Christelle Larkins, Country Manager, Eaton Power Quality, says monitoring of the power infrastructure has always been vital to optimising uptime, but in high-density and heterogeneous environments, it has become even more critical. Not only is it virtually impossible to track operating status without adequate power monitoring, users with minimal monitoring are missing an opportunity for substantial savings that come with optimised efficiency.
“Substantial increases in computing density are driving significant change in today's data centre environments. Commonly, data centres today feature a mix between the traditional systems and the new blade servers. However, as blade configurations become a bigger part of typical operations, users will experience substantially increased demand on UPS systems and standby generator sets. This increased demand can come as a surprise to IT managers who are unaware of the special power needs typical of blade configurations, which need to be closely monitored to avoid overloading the power infrastructure.”
Traditional, non-blade computers require components such as power supplies that are bulky, hot, space-inefficient and duplicated across many computers that may or may not be performing at capacity. By locating these common infrastructure components in one place and sharing them between the blade computers, overall utilisation is more efficient. The specifics of which functions are included and how those functions are implemented vary by blade vendor, but they share common characteristics that impact the design of today's data centres, especially in terms of power and cooling.
“To ensure system and data integrity, a computer operating system must shut down in the correct sequence. To accomplish this, users must install a software module on each protected server to automate various functions in case of power problems,” says Larkins.
These automated functions can include:
* Executing a script to close all applications running on the server.
* Initiating a shutdown sequence or hibernation after a pre-set timeout or just before total battery discharge to maintain service continuity.
* Restarting the operating system automatically or in manual mode when main power is restored.
* Personalising alarm messages for events concerning the UPS, etc.
MGE Office Protection Systems, an Eaton brand, offers a selection of software shutdown modules that can be used with network management cards as well as the network management proxy. This simple software gives users a real-time view of their on-site power quality and the ability to set up automatic actions in case of a power crisis, like the automatic shutdown of the PC or server at the end of the battery runtime or sending an alert to notify any power problem. Personal UPS software offers a good strategy for individual or small-business users looking for a useful upgrade to their power protection at no cost.
While installing the best UPS hardware is paramount to maintaining uptime in any critical network, ensuring that they have a comprehensive software solution that proactively monitors the health of power and environmental infrastructure adds a layer of protection that assures the maximum possible availability and data integrity, Larkins says.
“UPS vendors can no longer get by with simply providing 'batteries and a box' because sophisticated administrators have found that, no matter how robust the hardware, maintaining constant surveillance and extensive control ultimately provide the greatest level of security. Since human error and malicious attacks can also pose a threat to any critical system, it is necessary to assure security for monitoring and control functions so that power management itself does not present exposure to a security breach.”
Share