Raising Electronics

When data centers use technical equipment like computer servers, they are concerned about its security. So, structures known as server racks are available in the market, so that they may keep the technical equipment safe. People keep specialized equipment like computer servers within the server racks. 

The server racks also protect the mechanical equipment against accumulating dust. The design of Server racks is such that proper airflow is maintained. This way, the machine doesn’t get overheated.

Why are portable home server racks essential?

Many people have data centers at home. If the data center owners need to shift, they cannot carry a heavy server rack. So, it is better to use portable home server racks.

It is essential to find out portable home server racks that are of good quality. Here, let us gather some knowledge of the top 10 home server racks. This knowledge will help us choose the perfect home server rack.

Raising Electronics 42U Server Rack: This 42U server rack from Rising Racks is compatible with network equipment of famous brands like Dell and HP. This secure cabinet provides extra space, where cables may be vertically run along with the rack. This positioning prevents the airflow from being obstructed. It comes with an integrated 3- fan.

Tripp Lite SR45UB: This model of a home server rack is a 45u server cabinet. Users may lock their doors at the front and the back. The locking feature ensures safety. The top parts of this model have vents that maintain air circulation.

Startech.com: This model is an ideal home server rack. It is a 25u server rack with adjustable mounting rails.

Tripp Lite Wall Mount Rack: This 18U wall mount rack comes with a glass window. The locking door protects the network equipment within the home server rack against theft. It is easy to mount the home server rack on the wall. This home server rack is perfect for places where the floor space is limited.

NavePoint Delux: This home server rack has inbuilt fans. These inbuilt fans allow air circulation. The glass door may be locked. Hence, the network equipment within the home server rack is safe.

Rosewill Professional Cabinet enclosure: The side panels of this home server rack are made up of steel. This feature simplifies the installation of the network equipment.

Smartchoicesx 9u wall mount: it is easy to remove the portable home server rack's doors and side panels. This feature allows us to access the network equipment within the frame easily.

Tripp Lite 5u vertical: This model of portable home server rack has a steel frame. So, people keep heavy network equipment safely within it.

Startech.com 25u: It has a glass door which provides security to the network equipment stored within. It is equipped with wheels so that it is a portable home server rack.

Navepoint 22U: This open-frame network has a simple set of instructions for installation.

A network rack is a metallic frame that holds, organizes, and protects and secures varieties of server hardware and computer hardware devices. The term “network” means the rack which houses this type of equipment.

Few network racks hold computer systems and servers. The rack works by holding technology with bolts, bracelets, and other rack hardware to keep everything in place.

It is used to mount it into certain kinds of shelves and rails, such as switch shelves and switch rails.

Comparison between a network rack and a 2 post rack:

 A 2 post rack is a low cost and easy to use entry.  A 2 post server rack has 2 thinner, balances, and centralized posts, which extend from 19 to 23 inches apart. 

These racks are generally used for mounting IT equipment, namely, punch down panels and switches.

Below are a few of the benefits of 2 post racks:

It can be a perfect solution for mounting shelves, patch panels, and hubs.

It is made of steel, which ensures reliability.

It gives effortless assembling and disassembling.

It is incredibly cost-effective. Nearly half the price of a 4post rack.

Every 2 post rack supports EIA tapped holes, which is used for mounting in mounting equipment. 

2 post server rack have an excellent two vertical rails with tapped holes for mounting equipment. The users generally use it in order to increase floor stability.

Looking at the differences, you can get the basic knowledge about how both of them are compared.

The 12U Wall Mount Racks is an enclosure cabinet that is great for effortless access to the equipment. Wall mount racks are great for increasing the floor space of the room, similarly, 12U wall mount racks are also used for the same purpose. Plus, they help in good cable management. 

There are many benefits that the 12U wall mount racks can provide, which are listed as the following:

More Floor Space: Installing the 12U wall mount server racks increase the floor space as it is mounted on the wall. With increased floor space, you will get more room to move around and not get knocked by them. Plus, you can also keep more devices on the freed space.

