Data Center Strategies for the CIO
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Power management technology for the green data center
HP, IBM and APC are making initiatives to improve power measurement and facilitate green data center developments.
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Tweaking BIOS settings to improve system performance
Adjusting BIOS settings can squeeze more productivity out of servers, but some high-performance settings could increase power consumption or put a system at risk.
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Using SCVMM Self-Service Portal 2 to manage chargeback
Chargeback tools, such as Microsoft’s Self-Service Portal 2.0, can be used with SCVMM to automate resource provisioning while tracking and billing users appropriately.
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Data center design standards for floor loading
The weight of today’s racks and equipment cabinets can stress floor structures, making it crucial to consider floor loading requirements in your data center design.
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Best practices for server benchmark testing
Following the scientific method when benchmark testing a server will help reduce variables and produce accurate performance results.
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What to look for when conducting benchmark tests
Microsoft's PerfMon benchmark tests measure a wide range of processes and server aspects, but it can be difficult for IT professionals to understand the numbers and interpret the results.
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Server benchmarking tools and stress testing
Admins should turn to several tools to perform benchmark testing and compare results to verify accuracy. This tip outlines the role of stress testing and lists several tools available to engineers.
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Setting up Nagios for Windows Server monitoring
Configuring Nagios for Windows Server monitoring is a straightforward process that can help IT professionals monitor network services.
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Data storage management for virtual workloads
Understanding storage needs and keeping a close eye on how resources are allocated in a virtual environment are important parts of effective data storage management.
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Deploying network virtualization in the data center
Network virtualization adds versatility and flexibility to the network, but close monitoring, with the correct tools, is needed to maintain optimal performance.
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CICS and Service Component Architecture
CICS’ support for Service Component Architecture enhances application portability and reuse.
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'Free' data center cooling: Methods and challenges
While air- and water-side free cooling aren't options in every climate, data center managers can improve data center energy efficiency by simply using outside temperatures.
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Getting the most out of a server upgrade
Improving data center performance often means expensive investments in new systems, but money spent on a server upgrade can have big returns.
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Demystifying energy-monitoring for effective DCIM
Many data centers were not designed with energy monitoring in mind, leaving managers looking for best practices and wondering which DCIM tools to use.
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Measuring total energy use for an efficient data center
Regularly measuring all forms of energy use in the data center can aid in identifying wasted energy to improve efficiency.
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Improving server capacity planning
Allocating computing resources to changing workloads is an ongoing challenge, but proper server capacity planning can lead to more efficient use of a data center's resources.
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Configuring the server monitoring tool Zabbix
Installing the server monitoring tool Zabbix used to be difficult, but Ubuntu 11.04 makes it easier to configure the appliance and monitor a network.
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Using low-latency network switches to improve traffic
Today's mixed traffic networks generate high traffic volume that can overburden network switches.
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New CICS TS 4.2 features to note
IBM’s CICS TS 4.2 has expanded event processing capabilities, important performance improvements and additional storage support compared to the previous version.
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Cisco UCS gives integrated systems concept a makeover
Cisco UCS reinvents the integrated systems concept and changes how computing power is deployed in the data center, but adoption rates are still lower than expected.
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AMD, Intel server war shifts to new battleground
Intel may win the server war, but AMD microprocessors could find more acceptance in another niche market.
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The cloud implications of global crowdsourcing
For IT shops already familiar with the idea, development may benefit from globally crowdsourcing with the cloud.
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New technology, trends to cool off the data center
Stagnant strategies for data center cooling will keep energy bills climbing ever higher, but a more modern approach can bring them back down to earth.
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Can one converged system rule them all?
The rise of converged systems has brought a new level of manageability to the data center, but these integrated offerings have a few drawbacks.