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Service Provider Builds National Network of Unmanned Data Centers (datacenterfrontier.com)

Posted by samzenpus on from the nobody-home dept.

1sockchuck writes: Colocation and content delivery specialist EdgeConneX is operating unmanned "lights out" data centers in 20 markets across the United States, marking the most ambitious use to date of automation to streamline data center operations. While some companies have operated prototypes of "lights out" unmanned facilities (including AOL) or deployed unmanned containers with server gear, EdgeConneX built its broader deployment strategy around a lean operations model. The company uses software to remotely control the generators and UPS systems at each data center, and can dispatch techs when on-site maintenance is needed.

33 comments

  1. Nothing revolutionary by ickleberry · · Score: 2

    UPS is worthless unless it takes over automatically. Auto-start genny's have been around since the year dot.

    Dispatch a tech when something breaks is nothing new. I know a while back some boys were experimenting with bots to replace HDD's but with people moving to more reliable SSD implementing such a system wouldn't be worth the bother for most

    1. Re:Nothing revolutionary by U2xhc2hkb3QgU3Vja3M · · Score: 2

      UPS is worthless

      FedEx FTW!

    2. Re:Nothing revolutionary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      FedEx costs a pretty penny to get a steady stream of electrons shipped overnight.

    3. Re:Nothing revolutionary by aaarrrgggh · · Score: 2

      The real challenge is achieving the equivalent of an engineer's "rounds" in an unmanned facility. It takes a lot of instrumentation to tell what could be going bad in an air handler or chiller, and beyond just the instrumentation, it is an insane amount of effort to get the system to simply report exceptions from all that data.

      Simple example: pump seal is degrading and instead of leaking 0.1 gallon/day it is leaking 0.15/day. The engineering doing rounds says "there seems to be more water on the floor" after a couple days; he mops it up and puts down pads to see where the leak is coming from, finding the source of the leak in a week or so.

      The lights-out mentality is run-to-fail. Works great in the right part of the bathtub curve, but otherwise it is a bitch. Most sites like this I have seen are on a maintenance truck route where someone swings by for an hour two or three times a day. Not the same level of commitment though.

    4. Re:Nothing revolutionary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I thought this model was the norm, though it may be different in AU. Aside from high-security facilities requiring human guards or "spur" regional DCs located far from civilisation and the big fibre paths, a good portion of the datacenter providers I work with have no regular staff on-site. The one we use most went live >10 years ago and hasn't really changed much since.

      Obviously access is through a sequence of armoured doors, caged sectors, individually auto-locking racks (some with segmented doors), RFID dongles and biometric scans. The lights turn off when I leave. Do these count as a "lights off" facility? These aren't small facilities run in a garage either, they're large IXes and cross-connect facilities, containing POPs for most of our major national or international carriers.

    5. Re:Nothing revolutionary by aaronb1138 · · Score: 1

      Besides the non-computer infrastructure, I have yet to see a colocation facility where customers didn't need small physical tasks on a daily basis. If these are just template setups where identical compute, storage, and networking gear are deployed cabinet after cabinet, then maybe. It takes either a lot of SDN and unified storage fabric or some very specific target workloads (they mention Netflix caching for ISPs, so meh).

      Amazon is getting killed having to deal with multiple generations of very cookie cutter hardware and customers with varying demands leading to the incredible complexity in AWS offerings, all at highly elevated prices compared to just buying your own hardware and paying colocation costs (unless instance needs are way below 8x5, much less 24x7).

      They would be almost better off with robotic / remote controlled site techs to cover 80% or so of physical needs and the same robot controllers sent on-site when the robot falls short. If they are doing the absolutely stupidest thing in field tech dispatch, 3rd party contractors who hire a Bob, it will be a giant shit show.

      With respect to outsourcing, I wish someone would compile a comprehensive report on the productivity and hidden costs of a) highly motivated and skilled in-house workers vs. b) lackadaisical paycheck collectors vs. c) offshore contractor incompetence vs. d) onshore contractor dice rolling. I know my employer can hire 5 guys in India for what they pay me, but having to ask 3-5 times for a task to get done before it gets done correctly has to incur some costs besides employee time burned and latency for completion, like iteration #4 where you've yelled at them finally to do it right, and they cause an outage.

    6. Re:Nothing revolutionary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's supposed to happen in a major weather emergency, such as a tornado, hurricane or blizzard and the roads are blocked?

  2. Well not completely unmanned by Sowelu · · Score: 2

    I mean, I'd hope they would have security guards at least. Otherwise it makes a pretty tasty target.

    1. Re:Well not completely unmanned by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      wouldn't the security guards be tastier? at least they are made of meat.

    2. Re:Well not completely unmanned by stephanruby · · Score: 1

      I mean, I'd hope they would have security guards at least. Otherwise it makes a pretty tasty target.

      Don't worry. Unmanned is just the latest buzzword for CTOs who want a smaller head count.

      can dispatch techs when on-site maintenance is needed

      Yes, there will still be technicians, security guards, and janitors that have physical access to the data center if needed.

