The 3 Biggest Dangers of Data Center Relocation

by Stephanie Faris on Monday, September 22 6:00

Your data center is at the heart of your operations, giving you the tools you need to serve your customers and bring in new business. Even with all the measures you take to protect your servers, you may not be able to let them rest in one place for decades at a time. Eventually, it will be time to either downsize or move to a larger building.

When a data center relocation becomes necessary, businesses understandably have concerns. Whether your servers provide services to a variety of clients or simply hold your own business's files and applications, a data center move can be tricky. It's important that your business understand the risks before planning such a move to properly prepare.

Stolen Equipment

During the move, a large number of personnel will be in and out of a data center. During this time, facility security may become lax as doors are propped open and equipment is left unattended in moving trucks. If not properly monitored, an unauthorized person could slip onto the property unnoticed, stealing high-dollar equipment. The theft probably wouldn't even be noticed until all of the equipment had been set up at the new location.

To prevent equipment from being stolen, a trusted employee should be assigned to monitor both the moving truck and the server areas. All server movers should be required to wear specific clothing that readily identifies them as being part of the moving crew.

Insufficient Amenities

Without careful planning, IT departments may find the new facility isn't able to meet their needs. In some cases, only after the moves were completed did businesses realize the new location couldn't handle the electricity and cooling needs that are specific to facilities with server rooms. Since facilities management often pays electricity bills, server administrators may be completely unaware of the power requirements their equipment has.

Prior to the move date, the new location should be measured and mapped out to ensure existing racks will fit. Server administrators should meet with their existing facilities administrators to determine exactly what power they'll be using on a daily basis and adjust downward if some servers will be recycled as a result of the move.

Using Unqualified Movers

If a piece of server equipment becomes damaged during the move, a business has bigger problems than the cost of equipment replacement. If a server won't boot up after the move, users may experience downtime for weeks as professionals wait for a replacement to arrive and reload databases and files.

By working with a professional server moving company, businesses will benefit from years of experience. Most IT move specialists have the tools and equipment necessary to keep equipment stable while in transit, including the packing material required to hold it in place during the bumps a truck will experience along the way.

When it's time to move your data center, it's important to be aware of the errors that can hurt your business. With careful planning and the right resources, you'll be well-prepared to take on any challenges you'll experience during your move.