Easy Accessibility: The server cabinet swings away from the wall on a sturdy hinge, allowing easy back-door access to the equipment and cabling during installation and maintenance. It also has a reversible and removable front door, which can rotate 180o and also, the side panels.

More Protection: As the servers are mounted on the wall, the risk of knocking over the servers or spilling liquids over the servers is way lesser than when they are kept on the floor. Thus, this helps in protecting the servers from any damage and from any loss of data.

Prevent Overheating: When the device is kept in this wall mount server rack, the chances of over-heating are very small. The server racks are provided with fans and an integrated ventilation grid to avoid heating up the devices. There will be proper air circulation in this server racks.

Many data centers use network equipment like computer servers. The computer servers are expensive. So, they might get stolen. Thus, data centers use server racks to keep the network equipment safe. A 4-post server rack is the best option to store large network equipment.

Customers need to know how to choose the right 4-post server rack. Let us find out a few points for choosing the right 4-post server rack.  

Airflow: A proper 4-post server rack does not allow air to get trapped within it. Trapped air leads to overheating. Overheating damages the network equipment stored within the server rack. So, the four-post server rack needs to have removable doors or mesh front doors. These types of doors help the hot air to flow out easily. So, there is no chance of trapping the air within the server rack.

Assembling: The 4-post server rack should be easy to assemble. The instruction manuals should mention the instructions in detail. They should be easy to follow. 

Security: Network equipment is expensive. So, many data centers face a problem when their stuff gets stolen. A 4-post server rack that has a lockable door may keep the network equipment secure.

Flexible: A 4-post server rack should be manageable.  The side panels may be adjustable so that authorized people may access the network equipment kept within the server rack. It should also have some extra space, so that we may organize the wiring.

Compact: Many data centers face an issue of space crunch. So, a suitable 4-post server rack has a compact design, so that it does not occupy too much floor space.

Customization: Many data centers look for a customized 4-post data rack. It should be compatible with the network equipment of many brands. A 4-post data rack also needs to be durable, so that it may house heavy network equipment, without collapsing under the weight.

The 15U rack open-frame server racks are available with adjustable depths and different capacities. Like any other open-frame rack, 15U rack has the same features that will you maintain the good performance of the servers. You can easily keep computers, devices, and any other equipment that you need in the server rack, where you will have access to them whenever you need that.

The benefits of getting a 15U rack open-frame server rack are as follows:

Easy to assemble: These racks are made with easy-to-assemble parts. Even you can assemble this alone with the help of the manual provided. After assembling the 15U rack, you can mount the servers on the rack. Your servers will be easily accessible as it is kept within an open framed server rack.

Better airflow: Open frame 15U rack has the capability to maintain properly in and outflow of the air. Proper flow of the air will prevent overheating and help in maintaining the temperature within the servers. If the servers are kept at their normal temperature, the servers will perform better.

Better cable management: With open racks, you will get a chance to organize the cable going in and out of the servers. You can tie up the cables neatly to prevent them from tangling with each other.

Durable design: These racks are light weighted and durable that has the capability to hold up to 750 lb. Plus, the storage solution that the racks provide is amazing. It will help you become free from the hassle and you don’t have to waste time taking care of the servers.

The extra upfront cost of an air-conditioned server rack can save you money in the long run by reducing electrical costs and protecting your hardware. While the open frame and traditional server racks are a cheaper alternative, air-conditioned server racks are a suitable option for servers in less than ideal environments.

  Cooler Ambient Temperature

The surrounding temperature, or the room temperature, directly influences how hot server hardware runs when in use. The higher the room temperature is, the higher is the operating temperature unless the system can compensate for the temperature with cooling the hardware. There’s no secret that excessive heat is bad for computer hardware; air-conditioned server racks address this problem directly by cooling the immediate area around the equipment. An air-conditioned server rack puts less stress on the server’s cooling components and decreases the chances of overheating wear and damage.

