Future challenges for data centers
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The document discusses the latest developments regarding alternate energy sources and power reliability for data centers. Electrical energy costs and reliability are major concerns for most data center operators. The document outlines growing power consumption and costs for data centers. It also discusses risks to the electrical grid from weather events and threats that could impact data center reliability. The document proposes solutions for data center operators to reduce grid dependency, such as developing climate change preparedness plans, installing backup generators and procuring independent power sources from renewables.
Future challenges for data centers
- 1. Latest Developments in Data Centre Energy and Power Issues Bill St. Arnaud Bill.st.arnaud@gmail.com
- 2. Theme of this talk • Electrical energy cost and its reliability are increasingly the two biggest concerns for most data center operators • This talk will focus on the latest developments on alternate energy sources and power reliability for data centers • But consideration of power issues and reliability also impacts data and network architecture of data center 2
- 3. Cost of power for data centers • • • Power consumption is jumping astronomically – 19% last year, 15% this year Electrical cost also increasing significantly – E.g 30% in Ontario Within next 5 – 10 years we will have carbon tax or cap and trade – Will raise prices another 5-20% 3
- 4. Growth Projections Data Centers • Half of ICT consumption is data centers • In ten years 50% of today’s Data Centers and major science facilities in the US will have insufficient power and cooling;* • CO2 emissions from US datacenters greater than all CO2 emissions from Netherlands or Argentina http://bit.ly/cW6jEY • Data center electricity is 31GW globally, and that will increase 19 percent in 2012 http://dlvr.it/1RwhWG *Source: Gartner; Meeting the DC power and cooling challenge
- 5. Reliability of the Grid • Weather related outages and duration have increased significantly • Other threats include : – Geo-magnetic solar storms – EMP and RF weapons used by terrorists • Easy to protect data center from such events, but much harder to protect electrical grid infrastructure • Particular vulnerability is Large Power Transformers (LPTs), which are customdesigned, expensive to replace and hard to transport. – LPTs weight between 100 and 400 tons, cost millions of dollars and can take as long as 20 months to manufacture 5
- 6. Scary reading • “US Energy sector vulnerabilities to climate change and extreme weather” US Department of Energy July 2013 – http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2013/07/f2/20130716Energy%20Sector%20Vulnerabilities%20Report.pdf • • Recent Sample outages Rising water temps forcing power plant shutdowns Coal and nuclear power generating capacity will decrease by between 4 and 16 percent in the United States and a 6 to 19 percent decline in Europe due to lack of cooling water. • http://www.reuters.com/artic le/2012/06/04/climate-waterenergyidUSL3E8H41SO20120604 6
- 7. Half of US experienced record droughts or deluges in 2012 2010 warmest year ever – we are only at the start of the curve of the hockey stick. The worst is yet to come
- 8. Blame it on Canada How warming in the Arctic affects weather in Texas and Europe • Warming Arctic slowing down jet stream – There’s been a 20 percent drop in the zonal wind speeds. • As get stream slows down, it leads to those bigger, long lived kinks in the jet stream. – That amplification is associated with persistent weather patterns that lead to “extremes” like drought, flooding and heat waves. • Those slow-moving, persistent waves of weather energy may have played a role in the big snows that hammered Europe this winters, as well as the extreme drought that hit South West US • http://summitcountyvoice.com/2012/01/14/ global-warming-revenge-of-the-atmosphere/ 8
- 9. Future Droughts • Palmer Drought Severity Index, or PDSI. • The most severe drought in recent history, in the Sahel region of western Africa in the 1970s, had a PDSI of -3 or -4. • By 2030 Western USA could see -4 to -6. Drought in Texas clearly caused by global warming: http://goo.gl/QjHRS • By 2100 some parts of the U.S. and Latin America could see -8 to 10 PDSI, while Mediterranean areas could see drought in the -15 or -20 range. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39741525/ns/us_new s-environment/
- 10. Dramatic changes in precipitation • • • Every continent has suffered record rainfalls Rains submerged one-fifth of Pakistan, a thousand-year deluge swamped Nashville and storms just north of Rio caused the deadliest landslides Brazil has ever seen. Observed increase in precipitation in the last few decades has been due in large part to a disproportionate increase in heavy and extreme precipitation rates which are exceeding predictions made in models
- 11. What does 1C average temperature mean? • In the 1700s – when global average temperature was .8C colder than now, New Yorkers could walk from Manhattan to Staten Island on ice as thick as 8 feet – http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/31 /in-the-little-ice-age-lessons-for-today/ 11
