Many of the tasks businesses tackle each day are considered priorities. This includes activities such as measuring the effectiveness of a marketing campaign, tracking the rate of cash flow through the business, and a host of others operations. But how often do we consider the efficiency of hardware use in data center operations? For far too many businesses, the answer is never.

How Can I Measure Efficiency of Hardware Use in Data Center Operations?

If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it, or so goes the old saying. A data center is no different, and knowing what to keep and eye out for can make a big difference.

Ask around. Start measuring your data center’s efficiency by surveying your end users. Are there persistent problems that crop up, often enough to be considered patterns?

Check the bills. Have your consumption bills been trending upward? That’s a potential sign you’re using more power, some of which may not be necessary with light modifications.

Consider your design. If you’ve noticed a decline in capability, check when the last time the data center’s layout was changed to incorporate recent advances in design.

How Can I Improve Efficiency of Hardware Use in Data Center Operations?

Thankfully, there are some things that can be readily done to improve efficiency in your data center.

Rework the design. Some of those “recent advances” mentioned previously include factors such as your server room’s air flow and air quality. An American Power Conversion study found that one-fifth of data center operational costs go to electricity alone, so any improvements here mean substantial savings.

Check the servers. If your hardware has accumulated dust in its fans, it could be generating excess heat instead of data cycles. This directly affects hardware performance and energy costs. While newer servers are designed to run at high temperatures, those using older hardware may still be subject to these issues.

Consider cloud services. In some cases, you may be able to offload some of your data requirements to cloud-based systems. This improves efficiency by giving current hardware less to do, which means fewer processes running and less wear on on-premises hardware.

How Do I Get Started Getting Better Efficiency in My Data Center?

If you’d like to achieve greater efficiency in your data center, reach out to us at EmconIT. We offer maintenance services for any part of your data center, from storage to networking, and we have a full slate of professional services from data center relocation to cloud systems and colocation. Shore up all the parts of your data center today by calling EmconIT now.