Why Is Server Room Temperature Monitoring Important?
The interior of an IT cabinet can be a hostile operating environment for your equipment. Servers, switches, and routers generate heat, which needs to be removed. Cool air is drawn in, reducing the operating temperature. Heat is the deadly enemy of your servers. This is why server room temperature monitoring is important. Like the servers, internal fans struggle to maintain temperature, and your energy costs spiral. It is critical that you monitor your cabinet for hotspots. This avoids equipment overheating and regulates cooling equipment.
A 2013 study by the U.S. General Services Administration recommended a temperature of 72°F – 80°F for data centers. The study claims a 4-5% saving in energy costs results from every 1°F of temperature increase. In 2014 ASHRAE dictated the highest operating temperature for data centers is 89.6°F. So there is no hard and fast rule. It can be safely said however that most data centers are overcooled. Without a server room temperature monitoring system, it is impossible to control the environment. The result is a very in-efficient data center with high PUE numbers, high energy costs, and a large carbon footprint.
Global attention increasingly turns toward the impact of technology on the environment. Datacenter providers are trying to find new ways to cut costs and lessen their carbon footprint. In 2013 data centers consumed a huge 91 billion kilowatt-hours of energy.
Server Room Temperature Monitoring – Case Study
A large IT service company in India had issues with their server rooms overheating. They had state-of-the-art HVAC systems, heat exhausts, and central cooling elements. Despite this expense, there were critical issues that were causing servers to overheat. The result was servers shutting down automatically. Downtime in a data center means lost revenue.
An audit of the facilities showed the servers in the corners, nearby the AC vents were operating with excellent efficiency. As the servers got further away from the cooling vents they were more prone to overheating. The problem became more obvious during the summer season
This pointed to problems with the temperature at the air intake of servers in specific locations not being maintained. A review of the way in which the air was distributed around the data center was done. To improve the flow of cool air to the servers a data center temperature monitoring system was installed. The sensors placed at cabinet-level detected hotspots on specific cabinets. Cooling systems were adjusted accordingly. The monitoring system alerted if the situation became critical so pre-emptive action could be taken. This prevented a catastrophic shutdown event.
The Solution
AKCP, supplies server room temperature monitoring solutions. These can prevent disaster before it happens. You have an overview of your data center’s environmental condition. The monitoring system highlights problematic areas. This saves you time and money in catastrophic events. Avoid downtime and increase server life. Temperature sensors at strategic locations in the data center give IT staff real-time monitoring.
Use this data to automatically control cooling systems and CRAC. Ensure you are always running as close as you can to the ASHRAE recommended standards. AKCP has thermal map sensors that are ideal for placing at the air inlet of a computer cabinet. It monitors the temperature at the top, middle, and bottom, as well as the humidity of the air coming into your cabinet. Installed at the rear they monitor the exhaust air temperature as well.
Monitoring of all your cabinets is provided through a single user interface. AKCPro Server maps your data center and its environmental conditions. A lite DCIM solution, AKCPro Server is a free software tool for all AKCP customers.
What Should You Look For In Server Room Environmental Monitoring Software?
See the following criteria for environmental monitoring software and analyzed tools:
- A system that allows alarms to be routed to a technician’s dashboard.
- Alert forwarding by email or SMS
- Software and hardware deployment options
- Simple to set up and maintain.
- Physical sensors are a nice addition to the device’s onboard sensors.
- A software package or device that delivers extensive monitoring at a reasonable price is considered value for money.
