Infrastructure

My Data Center Drives Faster Than Yours

Posted Thu, 04/11/2013 - 14:00 by mark.thiele

I jumped on my data center the other day and rode into town for a beer at the local saloon. I tell you, these data centers keep getting bigger and faster every year. Did I confuse you? What does a data center mean to you? Is it some converged infrastructure with virtualization on it or is it a container with some racks of computers?

Why am I Bothered?

Server Power Consumption Cost Exceeds the Cost of the Server – SO WHAT!

Posted Thu, 02/21/2013 - 18:50 by mark.thiele

Saying a modern server uses too much power is like saying a train uses more power than a horse drawn wagon. Of course it does, but it also does way more work. Let's not forget what's important to the question of cost and that is simply how much work is the server performing?

Is Public Cloud Computing Green – Or at least Greener than Traditional IT?

Posted Mon, 01/09/2012 - 11:52 by mark.thiele

Unfortunately, there isn't a simple answer to the "Is Public Cloud Greener" question as the only real answer is "it depends". At the core of the question is that assumption that because you're theoretically using fewer physical machines more effectively, that you are thereby greener or more efficient. However, even if we stay with that assumption, when you dig into the details of what being "greener" really means, you'll see that there's still no easy answer.

In order for cloud to be greener, it has to accomplish two things at a very high level:

Why Enterprises Will Force Down the Cost of Virtualization

Posted Thu, 01/05/2012 - 12:27 by mark.thiele

Force it's such a strong word, but it definitely applies if my reasoning has any basis in reality.

The point of this blog is to illustrate that regardless of the intrinsic value of any given tool in the IT tool chest, once it's implemented it becomes a cost. Now, please don't read this the wrong way, I'm not an advocate of the thinking that IT is merely a place that helps us cut the cost of IT. What I am saying is that once you've effectively implemented a new technology solution, managing the on-going costs becomes a factor in your survival.

Deep thoughts on Cloud SLA’s

Posted Tue, 10/18/2011 - 10:51 by mark.thiele

OK, they aren't really deep thoughts so much as they are observations on the SLA assumptions made between provider and customer.

Earlier today there was a great back and forth on Twitter about SLA's and Cloud. Following are some of the associated Tweets:

@GeorgeDWatt
When SLAs are broken cash compensation may trump credits. It hurts more & if service is really bad may simplify exit. #CloudViews

@mthiele10
So much talk about Cloud SLA's. The real issue is how the provider measures outages vs. how the customer does. Penalties are immaterial.

Get Out Of The Way Of Progress

Posted Mon, 09/26/2011 - 15:40 by mark.thiele

Thoughts on the Term "Cloud" & All its Assumed Meanings

On September 15^th, I made the following rash statement on Twitter:

mthiele10Mark Thiele

We have to move past selling Cloud. Cloud is purely an infrastructure evolution, we now have to sell "What can we do differently or better"

Following are some of the back and forth tweets related to the above:

jayfry3Jay Fry

Are You a Server Hugger? - Ownership Disease, How it Can Hurt You in IT?

Posted Thu, 05/12/2011 - 12:36 by mark.thiele

Ownership has several important connotations and I use it to define my take on personal responsibility for pretty much every aspect of my life. However, it can also mean a "systems" approach to "owning" all aspects of a specific service, solution or function (I.e., I own the Data Center top to bottom). While both of the previous "ownership" definitions are positive, there is a "darker" aspect of owning (hugging) "things" in IT.

The audible symptoms of being Positive for Ownership Disease

Is Private Cloud Real or Just a Fantasy?

Posted Fri, 12/03/2010 - 15:07 by mark.thiele

The argument on whether there is such a thing as "private cloud" just won't go away. Many of the big name SaaS and Public cloud players continue to publish content that poo-poo's the reality of Private Cloud. I'm writing to suggest that the arguments against private cloud are in many cases wrong, and in some cases pure sales FUD (Fear Uncertainty & Doubt). However, before I go into my little diatribe, I want to make clear that just because I'm a private cloud believer, it doesn't mean I don't believe in "public cloud".

The Manufactured Assembly Line Data Center

Posted Wed, 09/22/2010 - 11:54 by mark.thiele

Why is an individual computer server different from a data center, other than scale?

Cloud Computing and Huge Data Centers are Killing Our Planet!

Posted Fri, 06/04/2010 - 07:53 by mark.thiele

Planet Killer Cloud Computing and Data Centers are killing our planet. Drive to the hardware store, buy a hammer, chisel and piece of stone and begin writing about it. Put away your computer, turn off your internet connection, un-plug the video game console, iPod and the TV. We must do everything we can to get rid of these giant, energy sucking, pollution generating, and planet killing warehouses of death immediately.

All kidding aside, it is true that many of our older data centers are in serious need of improvements in their power efficiency. However, it's also true that data centers contain much of our work effort and play environments. If this work and play was to be distributed in small chunks throughout the business or our households instead of concentrated in data centers they would be considerably more wasteful of our planets resources.

In my 20 plus year career in IT I've always been proud of my ability to bring efficiency to IT, and the business. When Data Center Pulse was founded the driving motivation was to push for the development of power sipping IT equipment designs, combined with more efficient data centers. In parallel we're actively working to persuade owners to implement those new solutions more quickly. We strongly believed that the IT/Data Center industry had a need to focus more attention on effective use of energy. The DCP Leadership team was made up of like minded individuals that each have work history examples of a focus on reducing energy consumption. So why would I be writing an article about data centers getting a bad rap? It seems like I should be agreeing with those articles, as it seems like I'm contradicting myself. Well, that couldn't be farther from the truth.

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