Cooling solutions for IT equipment, from small network closets to enterprise data centers, today’s smaller server room environments are dealing with the growing needs for server rack densities. At one point in time, building HVAC systems were sufficient enough to handle the cooling requirements of these smaller computer rooms. The question is, how much cooling is really needed?
Simple cooling calculators are a quick and simple tool, however don’t tell the full story. Each server room is unique and requires a different approach.
Portable cooling units may work in some server rooms, while others may be too space restricted. In some cases an engineered computer room cooling system may be a more efficient, economical choices in the long run; while precision, in-rack cooling may be the best option in others. Not anymore. Server room cooling has become a much higher priority for today’s IT professionals. What’s for sure is that open doors with box fans pushing office air isn’t going to cut it anymore.
The data center cooling experts at 42U can help discover the best cooling solution for each and every data center, server room, and computer closet.
Schedule your Server Room Power & Cooling Evaluation today to learn how you can jump start efficiency and capacity gains in your environment.
Inrow Precision Cooling
Conventional data center cooling floods an entire room with cold air-an approach that works well at minimal power densities. In-Row cooling offers capacity and efficiency gains by moving the air conditioner from the perimeter of the room closer to actual load. Installed on the floor or suspended from overhead, in-row cooling units provide local, focused cooling at the rows of server cabinets which fill the data center.
Distance is the cornerstone of inrow performance. Neither cool air nor warm exhaust air has far to travel, allowing the unity to dissipate high heat loads.Flexible Cooling Medium
Inrow solutions, whether floor mounted or overhead, consist of fans and a cooling coil. Depending on the product, the cooling coil will utilize chilled water or refrigerants as the cooling medium.Refrigerant based units will require connection to a remote condenser system while chilled water based units traditionally connect to chiller systems.
High Density Cooling
High density closed-loop provides an inrow cooling approach to the server rack heat by integrating within a row of data center racks, therefore providing the most efficient cooling of your IT equipment. This type of cooling is best suited for racks typically 10-30kW or higher (up to 60kW) and small to medium sized data centers with dense loads. As well as high density POD rows in larger data centers requiring high density cooling.
Hot air is drawn from the rear of the servers into the side of the Side Cooling Unit by high-efficiency fans. Cooling the air via an air-to-water heat exchanger, the unit then blasts cold air back to the front of the servers where operating temperatures are reduced and the cycle continues. The capacity of each unit is scalable from 10 to 30kW simply by adding more fans — 10kW equals one fan with 30kW achieved with three fans. An added benefit is energy savings are increased as well.
Servers are cooled independently from ambient air within the data center so cooling can be adapted to the needs of individual servers or enclosures in a modular fashion. Adapting cooling capacity to a unit’s precise requirements provides for more efficient cooling and energy use.
The increased capacity is available within the same footprint as existing models — you can get 30kW cooling from a unit that’s still just 12-inches wide.
Integrated Cooling
An integrated cooling system features the cooling unit inside the base of the rack. It is the most precise cooling available, as the rack and the air conditioner operate in a closed relationship with one another. Cold air has no choice but to pass through the servers and the hot air has no choice but to pass through the heat exchanger. Integrated cooling provides a computing environment that is thermally neutral to the rest of the room. These integrated solutions typically can only cool up to 3kW and are designed for small IT rooms and network rooms.
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