Data center operators must do what they can to protect their facilities from natural disasters. Out on the west coast, it is important to consider the risk of earthquakes.
Earlier this week, Northern California was hit with a magnitude-6.1 earthquake, which USA Today says is the largest such event to hit the area in 25 years. In Napa, California, more than 100 people were injured and at least 15 buildings were rendered uninhabitable due to structural damage.
As California is home to numerous tech companies in Silicon Valley, it has plenty of data centers carrying important information. The earthquake served as a reminder than data center operators must always be thinking about disaster recovery measures for their facilities.
First, it is important to make sure that the physical structure can withstand a violent geological event. According to an article on Data Center Knowledge, operators must bolt their racks with seismic restraints and make sure that the building has "multiple layers of redundancy."
In addition, they must establish backup systems that can compensate for the potential loss of power and even water pressure that might occur following an earthquake and its aftershocks.
"Remember, even if the data center building survives a major quake, the surrounding infrastructure is not resilient," RagingWire CTO Bill Dougherty told the news source. "Bridges, roads, power grids, fiber paths, and fuel suppliers are all vulnerable and have a direct impact on your operations and service availability. And there's no question, another quake will hit the Bay Area."
A focus on data center infrastructure management can help operators keep their facilities safe and operational even in the worst circumstances.
