects of data center network failures is the conduction of regular maintenance in these centers.
Conducting routine maintenance allows a business to minimize hardware failures. For example, having a technician inspect hardware and the different machines is a preventive measure for undesirable network outcomes. With regards to preventing loss of data, a company should always be able to perform backups by incorporating good data recovery practices, especially on the most crucial data sets that are contained in their centers.
Regulate hardware temperature
Ensure that the ventilation and cooling systems in your data management centers are up to par. When systems overheat, there’s a higher chance of a hardware shutdown, which can pose disastrous results for the business. It may be difficult to get systems up and to run again, especially with the lack of a proper backup plan. One way of avoiding this is by continually regulating the temperature of hardware inside a data center.
In regulating the temperature of the environment itself, inspectors should ensure that the ventilation and heating systems in the room itself are all working in order. There might be some instances where ventilation components have to be replaced, or the entire HVAC system of a company would have to undergo an overhaul.
Monitoring hardware temperature can allow companies to target areas of improvement in their data centers, enabling them to identify solutions on reducing instances of lagging and slow network processes.
Consider fiber optic cables
Investing in a fiber optic cabling mechanism is one way for your data center to speed up the information-processing capabilities of different types of hardware.
Over time, you might notice a slowdown in your company’s operations. Aside from the usage of outdated software, this can also be due to the fact that the cabling systems are no longer sufficient to handle the transmission of huge chunks of information. Copper-based cable systems are typically slower compared to fiber optic cables.
While the initial cost of investing in fiber optic cables may be expensive, it would ultimately have positive financial benefits for your company, in terms of reducing maintenance and replacement costs.
Key Takeaway
By considering these data center management tips, you might end up with a center that’s more organized and more optimized for your business’s needs.
As mentioned before, data center management is all about ensuring both hardware and software meet the quality checks and standards in maintaining or increasing the level of efficiency of a company’s operations. Adopting preventive measures for your data centers is always the best way to go to create the right financial solutions for your company.