Monday Oct 23, 2006
In the last posting I've did some rough comparisons of a datacenter implemented with Blackbox versus a traditional datacenter. As was pointed out in the
comments I didn't included all of the cooling needed. Actually the square footage I gave didn't count all of the external cooling space in both cases.
The amount of power for 10 TEUs of T1000 was 470KW
1TEU of T1000 = 47KW = 188w*250). The conversion factor from Tons to KWatts
is 3.418, but consultants I know use 3 as the factor, since cooling is rarely perfectly efficient. Using a factor of 3, the 10TEUs really need ~156 tons.
As Nico pointed out in last entries comments, 600 tons of cooling will fit
in 1TEU. So if you want to count that you have to add some for the Blackbox design. But the traditional datacenter also has some external stuff I'd have to add to that square footage.
I agree the devil is in the detail when it comes to working datacenters.
I know more information will be coming as Sun really rolls out this product.
Even if Blackbox only saved 50% or 25% area (when not stacked) and given that
they can be rapidly deployed (and redeployed) ...you must admit it is very interesting and this could really change things.
Friday Oct 20, 2006
In the last posting I talked about a 20' container (size = 1 TEU in shipping
parlance, or 160sqft). In Sun's Blackbox you can fit 250 Sun Fire T1000 servers at 188watt actually used each.
For a 1 TEU total of 47,000watts (47KW = 188*250)
Late last night I saw a real world traditional raised-floor datacenter design for a customer that has proper cooling for 460KW and aisles for people and
replacing the CRACs. That design fits in 2700 sqft (depending on
how you count electical panels, etc.).
So 10 TEUs (T1000) would be a 470KW design that would take a total of
1600 sqft -- traditional datacenter is at 2700 sqft (69% more area!)....
Bottom line: Take out a pad of blank paper, start with the new assumptions, get creative, and Time to start rethinking datacenter design and the implications of Sun's Blackbox.
Friday Oct 20, 2006
Many are excited about the rapid deployment of Sun's Blackbox. I agree this is very very interesting. Especially with
what's been done to make it 'rough & tough' like the 8G shock testing.
But what is even more compelling for me is the datacenter economics. As many of you know when you design a datacenter it takes a lot to make sure
the servers, network gear, CRACs (computer room AC units), and people can
all be moved around. To replace a CRAC takes 6' Aisles, for instance. And
since that is on raised floor it is kinda useless wasted space. Your
thinking changes when the 'Blackbox' is the FRU.
As mentioned, a single Project Blackbox (20' container = TEU = 20 x 8 ft = 160 sqft) could accommodate 250 Sun Fire T1000 servers with the CoolThreads technology. As we know
from all of the benchmark testing on the T1000 (1 RU) uses a
measured ~188 watts while running benchmarks. So
on TEU is designed to comfortably support 293.75 watt/sqft =(250 servers * 188 watt/server)/(160 sqft). Note this is server and 'datacenter cooling'
area. You'd need a LOT more space if you wanted to do this in a traditional
datacenter. Maybe 75 to 300 or more sqft for traditional - ouch.
...I will disgress...
Other vendors don't have Blackbox and have systems that use a lot more wattage when running workloads
Dell PowerEdge 2850(450 watts in 2RU), IBM x3650 (585 watts in 2RU),
IBM p550 (770 watts in 4RU) -- but unfortunately they won't share their
wattage data on benchmarks they say compete against the T1000 & T2000.
So customers you must demand that other vendors show their wattage at know performance levels and make this public.
Coming back, if you want to compare the amount of total space you need for a traditional datacenter (total-space = server space + white space + server aisles + CRAC replacement aisles + other) vs. Blackbox+Coolthreads, you'll see that Sun can really change things.
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Nico, I know you and others are thinking about bei...
Yes, the "how much cheaper would it be to use blac...