Avocent Announces Intelligent Power Distribution Unit For High-Density Data Centers
Avocent® Corp. introduced the Cyclades PM 42 intelligent power distribution unit (IPDU) that provides switched, remotely manageable three-phase power to equipment racks in data centers – which is claimed to allow for more efficient use of power needed for IT to help businesses remain operational 24x7.
According to the company, the vast majority of data centers today deploy high-density equipment. As rack and server densities increase, substantially more power is required. Three-phase power is said to provide a long-term solution for this problem because it can support growing power requirements as data centers become more densely populated. Three-phase power distribution devices are designed to accept a single three-phase input voltage then convert it to three single, split-phase power circuits. This is claimed to be far more cost effective than running numerous single-phase circuits because an entire data center rack can be powered with a single circuit, or two circuits for redundancy.
The company claims that, combined with Avocent DSView® 3 management software, IT managers in the data center can save time and money using the PM42 since they can remotely reboot or recycle power and monitor power currents. Automated monitoring allows IT managers to set thresholds that can, for example, turn off and lock power units if current goes beyond a set limit, preventing circuit breakers from crashing and bringing down servers. This "smart" metering capability allows businesses to stay "always on" and is claimed to provide a major advancement over basic PDUs that can monitor power but lack the capability to actively control it.
The Cyclades PM 42 is specially designed for racks using more than 5kW of power because rack densities are requiring substantially more power, rising from a former average of 3kW or below, peaking at 20 to 25kW. The Cyclades PM 42 is also said to make better use of scarce data center real estate. The PM 42 can deliver up to 8.6kW of power and provide 42 outlets that can support 42 one-unit (1U) servers within a rack. Up to three PM 42s can be used in tandem and managed as a single entity, enabling IT managers to manage a total of 126 outlets through a single IP address – which the company claims is nearly twice the number of outlets of most competitive managed offerings. The PM 42’s compact size also enables it to be mounted within any rack, unlike wider power strips that can only be used on racks with a wide rear channel, giving it the flexibility to be implemented in any high-density data center environment.
Similar to existing Cyclades PM power products, the new Cyclades PM 42 is easily and remotely accessible through DSView 3 software. DSView 3 software is said to consolidate management of servers and embedded technologies via KVM switches, serial console managers, power managers, service processor managers, and even third-party tools into a single interface, providing a complete infrastructure management solution for IT managers. Rather than having to run a separate management appliance for power issues, IT managers can directly monitor and manage power through the main management platforms they are already using.
The integration with DSView 3 software also enables the power managers to integrate with enterprise authentication, authorization and auditing (AAA) access servers to ensure data center security. By integrating system access, power control and security into a single platform, Avocent claims that it delivers easier management and faster problem solving to data centers of any size.
