Data Centres in the Early 21st Century
This whitepaper has been written for people who are finding that they need to know a lot more about data centres, how they work and what they do, than they previously expected. It has been produced using the wealth of information which Atos Origin has accrued over the years from running data centres for itself and for customers.
Most people’s knowledge of data centres is probably vague or out-of-date; the way they are structured and managed has evolved enormously in recent years. The state-of-the-art data centre is very different from its traditional forbears, and such changes will continue in coming years.
Data centres are a special concern for CEOs today because they represent a major capital investment, often for businesses which make few other such investments. And that investment typically needs to be made before the real need for the services arises, as it can take years to develop a working data centre. That means forward-looking risk taking: not a mode in which most operational organisations feel comfortable, especially in a harsh economic environment.
A further concern, in these days of increasing environmental awareness, is that data centres represent an enormous energy drain: they use relatively large amounts of electrical power. To some degree that can be justified, but it can also be improved. Saving some of that energy is good for the bottom line, as well as for the environment.
“Green” issues do therefore figure largely throughout this document; indeed there is a whole section specifically on the subject. The fact that it is towards the end does not indicate that it is a low priority, but rather that there are a lot of the basics which need to be understood before worthwhile observations can be made on the subject.
Lastly, we are all becoming reluctantly more aware of risks and risk management. Data centres are such a concentration of both technology and business assets that being aware of and managing risk is a very large part of their management. Some of these risks, such as the loss of power supplies, have always been there; others, such as terrorist attacks and bird flu, are more recent developments.
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