Few data centres today keep automatic inventories of their servers and infrastructure components. As a result, many IT administrators are unaware of the current utilisation levels of their server racks and IT infrastructure. One solution is the use of state-of-the-art RFID technology, which offers a way of improving the security and efficiency of data centres.

Which rack houses the server for my ERP systems? Which server enclosures offer sufficient cooling capacity and power supply for installation of another blade? How much power does a particular device in the enclosure consume at full utilisation? And what are its cooling requirements? Many administrators have difficulty in answering questions like these quickly and accurately, even though they are faced with them on a daily basis. This is due to both the number of server racks and the complexity of the hardware components. Up-to-date and reliable information on the device structure per rack is often hidden away somewhere in Excel sheets or would only be available through a constant and time-consuming process of manual inventory monitoring. What’s more, manual data entry only provides a snapshot of the data centre inventory. RFID – a technology that has been used for years to optimise processes in the logistics industry – provides a means of automating inventory procedures in data centres. RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification and enables contact-free detection of objects or people via radio waves.

Separate identity for every device

Every RFID system infrastructure includes a passive transponder, a transceiver unit and an IT system that works in the background. The transponder – a microchip with antenna coil – is integrated into a carrier object and can be read and written using radio waves. This tag” contains a code to which information (stored in a database) can be assigned. This gives every object a unique identity. The tag sends information to a reader unit, which forwards the code to a database. Here, a software program decrypts the code and links it to the stored information on the properties of the carrier object. The system’s knowledge – or intelligence – is therefore not located in the transponder itself but in the databases. Dynamic Rack Control (DRC) from Rittal is an RFID infrastructure developed specifically for use in data centres.

DRC uses the radio technology directly inside the rack to log component population of the 482.6 mm (19″) level completely contactlessly and in real time. IT components, e.g. servers or switches, equipped with RFID tags, send information continuously to an aerial strip installed in the server enclosures. As the rack is fitted with one sensor per mounting hole, separate data can be accessed for every height unit (U). Therefore, the precise location of every device is recorded immediately and without any contact when it is installed. The RFID tags also provide basic information on the installed device, such as the manufacturer, type of component, date of installation and software. The tags are permanently assigned to the devices. If the position of hardware changes, e.g. it is moved to a new rack, this information is registered and reported automatically. As a result, administrators know where every server is installed.

Benefits of inventory monitoring

When populating racks with components, administrators all too often rely on rules of thumb instead of taking into account factors such as efficient power supply and cooling. Incorrect identification of component positions and insufficient documentation can have serious consequences if the infrastructure is overloaded through the installation of an additional device. In the worst case, this can result in complete server failure and downtimes in a company’s business operations. The cost of such downtimes, i.e. non-availability of services, can quickly add up to six-figure sums. Failure in the server room is particularly precarious for IT service providers and collocation providers who have to fulfil service level agreements for their customers.

Inventory monitoring using RFID technology in data centres helps avoid such downtimes in the IT infrastructure. Functions for identifying component positions, recording the device type and serial number, and sorting data records and meta data, such as the purchase data and maintenance intervals, are available at the touch of a button.

An automated inventory system with RFID also creates the basis for comprehensive monitoring, e.g. through integration into an infrastructure management software such as Rittal RiZone, which is optimised for the physical infrastructure of a data centre. It also manages infrastructure components, such as power supply in the server rack and cooling right down to rack level. Most of these components have networking capability today and can communicate their status via SNMP or BACnet. If the Rittal RiZone management platform is connected to the Microsoft System Centre Operations Manager (SCOM) for example, the system displays all important alarms and relevant parameters for cooling, power supply and energy consumption on a single user interface. This makes it possible to manage the entire data centre, i.e. services and hardware, from one standardised interface. In addition to improving energy efficiency and reliability, in case of failure this system also makes it possible to relocate applications faster, find and exchange devices more quickly and optimise potential more effectively. IT administrators are also able to make sound decisions faster than before.

Room for improved performance

The ability to store key component data on passive RFID tags makes it possible to identify free capacities at the 482.6 mm (19″) level of the racks and obtain information on both the installed electric output and – using temperature sensors – the climatic conditions. In this way, a current overview of the components installed in the racks, separated according to device category, power consumption or cooling demand, is available at any time. The rack configurations can be displayed in the infrastructure management software. They can be called up as lists or imported/exported using the XML file format. These data records can then be further processed in external databases and play a key role in simplifying the day-to-day optimisation of data centre operations quite considerably. This way, every rack can be populated with IT components as efficiently as possible in terms of space, cooling output and power supply. Every extra height unit gained in data centre rooms, which tend to suffer from a chronic lack of space, means improved performance.

Box RFID

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) enables contact-free detection of objects or people via radio waves. An RFID infrastructure comprises a transponder (RFID tag), a transceiver unit and software that correlates the data. The tag – integrated into a carrier object, e.g. a plastic card, and used to store information – is at the heart of the system. Radio waves are used to read and write this information. At low frequencies this takes place inductively via a near field and at higher frequencies via an electromagnetic distant field. The distance at which an RFID transponder can be read varies depending on the model, frequency range, transmission strength and environmental influences.