Cisco’s data center in Allen, Texas (DC2), was designed to make best use of the high-density Cisco Unified Computing System and Nexus switches. Cisco’s business requirement for high-density computing, supporting up to five Unified Computing System chassis per rack, essentially quadrupled the per-rack power requirements at Texas DC2 compared to target load requirements at our other data centers.
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Tags: Cisco, coc-data-center, cooling, data center, DC, high density computing, overhead cooling

How many ice cubes does it take to cool a server?

This week’s Data Center Deconstructed Q&A item isn’t quite phrased that way, but if you consider the history of refrigeration that’s the riddle we’re pondering.  It’s a good one to figure out; Data Center designers and operators face the issue daily as part of their mission to create efficient server environments.

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Tags: Cisco, coc-data-center, cooling, data center, datacenterdeconstructed, hardware density, ice, refrigeration

Most data centers are challenged with the same cost control problems of power, cooling, space, and people. Illustrating that one x86 server can cost more than US$400 a year in just energy consumption, a 2009 Gartner study concluded that IT managers can combat rising costs by reviewing their data center strategies and proactively looking to consolidation, use of energy saving solutions, and strategic deployment of IT labor.  Our online chronicle, Cisco Data Center 2011-Texas, provides an inside look at how Cisco IT is tackling these challenges with a strategy that is reflected in our new facility, Texas Data Center 2.

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Tags: cloud, Consolidation, cooling, data center, power, virtualization

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported the period January through July 2010 as the warmest on record for average global land and ocean temperatures.  In August 2010, a piece of Greenland broke off and formed a floating ice island four times the size of Manhattan.  With IT organizations around the world focused on the challenges of protecting the environment and reducing costs associated with power and cooling, why would Cisco choose a notoriously warm area such as Texas to build a new, planet-friendly data center?

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Tags: airside economizer, cooling, data center 2011, Green