  Cool Less Air

It’s common to fix the server room’s air conditioning to a higher setting to drop the room temperature. However, you can have to store a server rack in a place where setting the air conditioning on full blast is impractical or impossible. An air-conditioned server rack is a self-contained unit, so the air conditioner only has to cool the area immediately around the server hardware instead of the entire room. Air-conditioned server racks will cut cooling-related electricity bills into a fraction.

  Cleaner Air Flow

Selecting the right server rack is a crucial decision for any company. Depending on the design and layout of the rack, the way that you will store your servers and the ease to use will vary. By selecting the right server rack that is user-friendly, you have the tools to set up a useful server.

The Location

The location of the office effects the server rack that can work best for a company. In certain areas like an area with a considerable risk of seismic activity, the type of server rack that you will select might play a significant role in the safety of company data and information. A rack must provide seismic protection to prevent accidents, limits the risk of damage to your server, and has a little chance of causing harm to employees when an earthquake occurs.

Consider the risks in your location before going for a server rack. Opt for a rack that addresses explicitly any threats so that it protects against damages and potential complications.

Heating and Cooling

The hot-aisle or cool-aisle layout, or the cooling strategy, plays a crucial role in protecting information and preventing the server from overheating. Generally, you want a design that works explicitly with the type of server and system you set up. For example, when you use a perforated rack for systems that use a cooling fan. If your system uses a liquid cooling system, then go for a sealed rack.

Always ensure to consider the layout of the room and the type of server system before setting up space. Ideally, you will want the cooling system to face away from the front of the room to get the optimal safety.

Size of the Server

The size of the server plays a vital role in the size of the server rack. In general, a micro-server requires a smaller server rack and provides more space for other items. A traditional server needs a more massive server rack, so compare all the options based on the size of the server.

It’s a great thing that your small business has grown much for you to purchase a server. Don’t let this question of choosing slow down your growth. Find the server that can meet your needs and give you space to grow into it.

 The Server You Need

Your server gives a way to store and share data, print, send emails, and share various databases to help your business. It helps you and your staff to share resources and work together on projects. Unlike a desktop computer, your server runs various applications on it. Once arranged for your business, there may be little to do but supervising it and routine maintenance are needed.

Getting the right server needs knowing what you will be doing with it and consider how much reliable your server must be.

Server Types

Depending on what servers you need, you can buy one that focuses on a single function, like mail or file storage. If it is for several business functions, a more powerful server with multiple task capabilities is needed. 

Memory and Storage

Get more memory and storage than you think you may need and grow into it. Don’t suffer with slow response and shuffling files to make room for more when the server should make life easier for you and your staff.

Start out with 4GB to 8GB of memory and a minimum of 500GB of storage. Disk drives are easy to add to a server or run in standalone enclosures.

The Cloud Can Affect Your Choice

If you are a business owner with a data center, then you need the cabinets and racks to hold your hardware. These racks and cabinets are used to protect the equipment as well as make it easily accessible for modification, alteration, or repair as the business evolves and changes over time. If this rack is not strong enough, it can seriously lead to server functioning capabilities resulting in slow business. 

We have listed three tips for choosing the right data center rack for your servers and your business.

STRONG ENOUGH

You need to ensure your data center rack is strong enough to support the servers and all the other components you will need. If they are damaged anyhow, due to a data center rack breaking because it’s not strong enough to hold it, it will hamper your business and will cost a lot of money. So make sure that the data center rack is physically strong enough to hold the equipment.

SLIDING OR REGULAR RACKS: WHICH ONE IS TO CHOOSE?

Two types of shelves are used in data centers: sliding and regular.

Sliding racks can slide in and out of the cabinet and allow easier access to the servers for maintenance and upkeep. They are more expensive and can break down over time as there have more moving parts.

Regular shelves are stationary and simply hold the hardware. They are more reliable in the long run and cheaper, but make it more difficult to do routine maintenance on a piece of equipment. 

IS IT BIG ENOUGH?

Many businesses only need a 1U server, a switch, router, and might not have enough space for a rack. Often this leads to the decision of purchasing a tower server which means they also buy a non-rack mount switch and router. 

