Server Racks, Cabinets and Equipment

Server Racks and Server Room Equipment- information

Investing in the right server racks, cabinets or server room equipment will help create a secure, reliable  and organised environment.

Protecting your valuable servers and the data they contain is of crucial importance to any business. In many cases, businesses opt to centralise their servers using a dedicated server room and/or server racks and cabinets.

Understanding server rooms, racks and cabinets

Server racks and cabinets: A standardised system for mounting (stacking) various electronic modules, such as rack-mount servers. The server rack has a series of two parallel metal strips (rails) positioned at even spaces vertically, into which the rack-mount server is secured. Server racks are particularly useful in environments where space is at a minimum.

There are a wide range of both standard and customised racks available, such as wall-mounted, half-height and full-height. There is also a large assortment of options to accommodate ventilation, cable management and modularity to ensure it meets the needs during business growth.

Server rooms: Secure, climate controlled rooms in which a network’s servers and critical devices, such as switches and switch panels are housed. In many cases, server rooms have dedicated power supplies and are the central repository for mainframe, rack-mounted and standalone servers. These are generally custom-designed rooms featuring raised floors with removable panels for access to cables, and can be accessed only by authorised personnel.

Business benefits

The benefits resulting from a modern server room or rack system can include:

• improved physical and information asset security
• reduced OH&S risks
• a controlled environment that prolongs the life of sensitive digital technology
• the ability to implement environmental monitoring to alert of actual or pending problems
• more easy distribution of backup and standby power
• a discrete work area for technical support staff.

Just as with the majority of issues surrounding business networks, experience and skills play an important part in achieving success in server room and server rack solutions.