It’s finally getting warm outside – what about your data center? As the summer of IT, consumerization goes into full swing – more workloads, applications, and users are accessing the cloud environment. Just like any data point or cloud model, these platforms all reside within some type of data center platform. Here’s something to consider, as virtualization and density increases – the type of cooling and data center control must evolve.

So how do you keep your cloud cool? Here are five 5 great cooling considerations!

• Conduct a Room Airflow Management Assessment. The unique nature of the modern data center has created new types of demands and requirements. Off-the-shelf products are great, but in some situations, you need to know what you’re cooling – and what you will be cooling – before you actually deploy anything. High-density systems, HPC, and other heat-producing platforms might require a bit of special attention. Whether you have a data center now or are building one – consider assessing every corner of your very critical data center room.

• Take a look at modular containment solutions. Forget for a second the traditional means of cooling and controlling airflow within a data center. Modular airflow solutions are being deployed within next-generation data centers and are specifically designed to block airflow, ensuring hot and cold aisle separation, but with a more flexible application. These modular solutions can be deployed on a per-rack basis, and are extremely adaptable to your individual computer room(s), helping to target your specific problem areas.

• Understanding and controlling your rack. There are so many new types of systems being deployed that each rack could have a unique system that it’s supporting. Controlling room and aisle environmental variables are important – but gaining control within the rack itself is critical. Modern rack airflow management products are specifically designed to control intake airflow in server racks. This is critical because your rack could have variable cooling requirements. It really all depends on what it’s housing. The versatility of the cloud and your data center also demands flexibility in your rack cooling solution.

• A new way to control your raised floor airflow. You’ve done an assessment, you understand where your racks are located, now – you need to control your raised floor airflow requirements. Modern data centers are running warmer because systems are allowing higher temperature thresholds. However, this all requires good room control and solid floor airflow management. Let me give you an example, in a study done by Upsite Technologies on 19 computer rooms totaling over 204,400 ft, it was found that 60% of valuable cooled air is not reaching the air intakes of IT equipment. This is why you need to look for control mechanisms which are developed to provide the best seal against this wasted airflow.

• Seeing the data center big picture. We’ve discussed the physical. Now, we look at the logical layer of management. DCIM solutions are directly integrating into room environmental metrics and allowing data center administrators to really control their platform. Something to consider is the distributed nature of the modern data center. Cloud computing has created a diverse model where physical infrastructures are sharing resources spanning vast geographic locations. Never forget the importance of having direct visibility into your entire data center operation. Poorly functioning racks – because of hardware issues, for example – can create cooling problems. Having that direct visibility and integration into an environmental management system can help keep your cloud cool!

As you build out your data center platform and enable your cloud – make sure to keep your infrastructure environmentals under control. Find out where there are hot spots and learn the requirements of a next-gen cloud platform. As it gets warmer outside – always keep your cloud nice and cool.