These are all excellent products to use, but it’s a bit harder to manage organizationally. 

Usually, all of the networking equipment in a fast food restaurant is inside the manager’s office. These typically don’t have much space because the real-estate needs to be dedicated to food, workers, and customers. 

Does rackmount equipment cost more?  The rack-mountable form factor doesn’t make your server faster, or necessarily cheaper. Still, pricing is relatively competitive. 

Without considering the current sale, the rack mount server is about 9.3% more expensive. If you’re purchasing multiple servers the new cost compounds on itself and can become very significant, but you also would not be able to store as many in one rack. Purchasing additional racks can be even more costly. 

How to mount the Vertical Wall Mount Rack Bracket?  Setup is easy enough. The bracket can be mounted on drywall with anchors or screwed directly into studs. Choosing where you set it up is what’s interesting. 

Mixer/Amplifiers are usually light enough for their entire weight to be supported while mounted vertically under a desk. This means that you can install the bracket in an area that is convenient to access but still out of the way. 

If you want to mount larger equipment horizontally, you’ll need to double down on the brackets. Full-sized servers should only be installed with four areas of support, meaning a bracket for the front and a bracket for the back. Using this method, as long as your desk is strong enough, you can have up to 4U of space to mount networking equipment. 

When this equipment is mounted under the desk, it is effortless to route cables discreetly. The primary office computer is likely nearby, and if you need to route them through a wall, you can do so without wires being visible. 

Virtualization is creating a new data center where equipment racks are filled with smaller devices that are utilized at a higher rate, but still, use less power and operate at cooler temperatures.

According to a recent Consulting-Specifying Engineer report, the trend toward virtualization is becoming dominant in large facilities and small data centers operated at factories and other manufacturing centers.

The trend toward virtualization in the manufacturing-focused data center creates several improvements in the industry, including economic and management enhancements.

Virtualization dramatically improves the economics of operating a data center in industrial settings by reducing the amount of power and cooling infrastructure needed within the facility and reducing operational costs, the report said.

In terms of management, the report explained that it is easy to manage the many updates and other software and firmware changes that occur within manufacturing server systems when running on virtual infrastructure.

Data is one of the most vital and valuable assets your business holds. Personal information, business strategy, and financial information are just a small amount of data stored on your servers. 

Several companies jump into taking protective measures without any understanding, and this can often lead to poor investments. This is money wasted that could have been used to improve your business.

There are three types of attacks your servers could come under:

Determined attacks

Crimes of opportunity

Crimes of convenience

While crimes of opportunity are things like your common theft, they can also include attacks like spear-phishing & ransomware. A lot of people think this kind of stuff is digital security only, but it’s not. One of the typical ways that people are bypassing all the digital security measures that we take, from a cyber security perspective, is interacting with the physical space.

Inside the data center grounds, address crimes of opportunity with tall fencing, human existence, and various keyed entry points. Have an employee on the ground looking for things that are not normal, investigating potential issues, keeping areas clean, and doing checks and sweeps.

This is the most effective way to prevent crimes of opportunity: video surveillance and signs that state you have a camera presence. Most people are honest, but if an opportunity exists, some people will take advantage. By placing cameras and signaling that cameras are there, you help reduce what they perceive as opportunities.

Placing physical barriers on the point of access to your servers can go a long way for your security. These include automatic re-closers on the door, biometric two-point authentication, and enclosed racks. Enclosed racks help keep your servers protected and organized. Security has been addressed as well, with locking front and back doors and locking side panels. If needed, you can upgrade latches for even more protection. 

This ensures the servers are physically not accessible on the same network. Your principal and backup data cannot be on the same site, and the cloud is not always the solution. When considering the impact of downtime or data loss on your business, the cloud brings challenges and retrieves your data from it. Not to mention, it can also cost a lot of money to do this. Consider how fast you can be back online, and if you need to recover immediately or a longer period. 

Have an employee open the door for guests, even to their systems. This secondary level of audit control will make sure you know exactly who is going in and out.