Data Center Infrastructure Management
Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) is broadly defined as software tools that help monitor and managing cooling, power, and server capacity in a Data Center. DCIM alsoIt typically includes . software that measures the utilization and energy consumption of all IT-related devices (e.g., servers, storage, and network switches) and building infrastructure components (e.g., power distribution units and cooling systems) with the goal to prevent device problems that lead to downtime.
DCIM 2.0
Every organization should invest in at least one DCIM tool for cost and resource optimization opportunities. In general, there are two categories of DCIM software: monitoring/automation and planning/deployment. While DCIM software in the monitoring and automation category provides user-configurable thresholds for alarms from physical devices and components, the planning/deployment category enables IT managers to easily deploy new devices and simplify Data Center changes.
DCIM is also an integral component of Data Center innovation. Traditional (first-generation) DCIM tools can cause problems such as long deployment times and high complexity in terms of usage and maintenance. In addition, they sometimes generate too many warnings with sometimes limited information. As a result, engineers developed second-generation DCIM to eliminate these problems. DCIM 2.0 offers super-fast deployment time, zero-configuration analytics, artificial intelligence-powered optimizations, data-driven collaboration, and full implementation of all relevant features in one holistic solution. In terms of benefits, DCIM software solutions offer the ability to enable efficient Data Center operations and improve planning and utilization capacity.
Resilient Infrastructure Design
BIM and DCIM are essentially inseparable. While BIM addresses physical infrastructure such as buildings, cooling technology, and electrical systems, DCIM primarily concerns IT applications and properties.
By working hand-in-hand, BIM and DCIM can map a complete “digital twin” of a data center, which is the only way to ensure the efficient operation of a data center.
Key Features of Data Center Infrastructure Management Solutions
ITSM
BMS
DCIM
ITSM
- All activities related to designing, building, delivering, supporting, and managing the lifecycle of IT services
- Includes all activities and processes that support a service, from service management, change management, and problem and incident management to asset management and knowledge management
- Monitors all IT assets of the company (servers in the Data Center, PCs, laptops, tablets, etc.) as logical objects and their configuration (configuration items), centralized in a configuration management database (CMDB)
- Provides Service Desk Change Management for all changes and optimized workflows within IT
BMS
- Monitors and maintains building heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning
- Controls all major energy consuming devices
- Enables error detection and alerts
- Automatic regular checks of the infrastructure components
DCIM
- Manages Data Center physical infrastructure assets, relationships, and capacities:
- Locations of racks, blades/servers, and networking and storage components
- Management of resources supporting IT equipment such as power, space, and cooling
- Physical relationships and connectivity between devices down to the port level
- Monitors, trend and triggers alerts on IT equipment and resources supporting mission-critical facilities.
- Automates visual documentation such as rack mounts and rack units used by providing 3D visualization and providing full-fidelity front and back images, exact mounting position, and information on dimensions, weight, data, and power connections
- Tracks the workflow within the Data Center for physical asset changes, such as added components or changes in server and network devices
- Tracks and monitors environmental conditions, energy efficiency, availability, and utilization of key resources (space, power, cooling, and network/power connections)
With these capabilities in mind, it becomes clear that DCIM presents information across organizational silos, including Data Center operations, serving infrastructure, and IT teams, to achieve optimal use of white space. Every organization needs ITSM and BMS, but only DCIM is the holistic solution that completes the toolkit to provide the visibility and information needed to properly plan and deploy equipment for Data Center projects in support of business/IT services. Simply put, Data Center management is not complete without a DCIM tool.
