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Cable considerations Generally speaking , MTP-based structured cabling will work well in 10G Ethernet and is ready for 40G . Cable management in data centres is vital – besides making maintenance easier and avoiding physical damage to cords and racks , making sure cabling doesn ’ t restrict airflow supports cooling . Organising trays and cable management in a way that ensures a ‘ friendly ’ radius for fibre cables avoids performance limitations and damage , and thus downtime . Watch out for cramped conduits and make absolutely sure there are no cables or bundles resting upon others . Bad cable management can result in intersymbol interference , damage and failure , resulting in data transmission errors , performance issues and downtime .
We ’ d recommend double-checking measurements ; ensuring terminations are of the best possible quality , testing often and carefully , alongside consistent labelling and colour coding . Cables should have a high fibre count , be easy to terminate , and it should be possible to handle them in the same way as smaller cables .
Increasing density can result in unmanageable cabling if care isn ’ t taken . This makes Moves , Adds and Changes ( MACs ), cable tracking and fault finding impossible . Troubleshooting or making decisions about infrastructural changes without correct , up-to-date , reliable documentation is like walking a tightrope without a safety net .
Integrated hardware and software systems should automatically detect when cords are inserted or removed , and document the cabling infrastructure , including connected equipment , in real-time . Everything can then be monitored and administrated from a common software tool . The entire infrastructure is represented in a consistent , up-to-date database , offering precise , real-time information on the current state and future requirements of the data centre .
Dedicated solutions should be selected to trace and monitor all changes to a physical network , including switches , servers and patch panels . Systems offering mapping , managing , analysing and planning functionality for cabling and network cabinets can also include asset management , planned and unplanned changes and alarms . Such systems improve operational efficiency and facilitate management of passive infrastructure .
Flexibility and reliability Data centres need far more bandwidth than current infrastructure can provide and the demand keeps growing . Data-hungry technology continues to grow at speed , but the network backbone can ’ t be replaced regularly . By designing high-density infrastructure with the right kind of flexibility and reliability in mind , and making smart technology choices today , bottlenecks can be avoided . The solution should offer a lower cost per port and a flexible upgrade path . n
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