Day Two - February 1, 2012 Main Conference

As cloud computing takes hold, and corporate executives push for new cloud based initiatives several factors must be considered from a facilities standpoint. Before embarking on your journey toward a virtual infrastructure you must prepare yourself for the shift in data center operations. This session will analyze the efficiency efforts undertaken by Yahoo through the move towards virtualization. The case study presentation will cover the following aspects:

Best practices for an energy efficient virtualization system

Virtualization ROI

Techniques and equipment for the future of virtualized networks

With IT equipment accounting for 2% of the worlds carbon emissions, common metrics and measurements need to be defined in order to establish an industry efficiency standard. The Green Grid Executive Panel discussion will look at all aspects of data center efficiency including power, cooling, network and storage. The panel will open up the efficiency discussion and will outline the common designations needed for data center standards.

New Technologies are constantly emerging to help data center’s cope with the rise in energy costs and lower carbon emissions. Within this session we will analyze the impact of next generation Ethernet cables on network efficiency. Broadcom CTO, Nicholas Ilyadis will discuss:

Data center fabric alternatives

Energy Efficiency Ethernet cost analysis

Applications and implementation

Cloud storage is touted as being the end-all solution to a variety of current business challenges—a very important one being the explosive growth in the amount data that needs to be archived and retained for a long period of time. However, there are significant concerns businesses have raised in putting their data into the Cloud such as: the lack of an industry standard for data validation, what may happen to their data if the Cloud provide dissolves or gets acquired, how to ensure that formats and integrity are maintained if the data needs to be migrated from one Cloud provider to another. Furthermore, regulatory and compliance issues (e.g. digital auditing) may become even more difficult with the use of public clouds for data archiving and preservation. This technical session will address the questions of how companies can successfully utilize the Cloud for archiving and long-term data preservation.

Learning Objectives

• The first learning objective is to understand how SNIA defines Cloud Archiving (as opposed to Cloud Storage or Backup) and long term preservation.
• The second learning objective is to better understand the challenges that exist in archiving data within the Cloud, migrating data from one Cloud provider to another and how to ensure data integrity is maintained within the Cloud throughout the life of the archive.
• The third learning objective is to understand how the use of capacity optimization technologies complements the use of the Cloud for archival and long-term retention.

In 2010 the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) completed it model 220,000 square foot Research Support Facility (RSF) which contains 3,000 sq feet of data center space. In 2011 the RSF was awarded its LEED Platinum Rating and attained Net Zero operations with solar electric power. With the building fully operational and Colorado having one of its warmest summers on record, as of September 30th the RSF Data Center compiled a trailing 12 month PUE of 1.16. Learn how NREL built a better data center.

This is an update to a popular SNIA tutorial. Targeted primarily at an IT audience, this session presents a brief overview of the solid state technologies which are being integrated into Enterprise Storage Systems today, including technologies, benefits, and price/performance. It then goes on to describe where they fit into typical Enterprise Storage architectures today, with descriptions of specific use cases. Finally the presentation speculates briefly on what the future will bring.

This case study presentation will walk attendees through the efficiency techniques and technologies established within three of Trinity Health’s cutting edge facilities. A focus will be given to air side economization, and the presentation will analyze:

Trinity Health’s plan for optimized power and cooling efficiency

The current state and future plans for Trinity facilities

Air-side economization

Cloud storage is emerging as a cloud offering that has appeal to a potentially broad set of organizations. Like other forms of cloud computing, the security must be addressed as part of good governance, managing risks and common sense. The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) guidance on cloud computing security can be used as a starting point for what some believe is a make-or-break element of cloud storage. This session will overview the CSA “top threats” and describe the security aspects of the new Cloud Data Management Interface (CDMI) specification, which includes protective measures employed in the management and access of data and storage. These measures span transport security, authentication, authorization and access controls, data integrity, sanitization, data retention, protections against malware, data at-rest encryption, and security capability queries.

Learning Objectives:


• General introduction to cloud security threats and risks
• Understand the security issues considered critical to cloud storage
• Basic knowledge of the SNIA CDMI security capabilities

Join us for a tour of the 19,000 sq ft. San Diego Supercomputer Center at UCSD. The tour will begin at 3:30 and will be conducted in two waves. While you wait SDSC Data Center Manager Matt Campbell will present a case study of the Supercomputer Center’s cutting edge design and the efficiency initiatives successfully implemented. Learn first hand from the SDSC facility and staff and bring back new tools and technologies for your Green Data Center!

Power is now becoming a key factor in the cost of data center operations for service providers and enterprises alike. As data centers move to use high density computing platforms, it is power rather than space which becomes a limiting factor for new and existing data centers. By going "virtual," do you automatically reap energy efficiency benefits? Is it that easy? In this session you will learn how you can:

Maximize the utilization of your data center assets

Deliver optimum IT services

Respond more effectively to the demand for increased data center capacity

Decrease the consumption of kWh/m2 (and CO2/m2) and associated operating cost per m2

Develop more accurate billing models for internal and external cloud-based

Many existing data centers are operating at peak design capacities and cannot grow any further without incurring substantial infrastructure costs. As an alternative, increased capacity can be gained by improving the efficiency of the existing HVAC and electrical systems. By making the cooling system more efficient and reducing electrical losses, existing power is made available for more servers. Many utilities also have rebate programs that can help finance these upgrades, which continue to save money every year they operate more efficiently.

Integral Group has analyzed hundreds of data centers for specific energy efficiency measures, their impact on energy use, and corresponding peak load reductions. Some of the typical measures include air- and water-side economizing, hot/cold aisle containment, increasing temperature differences, installing variable frequency drives, and high-efficiency uninterruptible power supplies. During this presentation, the speakers will discuss the most commonly implemented measures, typical cost savings, and increased capacity, as well as common barriers to implementation.

Finally, we will present case studies to illustrate some of these approaches and the real-world limitations, opportunities, and savings available to data center operators ready to optimize their existing data center. One of the case studies will include the Earl Warren Hall Data Center at the University of California, Berkeley. The existing data center, cooled by traditional DX Computer Room Air Conditioners with a raised floor and no aisle containment, had exceeded its power and cooling capacities. On design days, the outdoor condensing units (mounted on the roof) overheat and supply air temperatures are not able to be maintained. Higher density racks, at 10 kW per rack located in two rows, experience temperature problems during these conditions, indicating the limits of a traditional raised floor installation. A water-side economizer system has been added with a cooling tower, heat exchangers, pumps and rear door heat exchangers on the most heavily loaded racks, substantially reducing the energy use of the facility. A corresponding reduction in peak load on the CRAC units allowed additional servers to be added to the data center. Efficient operation and data center reliability are not mutually exclusive; in fact, most efficiency upgrades enhance reliability through more effective air distribution, less compressor run time, and, under most operating conditions, more distributed and robust cooling capacity.