BlogData centres
Capacity planning for growth
By Vicky Ogola, Senior ICT Consultant 1 min read
Track space, power, cooling and network capacity against growth plans to expand on time instead of in a crisis.
Data centres usually run out of power or cooling before space. Capacity planning avoids surprises.
Know current usage
Measure power per rack, cooling load, rack space and network ports.
Understand growth
Talk to the business about new systems, users and projects.
Set thresholds
Plan expansion when usage reaches agreed levels, allowing for procurement and installation lead times.
Consider alternatives
Virtualisation, decommissioning old equipment or moving some workloads to hosting may free capacity.
Review regularly
Update the plan at least annually and after major projects.
Watch the hidden limits
Floor loading, cable pathways, available network ports and the capacity of the building's electrical supply can limit growth before space or cooling do. Include them in the plan.
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About the author
Vicky Ogola
Senior ICT Consultant
Vicky Ogola writes about network design, connectivity, data centres and the infrastructure that business systems depend on.