- 12. What is the solution for DC operator? Reduce dependency on electrical grid as much as possible: 1. Develop Climate Change Preparedness plan as per President Obama’s Executive Order 2. Make sure your diesel generator is properly installed and serviced 3. Get independent source of electrical power from your own dams, windmills or solar panel array 4. Use natural gas or bio-gas to generate electricity through microturbines, cogen or fuel cells 5. Build highly distributed data centers using following the wind or follow the sun architectures 12
- 13. President Obama’s Executive Order on Climate Change Preparedness • All US government departments, agencies, data centers, etc must develop climate change preparedness plans • States, municipalities, universities and other institutions are also encouraged to develop similar plans • Disaster preparedness plans must cover range of scenarios of severe flooding, droughts, hurricanes, long term power outages, etc • DC operators must look at number of scenarios that could significantly impact operations Presentation title
- 14. Lessons from Sandy about backup diesels • Make sure fuel is changed every year – Diesel fuel deteriorates much faster than gasoline • Arrange for long term, high priority fuel contracts from a number of refineries • Make sure IT staff know how to change fuel and air filters • Make sure fuel pumps are self priming, collocated with diesel and connected to UPS • Make sure all electrical cabling, transformers and switch gear are in water tight compartments – Double check all egress and ingress ports through walls 14
- 15. Many DCs are acquiring their own power dams • OVH in Montreal - worlds largest data center operator • Cisco, EMC in Holyoke, MA • Google in Finland • There are many abandoned paper mills, aluminum smelters, etc in Canada with their own power dams • Some DCs are looking to deploy “run of the river” generating systems that require no dams
- 16. Many other examples Ecotricity in UK builds windmills at data center locations with no capital cost to user Hydro-electric powered data centers ASIO solar powered data centers 17
- 17. Fuel Cells, Microturbines, Cogen • Several data centers being built independent of electrical grid using natural gas • Converting gas to electricity can be done with micro turbines, fuel cells or traditional cogen • Cost of electricity from gas much cheaper than from grid – Can sell excess power to the grid – Standby propone tank in case of disruption in gas feed – Power distribution system can be sized as demand warrants from growth in data center • In Europe and US several data centers are using biogas from farm or human waste 17
- 18. Follow the Sun/Wind Distributed Data Center GreenStar Network World’s First Zero Carbon Cloud/Internet
- 19. SDN Follow the wind/Follow the sun European GSN Domain Canadian GSN Domain Export VM Notify EU Cloud Manager Cloud Manager Host Resource Network Manager Cloud Manager Internet Dynamically Configure IP Tunnel Host Resource • Shudown VM • Copy Image • Update VM Context • Start VM Mantychore2 VM Shared storage Shared storage VM Lightpath Host Cloud Proxy Optical switch Optical switch Cloud Proxy Host
- 20. Hewlett Packard & Clarkson U GreenCloud • Optimizing the utilization of the available renewable power for computing by intelligently redistributing computational load; • Minimizing losses associated with power transmission by placing the PODs near the power source; • Providing energy and design efficiency through the use of additional passive cooling for the PODs • Use the wind power that is currently stranded, i.e. not-delivered to the grid due to the T&D constraints.
- 21. IBM National GreenCloud Vision
- 22. Don’t forget the wide area network • Network is just as vulnerable as data center to reliability in electrical grid • Most telco based networks have multiple electrical powered repeater huts for amplification and add/drop – Usually in remote locations and more difficult to service, or re-fuel generators • Most DC operators are choosing dark fiber for reliability reasons – Modern dark fiber networks can operate at distances up to 1500km without a single electrical repeater – Optical repeaters only draw 40W power and can easily be powered with batteries and solar charging – Architecture is far simpler than telco network and thus easier to manage and upgrade 22
- 23. Let’s Keep The Conversation Going Bill St. Arnaud is a R&E Network and Green IT consultant who works with clients on a variety of subjects such as green data centers and networks. He also works with clients to develop practical solutions to reduce GHG emissions from ICT (See http://greenbroadband.blogspot.com/) . E-mail Bill.St.Arnaud@gmail.com Blogs http://green-broadband.blogspot.com Twitter http://twitter.com/BillStArnaud
Editor's Notes
- #16: Building a zero carbon ICT infrastructurePurchasing green power locally is expensive with significant transmission line lossesDemand for green power within cities expected to grow dramaticallyICT facilities DON’T NEED TO BE LOCATED IN CITIES-Cooling also a major problem in citiesBut most renewable energy sites are very remote and impractical to connect to electrical grid. Can be easily reached by an optical network Provide independence from electrical utility and high costs in wheeling power Savings in transmission line losses (up to 15%) alone, plus carbon offsets can pay for moving ICT facilities to renewable energy siteICT is only industry ideally suited to relocate to renewable energy sites Also ideal for business continuity in event of climate catastrophe