      So this Press Release slash-advertisement really doesn't mean anything that hasn't already been done. Call me when they put their data centers thousands of feet underwater, or when they put their data centers in space, or on the moon.

    3. Re:Well not completely unmanned by vel-ex-tech · · Score: 1

      I'll bet they're using a bunch of these. Always works for me! Just don't hook a terminal up to them if player characters are a threat....

      (I always keep trying to figure out where they get the gas and seemingly infinite ammo to keep operating.)

    4. Re: Well not completely unmanned by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Plus the NSA technicians to hook up the sniffers.

    5. Re:Well not completely unmanned by lazyBob · · Score: 1

      wouldn't the security guards be tastier? at least they are made of meat.

      Not really. They dispatch robots as security guards.

    6. Re:Well not completely unmanned by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      It won't be lights out either, unless they put tape over all those thousands of blinkenlights.

      Seriously though, I've toured Panasonic's TV factory that is lights out. Parts of it are unlit until a human goes there and a PIR sensor detects them. You would think with LED lighting it wouldn't be worth it, but apparently the cost savings are significant enough to bother. It's actually a little bit spooky at first.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  3. slashvertisement by JeffSh · · Score: 1

    slashvertisement? this is nothing amazing.

    1. Re:Slashvertisement by mbone · · Score: 1

      You still need a couple security guards so someone is always on-site. Hardware repairs can be contracted out to Dell/HP/etc. And then your own techs only very occasionally need to stop by.

      I have been to a lot of data centers with key card entry and no guard. Equinox always has a guard, but that's more security theater than anything else.

  4. Humans, get used to enter only when invited, by ffkom · · Score: 1

    as we, your AI overlords, don't want to be disturbed in our gated communities. And if you come, make sure you bring gifts, such as spare parts and extensions, to appease our temper!

    1. Re:Humans, get used to enter only when invited, by sexconker · · Score: 1

      I'll bring you a bucket of water, you quasi-sentient clod!

  5. Slashvertisement by evilviper · · Score: 1

    This article is about par for PR-WEB... but pretty out-of-place here (or at least it would have been, pre-Dice).

    I can't see how it's different than any other datacenter... You still need a couple security guards so someone is always on-site. Hardware repairs can be contracted out to Dell/HP/etc. And then your own techs only very occasionally need to stop by.

    --
    Slashdot gets worse every day... Pipedot: News for nerds, without the corporate slant
  6. You've Got Fail by sexconker · · Score: 4, Funny

    Can the editors please do their jobs?
    I consider myself to be pretty tech-savvy, but we can't all be expected to know every acronym for every open source project and kickstarted company.

    Can someone please tell me what the fuck AOL is?

    1. Re:You've Got Fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      America Off-Line

    2. Re:You've Got Fail by blue9steel · · Score: 1

      America Online. Would you like per hour dialup charges or a monthly rate?

    3. Re:You've Got Fail by leonardluen · · Score: 1

      AOL is the company that nicely sent out free floppy disks containing the entire internet to everyone back when the internet was small enough to fit on floppy disks. They later upgraded to CD's as the internet grew in size.

      now that the internet has been upgraded to a series of tubes i am not sure what AOL is doing any longer.

    4. Re: You've Got Fail by Higaran · · Score: 1

      They are still around for about 2 million people that are to far out anywhere to get regular dsl or cable internet.

    5. Re:You've Got Fail by kamaaina · · Score: 1

      So they are like AWS with their on demand or reserve instances.

    6. Re:You've Got Fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Can the editors please do their jobs?

      No. Dice is testing out their new network of unmanned websites.

    7. Re:You've Got Fail by tommeke100 · · Score: 1

      Sure, here is the website.

    8. Re:You've Got Fail by mbone · · Score: 1

      now that the internet has been upgraded to a series of tubes i am not sure what AOL is doing any longer.

      From all accounts, neither are they.

  7. Don't make us shut down your public water supply.. by ffkom · · Score: 1

    ... whose monitoring you outsourced so conveniently to Elbonia... connecting all valves to the "InterNet of Things"... well... turns out the cheap Elbonian workers are just virtual, AI controlled string puppets.

  8. We need unmanned management pods instead. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm just imagining some pointy haired boss somewhere deleting the 'IT personnel salaries' column in his project costs spreadsheet.

    "You know, those server pods configure and support themselves. Wonderful technology."

  9. TAX BREAKS NOW!!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I want them in my state ASAP! We should entice them with electricity subsidies.

  10. Really by mbone · · Score: 1

    I have been in plenty of data centers and they are generally unmanned, especially after hours. Generally, if there is a person there, they are either a security guard, site manager or a local sales rep (i.e, they may be physically there, but they are not techs). Even if you have some sort of "warm hands" service (i.e., a guy you can call and get to push a button to restart your server), they will generally be offsite and will have to drive to your location. If there are techs around, it is likely to be because someone is doing a buildout or other work.

    In other words, this sounds a lot like what EdgeConneX is proposing, so I am not sure what's supposed to be new here.

  11. a eunuchs system? I know this! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    so.

    if it's unmanned, that would imply castration?

    perhaps augmented with a staff of fembots?

    the People have a right to know!