
Posted By: Darren Bonawitz, principal of 1102 GRAND
As I have mentioned in previous posts, I believe cloud computing has a place in today’s market, but I still firmly believe it is more buzz than reality. I’m not saying that it does not exist because of course it does and some are doing it very well. Instead, I am merely saying that it still represents a very small portion of the market although I expect cloud computing to grow once it evolves. Until then, I still stand by the fact that most companies are best suited for a hybrid collocation model (primarily collocation with certain elements in a hosted or cloud environment).

According to a Data Center Knowledge Article, “Go Daddy & The Power of Uncloudy Infrastructure,” “Cloud computing has provided exciting new opportunities for developers and start-ups, and is gaining meaningful traction with enterprise customers. But for the moment, cloud computing’s mindshare is bigger than its market share. As of June of 2010, Tier 1 Research estimated that cloud computing represented 2 percent of the IT infrastructure market. Even if it has doubled in size over the past year – as suggested bydata shared by Amazon- that still suggests market share of about 5 percent.”
“IDC has somewhat higher estimates, saying cloud represented 5 percent of IT spending in 2009 and will increase its share to 10 percent by 2o13. That would still leave 90 percent of IT spending focused on other delivery methods.”
By: Darren Bonawitz
One of the often overlooked issues in colocation cabinets is cabling. When a company is hurrying to move equipment into a facility, cable management is not usually at the top of its list for concerns. IT staff members are more worried about just getting their infrastructure operational rather than focusing on the aesthetics of the cabling in their cabinet(s). Even if the cabling is managed effectively day one, it is very common to see a gradual “rats nest” develop over time as equipment is added or replaced.
Cable management is more than about cosmetics though, and a lot of IT professionals have come to appreciate the value of clearly labeled and organized cabling. What a lot of people fail to consider is the effect cabling can have on proper equipment cooling. That may sound odd, but visualize for a moment a tangled web of cables at the back of a cabinet. What happens is the cables each take up a certain volume of space and effectively reduce the path for hot air rejected from equipment to properly exhaust out the back of the cabinet.
Hot air that should have been easily transferred to the hot aisle now becomes trapped within the cabinet and then recirculates. This causes in-cabinet ambient temperatures to rise and can lead to equipment temperature increases and possibly even unnecessary failure.