A rack system can provide everything you need for file sharing and data storage, all in one unit. This section covers components of a rack solution, from the rack itself to power and cooling components to servers and storage. You'll also take a look at factors that contribute to the TCO and ROI of a rack solution.
Typical rack features
A rack unit is the basic unit of measure that describes the height property for a piece of rack-mounted network equipment. Each rack unit measures 1.75 inches high, which is designated in terms of 1U for one rack unit, 2U for two units and so forth. The height designations also indicate location within the rack. For example, 4U equipment is four "slots" up on the rack.
Servers and storage
Tip: To help you select the appropriate server and other equipment for your environment, visit the HP ActiveAnswers web page and browse the sizing tools.
Power and cooling
Rack-mounted power supplies and power distribution schemes are more capable, more complex and vastly different from standard power supply designs. Such units can provide row-level power distribution with dual high-amperage inputs and outputs, circuit monitoring and surge suppression. You can also use rack-mountable uninterruptible power supply (UPS) units and various other monitored power distribution units (PDUs) and accessories.
Because racks are designed to support a lot of heat-generating equipment, depending on the density of your racks, you should consider acquiring air-conditioned server cabinets or budget for stand-alone modular cooling systems as your infrastructure grows.
Other components
Other rack-specific components include slide-out trays for keyboards and pop-up liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors. You can then use keyboard-video-mouse (KVM) switches to toggle between the various rack server computers and service the entire rack from a single console. Racks also include specialized enclosures and backplanes for different types of hardware, such as Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) drive bays and front-mount universal serial bus (USB) attachments, shelving units and filler panels.
Management software
Consolidated management software is a key contributor to the long-term economical impact of a proper rack server layout. IT personnel can spend less time wandering to and from racks or cabinets and instead just switch between servers on the KVM.
Good management software should enable you to:
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Monitor and manage your entire IT infrastructure from a single console.
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Provide an easy-to-use interface for rapid deployment of standard server configurations and software builds.
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Support value-added plug-ins for seamless migrations (physical and virtual), vulnerability and patch management, and virtual machine management and control.
TCO and ROI factors
Tip: Factor any energy-conserving aspects, such as energy-efficient processors and power supplies, into your server rack solution TCO calculations.
However, a densely populated rack system requires special cooling measures to eliminate pockets of heat in and around the rack. These measures range in price and complexity from simple filler panels that direct heat flow within a rack to external liquid cooling systems that cool entire data centers.
