Green House Data powers data center with wind energy…and InterMapper network monitoring software
Network mapping and alerting tracks temperature, security systems, and network devices
Customer: Green House Data
Location: Cheyenne, Wyoming
Application: Monitor temperature, security systems, and network devices inside a 100% renewable energy powered data center.
InterMapper's Role: InterMapper network monitoring and mapping software will monitor Green House Data's new 10,000 square foot data center to ensure that hot spots are found and corrected immediately, that center security is not breached, and that network device capacity is constantly maximized.
Quote: “We need to be incredibly proactive in the data center.” Green House Data in Cheyenne, Wyoming isn't just another data center. First, it's the only data center in Wyoming. Second, as the name implies, it's green. Located in one of the top wind zones in the world, Green House Data takes advantage of wind power to run all operations in its new 10,000 square foot facility.
The entire 100% of power used by Green House Data comes from renewable energy. “We invested heavily in energy efficiency to absorb the 'green house premium,” explains Shawn Mills, CEO. “The goal is for the price of services, co-location, and hosting to be even lower than from data centers that aren't green.”
Green House Data's Cheyenne location makes Wyoming its primary market but the Colorado front range is well-positioned to take advantage of co-location services and the company is courting clients from among the many socially responsible companies across the country. Inquiries are also coming in from Europe, especially the UK, where there are even greater energy challenges.
Along with promising the use of renewable energy to power its entire operation, Green House Data promises 100% uptime and that client data is 100% secure. “We need to monitor everything from the point bandwidth enters the building to the consumption of power supplies on servers to be incredibly proactive in our highly efficient data center,” explains Mills.
Having seen the InterMapper network monitoring system in use at other facilities, Green House Data engineers decided to charge it with watching over temperature sensors, security sensors on doors, and of course, their network devices. Mills explains, “We look for spots where the temperature is rising and make sure that doors that are supposed to be closed and locked really are. And, because we maintain constant efficiency, we look for servers that are only using a small portion of their capacity and redistribute that load.”
“I think it's unique how intensely our engineers use InterMapper,” says Mills. “They've set up a network map that lets them see the whole facility. And if something merely looks out of the ordinary, they get notified. If an area is too hot, or a door is open, or a light that should be off is on, people have to get out of bed.”
Mills explains that he and the Green House Data engineers are very excited about InterMapper's “trending capabilities.” “We want to always maximize efficiency of service and InterMapper lets us see how devices are performing over time.”