#server cabling

Whether you're considering physically migrating a small quantity of your servers and network assets or your entire data centre, cabling and connectivity will be one of your leading considerations for the move and requires excellent planning, organisation and forethought for it to be a success.

One of the very best approaches to data cabling is to "pre-patch"; that is to install new power, copper and data cabling, labelled and identifiable, into the racks and at the U positions required for the incoming equipment.  The technique is dependent on core infrastructure (racks, power and patching) being in place but when completed by skilled engineers, can be successfully implemented in the absence of any server or network equipment.  

At first glance, you may consider this approach to be expensive and time consuming but when considered in the wider context and the alternative methods which are available, we think you'll see the value in the technique.

We've taken some time to list some of the main benefits and constraints of Pre-Patching below, we hope you find it useful.

Constraints of Re-cabling Devices During/Post Move (not Pre-Patched)

It's generally slower to re-commission devices when re-cabling devices on the move day.

Any issues with patch schedules and rack plans will not be discovered until the move day and could potentially prove extremely disruptive, require additional staff to resolve issues and introduce significant delays.

Physical constraints of working within DC environments with limited space sometimes results in having to minimise the number of engineers working at the rear of the racks, therefore introducing potential delays.

If cabling is to run between racks either directly or through additional “hops” via patch panels, physical constraints again are prevalent due to only being able to have one engineer at the rear of a rack at any one time.  Patching tasks often have to be split in this situation with information passed between team members on the day in order to complete the final connections/patches.

If, by re-cabling on the day, there is a reliance on recovery of existing cabling from the source site, additional delays to the source site de-rack and migration will be experienced and additional risk introduced due to re-using patch and power cables that could be faulty.

Using "recovered" cables can introduce delays due to the preparation required to size, check and prepare them (remove old labels and clips etc).  Cable sizing is often an issue too as even with similar rack layouts being adopted at source and destination, rack infrastructure differs from site to site and therefore requires a different spread of sizes.  Unless known, accounted and planned for, issues will be experienced on move day.

Due to prevalent time constraints on any move day, cable routing, labelling and neatness are often not prioritised, resulting in the installation being less manageable.

Benefits of Pre-Patching and Controlled Re-Commissioning Approach

The pre-patch planning approach covers all elements from cable sizing, qty's, colour coding etc and ensures that the correct qty’s of cables are provisioned thereby eliminating the need to estimate shortfall from unknown qty’s and sizes of existing cables.

Pre-patch occurs prior to migration and so allows for any issues with rack plans, patch schedules, infrastructure, power etc to be identified and resolved prior to equipment being shut down and moved.

All new power and data cables are used for pre-patch.  This gives the added benefit of massively reducing the probability of cable failures but also enables clear, concise, clean labelling and colour coding to be implemented.

With cables already in place, re-commissioning time is massively reduced as they only need connecting and dressing rather than full installation.

Less labour is required on the move day and as such, in the case of out of hours moves, significant labour savings can be realised due to pre-patching being completed during normal business hours.

A far higher standard of cable routing and neatness can be achieved due to the greater time allowance.  This contributes to forming an environment that is easier to manage, maintain and perform troubleshooting within.

Issues with cabling on the move day are faster to resolve due to there being accurate information available and skilled staff able to troubleshoot issues.

Due to the focus on high quality information flow and update throughout the process, changes are managed and documentation always kept up to date.  This provides each client with valuable DCIM information which helps in managing and maintaining the environment going forward.