You know that you are living in the future when you find yourself in the process of building your own data centre. But so many businesses have moved to a virtual existence and depend on cloud-based services for their entire infrastructure. You may wish to limit your physical property too, but you may not be as eager to hand over all your digital assets to the cloud. Some companies and even individuals have come to require their own data centre.Data centres can come in many sizes, and some can occupy only a tiny space in your home office. But the bigger you go, the more engineering will be required. Here are some things you should think about when starting.
- What is a Data Centre? An in-house Data centre is a place where you can centralize your servers and essential IT components.The room is designed specifically to facilitate easy maintenance and repairs of your information hub and give it special protection. The space will be designed for cooling, fire protection, Physical security from break-ins, and virtual security from hacking and or data loss due to unforeseen problems with cloud storage.
- Hire The Best: There is not enough room here to discuss the latest and greatest technology and engineering or data centre schematics. The design of the system will require sophisticated skills and technicians. Companies like TecDis specialise in all aspects of data centre logistics and are the best place to begin compiling the information you will need to complete your project. Even small businesses need to use technology to its fullest potential
- Location: The location of your data centre is one of the first considerations. You need to have a room that you can access day or night. It should be safe from flooding and secure from intrusion. You also must consider the requirements of your data centre. What kind of data access is there? Can it be expanded? What are your power needs?
- Equipment Protection: Data Centres have special needs. The space needs to be kept cool, and it should have pristine air quality. Dust and air particles will cause your components to heat up, and you will lose efficiency and reduce the life expectancy of the equipment.Building your server on professional quality racks will also reduce heat build-up.
- Fire Prevention: With all of those electronics, there is always the threat of fire. A fire detection, suppression, and containment system are essential. Detection can be a simple as smoke detectors. For containment, you should consider smoke curtains that will drop down and isolate the room. For suppression, you should have Novec 1230 and FM-200 extinguishers available, as well as a sprinkler or chemical suppression system built-in.
Creating your own data centre is no easy task, and there will be some challenges if you hire the right technicians and carefully consider the data centre’s design. Then you will have a safe place for your data and access to the equipment if something goes wrong; being in control of your data is essential in these days of ransom ware attacks and phishing. As long as you have a well-engineered approach, there is no reason why you can’t be in full control of your digital assets.