Data Center Handbook, 2nd Edition

FOREWORD (1)

The digitalization of our economy requires data centers to continue to innovate to meet the new needs for connectivity, growth, security, innovation, and respect for the environment demanded by organizations. Every phase of life is putting increased pressure on data centers to innovate at a rapid pace. Explosive growth of data driven by 5G, Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing the way data is stored, managed, and transferred. As this volume grows, data and applications are pulled together, requiring more and more computing and storage resources. The question facing data center designers and operators is how to plan for the future that accomplishes the security, flexibility, scalability, adaptability, and sustainability needed to support business requirements.

With this explosion of data, companies need to think more carefully and strategically about how and where their data is stored, and the security risks involved in moving data. The sheer volume of data creates additional challenges in protecting it from intrusions. This is probably one of the most important concerns of the industry – how to protect data from being hacked and being compromised in a way that would be extremely damaging to their core business and the trust of their clients.

Traditional data centers must deliver a degree of scalability to accommodate usage needs. With newer technologies and applications coming out daily, it is important to be able to morph the ...