Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
June 2013
17/06/2013 4:12 PM
17/06/2013 4:12 PM
Contents
Contents 2
1. Introduction 3
Scope 3
Policy Framework 4
Related documents 4
3. Better practices 15
Organisation of the Better Practices 15
Implementing the Better Practices 16
Better Practices Fundamentals 16
Better Practices Power Systems 17
Better Practices Power Consumption 18
4. Conclusion 22
Summary of Better Practices 22
17/06/2013 4:12 PM
1. Introduction
Scope
This guide applies to the data centre infrastructure supplying power to the ICT
equipment and the supporting systems. This includes switchboards, switchgear,
controlgear, transformers, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), backup power
generation, distribution boards, equipment racks and ICT equipment.
This guide considers the power used by the ICT equipment and cooling systems in a
data centre, but does not address in detail the better practices for ICT equipment
efficiency or cooling a data centre2.
1
Throughout this guide, the terms power, electricity and electrical power are equivalent, although power is preferred.
2
The Data Centre Optimisation Targets Guidance document addresses ICT equipment and cooling efficiency.
Related documents
Information about the data centre strategy, and DCOT targets and guidance can be
obtained from the Data Centre section (datacentres@finance.gov.au).
The data centre better practice guides also cover:
Cooling: the mechanical and electrical systems that provide conditioned air
at the optimum temperature, humidity and pressure.
Data Centre Infrastructure Management: the system that monitors and
reports the state of the data centre. Also known as the building management
system.
Fire protection: the detection and suppression systems that minimise the
effect of fire on people and the equipment in the data centre.
Security: the physical security arrangements for the data centre. This
includes access controls, surveillance and logging throughout the building,
as well as perimeter protection.
3
The PUE metric is a ratio of the power used by the ICT equipment and overheads divided by the power used by the
ICT equipment in a single data centre. The Green Grid developed the PUE metric and more information can be
found at the website www.thegreengrid.org.
4
A PUE of 1.9 means that for every watt powering the ICT equipment 0.9 watts is being used by overheads.
Local
Backup Fire
distribution
generator Office area protection
lines to the
system
building
Power enters the building site via the local distribution lines. Very high availability
data centres will have multiple lines from several suppliers and substations.
The main switchboard has several functions. The main switchboard connects to the
various power networks in the building, and the backup generators. Each of the key
subsystems usually is on its own power network. If the external power fails, static
transfer switches automatically switches over to use power from the backup
generator. The metering device that measures the total electricity consumption for
the building is located at the point of supply between the local distribution lines and
the main switchboard. The main switchboard has a residual current device, which
reduces the chance of electrocution, by shutting off power if a fault is detected.
Electricity Billing
The other measurement device available in all data centres is the usage meter,
which is used to calculate the electricity bill. This is positioned on the local
distribution line before the main switchboard. The usage meter records two, equally
5
http://www.thegreengrid.org/en/Global/Content/white-papers/WP49-PUEAComprehensiveExaminationoftheMetric
6
The values are taken from the Uptime Institute survey.
ICT Efficiency
Reducing the power needed by the ICT equipment (the productive use) is often the
most effective way to maximise power efficiency. Reducing the ICT equipments
power load means smaller overhead power is needed, as for example, less heat is
generated so less cooling is needed.
Actions that reduce the power needed by ICT equipment include:
Virtualisation moving workloads from dedicated ICT equipment (including
servers, storage and networks) to shared ICT equipment can reduce the
amount of power required by 10% to 40%.
Decommissioning disused ICT equipment can be left powered on rather
than decommissioned and removed.
Modernising the latest models of ICT hardware are using much less power
for equivalent performance. Gartner advises that server power requirements
have dropped by two thirds over the past two generations.
Consolidation Physical and logical consolidation projects can rationalise
the data centre ICT equipment.
Cooling Efficiency
The cooling systems are usually the major source of overhead power consumption,
and so there is usually value in making cooling more efficient. There is a wide range
of data centre cooling technology, which provides agencies with great flexibility
about investing in an optimum solution.
Common techniques to minimise power use include:
Free air cooling brings the cooler air outside the data centre into the data
centre through dust and particle filters. In most Australian cities free air
cooling can be used over 50 per cent of the time, and in Canberra over 80 per
cent of the time.
Hot or cold aisle containment is a technique that aligns all the ICT equipment
in the racks so that all of the cold air arrives on side of the rack and leaves on
the other side of the rack. This means that the chilled air produced by the
cooling system is delivered to the ICT equipment without mixing with the
warmer exhaust air.
Organisations that maintain high efficiency metrics and high reliability for their data
centres are increasingly relying on virtualisation and cloud technology. In this
model, the data centre is highly reliable, the ICT hardware is based on identical,
inexpensive components that are not redundant, and the virtualised operating
environment protects the applications and business processes against individual
hardware component failures. This also works to mitigate eth effect of partial
failures in the power supply in the data centre.
Conclusion
Keeping a data centre performing optimally is challenging, due to the multiple
interacting systems. It is essential that power use is monitored, and that there are
clear expectations of the reliability of the power supply in a data centre.
Agencies must decide how much to invest in their data centres to obtain value for
money and to support achieving the agency outcomes. The better practices will
assist agencies to reach these objectives. The DCOT policy describes the minimum
performance measures for APS data centres and ICT equipment.
