The future of data centres goes to the edge

Pro
Power, cooling and compute prefab modules deploy easily with minimal site requirements

9 March 2017

Taking availability only in terms of Tier 3 DCs is misleading, says Brown and a recalculation is required that properly evaluates downtime to include edge compute facilities. Another parameter for calculating downtime should be the number of users impacted, he adds.

“We need to rethink robust architectures for the localised DC to focus on integrity, reliability and security,” said Brown.

Tackling this trend toward greater edge computing capability will require changes in hardware and infrastructure, utilisation models, power and cooling, and design and fit-out. There will be a need for modular systems, converged infrastructures, pre-engineered and modular systems.

“We need to rethink robust architectures for the localised DC to focus on integrity, reliability and security,” Kevin Brown, Schneider Electric

Brown said that pod-based systems that are based on a modular design can provide compute space and power and cooling, with hot-aisle/cold-aisle configuration, on any suitable floor. These fully-contained systems can be deployed in individual configurations to suit the space and compute requirements. They can be entirely self-sufficient in terms of cooling, or can be adapted to utilise existing infrastructures.

Micro data centres
Micro data centres too, can be adapted to go from a self-contained pedestal infrastructure up to free standing cabinets that are designed for branch or remote office spaces, but with appropriate security protections, from biometric access to full remote administration.

Developments in lithium-ion batteries, for capacity, performance and charge times, have also significantly extended the reliability and resilience of such systems, especially where power supply might be of a lesser standard than for more centralised facilities, though their benefits can be leveraged there too.

However, while these trends can be accommodated by these emerging infrastructure options, from a system architecture perspective, there are other issues.

Open Compute Project designs provide architectural approaches to accommodate new workloads and utilisation models, but these must be analysed, said Brown, considering the whole infrastructure, including edge computing. Questions arise, he said over electrical supply, as well as achieving 2N or Tier 3 redundancy. There are also questions over the ability of such architectures to cope with both traditional IT infrastructures and more contemporary, cloud or service-based implementations.

Prefab data centres
At its Missouri research and development facility, the company demonstrated solutions to accommodate these various requirements, from the micro data centre, to flexible, hyper-pod designs and into pre-fabricated modular systems.

Scott Neal, product director, prefabricated data centre modules, said that some internet giants are starting to look at prefab for different ways to deploy infrastructure.

Demonstrating the flexibility and speed of deployment of prefab, Neal showed one complete container-style installation that had been deployed through a standard lorry loading bay and simply hooked up to necessary supplies and connectivity.

External demonstrators showed modules for self-contained power, cooling and compute as might be deployed in the mining, energy or prospecting industries. However, Neal pointed out that in urban centres, as well as sites with restrictions such as listed buildings or healthcare facilities, prefabricated units were allowing use of space that was previously impractical or inaccessible.

The future, said Brown, is moving a cloud architecture down to edge data centres.

 

TechCentral Reporters

Read More:


Back to Top ↑

TechCentral.ie