Data Center Location & Security: A Comprehensive Guide
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Data Center Location
General Area
- Proximity to potential users
- Good roads
- Reliable power supply
- Good communication services
- Attractive income taxes
Specific Site
- Location in high areas for flood protection
- Proximity to urban or commercial transport services
- Keep away from air and ground traffic
- Keep away from pipelines of any material
Specific Building
- Suitable space for computer personnel (allowing for expansion)
- Absence of difficulties in site preparation
- Suitable space for air conditioning and power supply
- Possibility of placing a waiting area for visitors to the data center
- Possibility to control access
Preparing the Premises
Key Considerations
- Planning
- Setting objectives
- Alternative approaches
- Identifying associated costs
- Activity program
- Installing vs. Relocation
- Environmental requirements
- Space between computers
- False floor load
- Type of surface
- Temperature
- Air flow
- Power supply
- Humidity
- Lighting
- Noise
Space Distribution
The area must be comprehensive and appropriate in a manner that allows information to flow efficiently during work.
Security
Actions or strategies for the shelter and physical safety of facilities, easy access, and the information used in a computer center.
Environmental Security
Electrical Installation
One of the key aspects to consider when designing the data center. An incorrect estimate of the power load will cause serious problems when using the computers.
Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
Receives a normal supply for charging batteries and providing a clean supply when the commercial power supply fails. Used to provide temporary power.
Line Conditioners
Used to eliminate power surges and electrical noise in varying degrees but do not store electricity, meaning they cannot counteract power interruptions.
Light Flow
The office requires different lighting than a house due to different activities. Recommended light flow is between 50 and 75 footcandles.
Physical Security
The application of physical barriers and control procedures as preventive measures and countermeasures against threats to confidential information resources.
Types of Disasters
This type of security focuses on addressing threats posed by both humans and nature to the physical environment where the data center is located.
Natural Disasters
- Accidental fires
- Storms
- Floods
Man-Made Threats
- Riots
- Deliberate sabotage
- External threats
Analyzing Significant Hazards
Taking a series of actions effectively and timely for the prevention, reduction, recovery, and correction of different types of risks.
Floods
Excess water invasion due to runoff or accumulation on flat terrain, lack of drainage caused by either natural or artificial means.
Measures to Prevent Flooding
- Build a weatherproof roof to prevent water flow from a higher level.
- Install doors to hold back water flowing down the stairs.
Hostile Actions
Theft
- Computers are valuable possessions and businesses are exposed in the same way as stock parts and even money.
- Operators may use company computers for personal jobs or for other organizations, stealing machine time.
- Software is easily stolen, and tapes and disks are easily copied without leaving a trace.
Fraud
Millions of dollars are stolen from businesses each year, and in many cases, computers have been used as a tool for such purposes.
Sabotage
The most feared threat in data processing centers, this may be perpetrated by an employee or someone outside the company.
Magnets
Physical tools that can erase information with a light pass.
Access Control
Requires not only the ability to identify but also to associate with the opening or closing of doors, allowing or denying access based on time constraints, area, or sector within a company or institution.
Using Metal Detectors
Extremely convenient for screening people, offering significant advantages over manual palpation.
Detector Sensitivity
Adjustable, allowing for the establishment of a minimum volume of metal that triggers the alarm. The use of such detectors should be made known to all staff, acting as a deterrent.
Using Biometric Systems
Automatic Signature Verification
Focuses on what the user is able to do. While a forger might produce a good visual copy, it is extremely difficult to reproduce the dynamics of a person’s genuine signature exactly.