If an agency decides that the data centre performance is inadequate, the first point
to review is the data centre operations. If the operations are satisfactory (that is,
delivering the full capability of the design), then the data centre design must change.
Generally, changing the data centre design means moving to a different data centre.
As part of the data centre strategy two whole of government panels have been
established. The Data Centre Migration Services panel allows agencies to obtain any
mix of data centre project services, from design services to establish requirements
and assess existing data centres, through commissioning and moving to another
data centre, to cleaning and decommissioning the old data centre. The Data Centre
Facility panel provides access to quality commercial data centre facilities.
Data centres are very diverse in size and operational purposes. The guide focuses on
key principles and processes, enabling agencies to gauge the operational practices in
a data centre. Applying the better practices will require pragmatic judgements by
agencies.
Local Backup
distribution generator
lines to the
building
HVAC
7
The Uptime Institutes 2012 Data Centre Survey reports the average PUE as between 1.8 and 1.89. Conducted in
March and April 2012, over 1,100 organisations responded from around the world. The 21st Century Data Center:
An overview, ZDNet, http://www.zdnet.com/the-21st-century-data-center-an-overview-7000012996/ (confirmed 16
April 2013).
8
NABERS website 4 stars is a rating of Good Performance.
http://www.nabers.gov.au/public/WebPages/ContentStandard.aspx?module=10&template=3&include=6starrating.h
tm&side=factsheets.htm
Electricity Billing
Information from the power bill should be combined with other reporting to report
the consumption patterns of all equipment in the data centre, including the power
cost for each ICT system. The analysis of the billing information, power consumption
and demand should be available to all teams involved in the data centre.
When reducing the power bill, data centre and ICT managers should focus on
reducing the consumption, as this has proven the most effective.
Inspection
Normal fluctuations in power cause expansion and contraction, particularly at
connections in switchboards, PDUs and equipment racks. Over time this can lead to
components failing, disrupting the power supply.
Maintenance
Maintenance is essential to keep the data centre operating. The data centre
equipment must be maintained according to the manufacturers specifications.
However, maintenance activities increase risks to business operations during the
time the maintenance is being done. The increased risk to business during
maintenance activity should be assessed and controlled by business, ICT and data
centre staff.
Data Halls
A data hall is a room with dedicated PDUs and CRAC units within a data centre. Data
halls should be in one of three states:
9
The Green Grid, WP#35-Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE): A Green Grid Data Center Sustainability Metric,
http://www.thegreengrid.org/en/Global/Content/white-papers/WUE
10
http://www.ret.gov.au/energy/Documents/sustainbility-and-climate-
change/Water%20and%20the%20Electricity%20Generation%20Industry%20Report.pdf
Equipment Racks
The power load to be carried by the circuits, and the circuit breakers, will be
confirmed during the installation planning step for new ICT equipment.
If intelligent power rails are installed, then power is turned on to each outlet only
once change control is approved.
The racks and equipment are earthed according to the electrical design for the data
centre.
ICT Equipment
The DCOT targets are to be met by June 2015.
Facilities and ICT staff should identify and agree what to do with:
Idle ICT equipment that may be able to be powered off.
Obsolete and powered down equipment that may be able to be removed
from the data centre.
Power costs should be attributed to ICT equipment.
Power losses should be attributed to ICT equipment.
When power is being restored to the data centre following a partial or complete
power down, the ICT equipment is restarted in stages. This is to protect the power
systems and shorten the ICT system restoration. The start up phase of most ICT
equipment draws more power than normal operations. This peak demand may
cause circuit breakers to trip unnecessarily, resulting in extended outages.
Modern ICT systems in data centres are complex, preferring activation in particular
sequences. Restarting the ICT equipment out of sequence can cause avoidable
problems. Power should be restored to the ICT equipment in a staged manner,
allowing enough time for software to load and configure itself, and become available
for other systems.
Power cables are in marked single purpose trays or conduits, are not
hazards, and do not block airflow.
Domestic grade electrical equipment, including double adapters, extension
cords and power strips, are not used in the equipment racks, data halls or
data centre. Domestic grade equipment may be used in the office area only.
The contingency procedures established to meet the reliability targets and
manage risks are practiced regularly.
Risk management plan is current, jointly developed and agreed with
business owners.
Operations check the contingency plan and systems monthly for readiness
and completeness.
Power Consumption
DCOT virtualisation targets are met by June 2015.
Air temperature in data hall has been raised, to reduce power use while
maintaining ICT equipment reliability and warranties.
ICT equipment is powered down when not idle. ICT equipment is removed
from the data centre when not required.
Power cables in equipment racks do not impede airflow and cannot be
caught in doors.
The voltage to PSUs has been tuned to reduce heat.
Power costs are reported monthly, and attributed to significant ICT systems
and overhead systems.
Equipment racks are earthed, according to the electrical and earthing design.
Agencies that use better practices in their data centres can expect lower costs, better
reliability, and improved safety than otherwise. Implementing the better practices
will give managers more information about data centre power, enabling better
decisions. Overall, the data centre will become more efficient, and better aligned to
the agencys strategic objectives.
Agencies will also find it simpler and easier to report against the mandatory
objectives of the data centre strategy. The key metric is avoided costs, that is, the
costs that agencies did not incur as a result of improvements in their data centres.
Capturing avoided costs is most effective when done by an agency in the context of a
completed project that has validated the original business case.