Data center survey sees gaps in cyber terrorism readiness, government greening

The data center association AFCOM announced the results of its 2009/2010 Data Center Trends survey, offering perspective and insights on the major trends facing 436 commercial, government and college/university data centers throughout the world; with twenty percent of these facilities responsible for budgets of $10M plus.

The results show that the mainframe may be losing its place in worldwide data centers, as servers become more capable. Also significantly: cloud computing, despite the hype surrounding it, hasn’t pushed beyond 15 percent acceptance at this point. In comparison, 73 percent say they have implemented virtual processing.

The analysis also shows that data center managers need to develop more comprehensive cyber terrorism policies, and get more aggressive in greening, particularly in government agencies where greening lags behind private industry. Finally, it’s time to decide where the mainframe is still viable and needed, and where high-end servers can do a more efficient job.

The survey re-iterates that greening of the data center is no longer just a concept – it is actually taking place, and on a large scale, with 71.3 percent of all respondents indicating they are actively engaged in greening initiatives at this time. And while 71.3 percent are, in fact, engaged in greening, only 42.2 percent have a “formal” greening initiative. According to respondents, the most important results they have experienced as a result of implementing green measures are in power efficiency, 60.8 percent report they are using less power and 51.4 percent have implement cooling efficiency strategies. In addition to power and cooling efficiencies, 11.5 percent also report a significant savings in water usage.