Why IT Is Evolving Because of Hyperscale Data Centers

An explosion of power forces a new change in information technology!

It boggles the mind to try and imagine how technology is growing at exponential rates. Hyperscale data centers are redefining data delivery and information technology as we know it.

These data centers are large facilities that house networks. Billions of miles of cables, lines, and connections go through servers.

What Is a Data Center?

Businesses and organizations around the world either lease, use, or own central systems that house servers and networks. This system is located in a secure building known as a data center. Businesses and organizations rely on data centers to collect, store, backup, process, and distribute information that is the property of that business/organization.

Applications are also a part of what data center stores for a business/organization. Email, messaging, Cloud storage, online gaming, and e-commerce is a few examples of these applications.

Within a data center, are vast numbers of servers and equipment that maintains and protects the data of billions of clients (businesses/organizations.) All of this equipment runs 24/7 and has default systems in place to safeguard overheating or power issues.

Are Data Centers Essential?

Our technologically-driven culture hungers for data. We expect our internet, online gaming, and apps to be swift and easy to use. Data centers meet our expectations by delivering those things to us quickly and efficiently. Because of this, data centers are essential.

The Cloud

With the advancement of technology, our culture is moving towards using the Cloud. The Cloud alleviates the need to rely on our computers to store our data or applications.

The ease of accessing everything through a Cloud provider is becoming the trend. The business world is also moving towards Cloud service to reduce the cost of maintaining its network and server.

Although your computer, network, or server does not store your data and apps, there is someone responsible for maintaining it on the Cloud. That person is at a remote place where they handle your internet access. A hyper-scale data center is the ‘remote place.’

What Is a Hyperscale Data Center?

A hyper-scale data center is mega-sized data centers that have vast amounts of computers, network hardware, cooling systems, and power. These facilities are on such a grand scale that the employees use electric vehicles to move about on.

To give you a perspective on how big one of these facilities is, imagine the floor size. To bear the weight of the network and servers, the thickness of the floor foundation must be specially engineered. Ceilings are enormously high to accommodate the big machines and hardware as well as the cables that run from end to end.

Leaders In Hyperscale Data Centers

Leading Cloud service providers have taken data centers to a whole new level in size! Coined as ‘hyperscale data centers,’ these places are monstrously powerful.

Microsoft

• Located in Chicago, Illinois
• 700,000 square feet (world’s largest)
• Contains 24,000 miles of network cabling
• Cost: $500 million
• Modular design with two-stories
  • 1st floor contains web servers which are housed in shipping containers.
  • 2nd floor used for raised-floor data space.

Microsoft also has three other hyperscale data center sites:

• Quincy, Washington (500,000 square feet)
• San Antonio, Texas (477,000 square feet)
• Dublin, Ireland (303,000 square feet)

Apple

• Located in Maiden, North Carolina
• 514,246 square feet
• Cost: $1 billion
• Situated on 183 acres

Google

• Located in Lenoir, North Carolina
• 500,000 square feet (equivalent to almost nine football fields)
• Cost: $1 billion
• Situated on 215 acres

Google has 12 other mega data centers around the world as well as smaller data centers that are strewn all over the country.

Facebook

• Located in Altoona, Iowa
• 475,000 square feet
• Cost: $1.5 billion

Facebook currently has four hyperscale data centers. They are presently planning a mega-hyperscale data center which will be located in Singapore. It will be 11 stories tall and have 1.8 million square feet!

What Impact Will Hyperscale Data Centers Have on Information Technology?

Information technology, as we know, it, is evolving as the demand for digital services increase. These demands are giving birth to the advancements in the data center industry.

Data centers are expected to meet the requirements that are emerging as the industry advances towards hybrid information technology. The mega Cloud providers such as Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, and Google have opened the door to a more efficient way to deliver applications and store data.

Experts predict that advanced technology, such as quantum computing, will have a profound effect on the design and operation of data centers. These significant changes may cause existing data centers to become antiquated. Because of this, these data centers will need to deploy some significant upgrades to their infrastructure.

The scope of playing ‘catch-up’ with the direction IT is moving towards is going to be massive. Over four million data centers around the world are anticipated to begin confirmation. This is because of the underlying forces shaped by Cloud technology. Additionally, you may see consolidations of data centers to cut back on the expense of upgrades.

As data centers move into a new age of IT, new classifications will be assumed by these centers to identify the type of service they provide. They will range from mega-hyperscale, collocations, micro-data center, and more.

Information technology is heading into a new era because of the explosion in the demands of efficient data flow. The design concept of the hyperscale data center is leading the way causing significant change for those left in the dust of their trail.