7 tips to optimize data center performance

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Chris Grahn Director, Data Center Operations [email protected]

linkedin.com/in/chrisgrahn

7 Tips to Optimize Data Center

Performance

3 December 2015

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I’m not going to be talking about…

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We are going to talk about…

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Do your racks look like this?

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What about the other side?

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You can’t optimize what you don’t know

Look at your equipment, problems, and limitations

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The 7 Tips

1. Select and lay out your PDUs based on your gear

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The 7 Tips


2. Lay out your structured cabling plan

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The 7 Tips



3. Color code your cables

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The 7 Tips




4. Use proper length cables

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The 7 Tips





5. Have an organized stock of the cables

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The 7 Tips






6. Use a cable manager that works for your needs

- I personally like Velcro, but numerous solutions may work.

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The 7 Tips






6. Use a cable manager that works for your needs

- I personally like Velcro, but numerous solutions may work.

7. Train your team on the standards

- Don’t allow non-standard work.

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The Motivator

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Why you should do this all, today

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Intel Turbo Boost Technology*

Availability and frequency upside of Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 state

depends upon a number of factors including, but not limited to the

following:

- Type of workload

- Number of active cores

- Estimated current consumption

- Estimated power consumption

- Processor temperature

Intel E5-2690-V3 12 Core CPU

Base Speed: 2.6 Ghz

Turbo Speed: 3.5 Ghz

Running turbo is a 35% increase in computing speed

If your poor cabling standards are choking the breathability of your cabinet,

will you ever gain those speed benefits?

*http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/architecture-and-technology/turbo-boost/turbo-boost-technology.html

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Breathability Maters!

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But wait, there’s more!

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Fan Power Loss

Assuming we are working with a typical Dell R630 server

- 7x fan clusters are used to move air from the front to the back of the

server

If your CPU is under heavy load, it is safe to assume those fans will be

pushing up to their maximum RPMs to help keep those processors cool.

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Fan Power Loss

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So let’s summarize what we discussed

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When did it become acceptable as an

industry to lose focus on maximizing

processing power and power efficiency

inside a rack?

Aside from the 35% in CPU loss and the

20% waste in power efficiency, the costs

of poor cabling also include:

- Increased labor on basic tasks

- Power risks involved in switch

replacement

- Time-intensive troubleshooting

required

- Locating correct hardware is

challenging

- Cabinets can’t breathe as well

- CPUs don’t get their Turbo on

- Fans need more power to remove

the hot air

Time is Money

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Investments in good cabling:

- 1x purchase - $1,000 for color coded

/custom length cables

- 1x purchase - $50 in Velcro

- Initial learning curve

Labor Benefits:

- Decrease in basic task time

- Instantaneous comprehension

- Phantom problems are reduced

- Fewer mistakes

Technical Benefits:

- Cabinet breathes better

- Processors get to Turbo

- Fans run slower (less power and

wear/tear)

- Equipment lasts longer both in

performance and physically

Cost savings can be folded into new

projects as budgets remain flat.

Time is Money

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Which would you rather have?

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Any Questions?

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Thank you for your time

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Chris Grahn Director, Data Center Operations [email protected]

linkedin.com/in/chrisgrahn