Board logo

subject: History Of Data Center And Its Evolution [print this page]


The computer and its place in our lives have come a long way in the past several decades. From the home personal computer to the role the computer and computer systems play in our lives, there's no comparison the strides they've made. One area that has seen a great deal of growth is that of the data center. A data center is an area, facility or room that is used to house computer systems and all their associated components. This includes, but is not limited to telecommunications as well as storage systems. Here, in the data center, you will also find the back-up power supplies, extra data communications connections and the air conditioning, fire safety and security devices.

The history of the data centre goes back to the large computer rooms in the early days of computing. These systems were difficult and complex in their operations and maintenance and as such, required a particular environment to operate. Back then, there were many cables to connect up all the components and racks were devised to accommodate these special connectivity issues. Because computers were so expensive, security was also important and guidelines and controlled access were established to control who could enter the computer rooms.

During the 1980s, with the growth of IT operations, the deployment of computers into every situation imaginable and the advent of client server computing, the computer room began to be used to house servers. It was in about the 1990s as the complexity of IT system expanded that the term data center became the norm. Today, setting up a data centre is a science that has well laid out design, construction and operation. However, it's also an evolving discipline that continues to develop, these days especially in the area of environmentally-friendly data center designs. It is even estimated that by 2012, the cost of power alone for a data center can exceed the cost of the original capital investment.

A data center is typically a major investment for any large company. For a major Internet company, it's not out of the question to require 115,000 square feet for the center and cost upwards of $100 million dollars. While for a smaller company, the data center may only take up one room, it can also require one or more floors of a multi-floored building or even an entire building. Environmental controls within these rooms are essential to the well being of the equipment and cooling costs alone are astronomical. That is one reason why the use of cooling devices that use outside air are being developed employed in more locations.

by: Cheow Yu Yuan




welcome to loan (http://www.yloan.com/) Powered by Discuz! 5.5.0