The Ability 4U 102-Bay EBOD: One Innovation Your Data Center Needs
When you think about it, vehicles have come a long way since Karl Benz invented the Motorwagen, considered to be the first modern automobile. Well over one hundred years later, vehicles are safer, more comfortable, and drive a whole lot smoother than even vehicles a decade ago. Innovations in numerous sectors helped automakers reach the point they are at now in vehicle manufacturing.
The digital technology industry is no different.
Just as people expect more from their vehicles, they expect the same from their computing systems as well. However, with faster, better performance, tech companies face a number of the same issues as the automobile industry: achieving speed, efficiency, performance, size, sleekness, and smoothness. When it comes to an organization’s data storage center, all those aforementioned things definitely matter. And as with innovations in automotive technology, all the parts of your high-density data center—from CPUs, SSDs, hard drives, fiber-optics, multi-mode fiber optics, and liquid immersion cooling systems—are requisite.
So, a question many people ask: are storage enclosures really that important? Below, we explain why the Ability 102-Bay EBOD storage enclosure, with its patented vibration isolation and thermal zone cooling technology, is one crucial innovation your high-density data center needs.
Performance
Long gone are the days of huge data centers. Well, that’s according to a 2017 Gartner report at least. After years of disruption, conventional data centers are finally feeling the impact of numerous advances in hardware, software, power, cooling, operations, telecommunications, and artificial intelligence—how those advances are reshaping enterprise data centers like nothing else before. BizTech Magazine reported that most experts believe disruptions will only force data centers to keep evolving rather than die.
We’re already seeing this evolution in high-density data centers. This has been the talk of the industry since approximately 2002—high power density data centers are already replacing low power density data centers—in hopes of decreasing the energy footprint by shrinking the size and improving efficiency. Of course, with the benefits that come with high power density data centers, risks such as overheating and excessive vibration are included. According to some reports, one-third of power usage goes towards operation while nearly half of the power is used merely to keep the equipment cool.
Today’s high capacity drives are reliant on squeezing track density ever-tighter onto the hard disk drive platters. Despite the sophistication of the disk drive servomechanisms, the notably tight tolerances on positioning the read and write heads precisely to follow the data tracks lead to external vibration and shock. This results in the heads taking longer to settle into their tracks and, as a worst-case scenario, can make the heads slip off their tracks completely.
Since the drives are capable of sensing vibrations, there is virtually no threat of data corruption but is usually a source of performance lags while the heads wait for the disks to bring that data back around from where it left off. The effect is additional latency added to the disks which slow down the application. However, the Ability 102-Bay EBOD features patented vibration isolation technology that greatly diminishes potential external vibrations and shocks, saving your organization data hiccups.
Cost
Other than decreasing their environmental footprints, many organizations are seeking numerous ways to reduce operational costs. In many cases, organizational savings begin with the consolidation of technologies like hardware and software. As one examines how to optimize their infrastructure, they begin by looking for solutions that take efficiency to the next level and beyond by diminishing operational expenses including powering and cooling their data centers.
Reliability
With dense storage enclosures, hard disk drives (HDD) operating at just 13° Celsius (55.4° Fahrenheit) above the recommended temperature increase the failure of neighboring disks by approximately 45 percent. It goes without saying that when your storage media operates at an optimal range, your data center will operate with higher reliability, improving opportunities for unlocking those expansive data possibilities you have been striving for.
However, poorly designed storage enclosures put accessing your data at risk, as mentioned above. Once your data becomes inaccessible—even for a short moment—due to drive failures, the door is now open for your competitors to gain an advantage. After all, the whole point in big data collection is to get ahead of the competition, right? For this reason, we highly suggest investing in the Ability 102-Bay EBOD which features patented thermal zone cooling technology so that your disks run at reasonable temperatures.
Comprehending how your high-density data center relies on its cooling mechanism, how to improve and maintains adequate temperature control, and how to prevent excessive external vibrations and shocks are crucial to ensuring extended life of your data center’s hardware—not to mention protecting your investment. Learn more about the Ability 102-Bay EBOD with patented vibration isolation and thermal zone cooling technology.
