Top 10 Data Center Stories: January 2014

Microsoft Joins Open Compute Project, Shares its Server Designs - January 27 - In a dramatic move that illustrates how cloud computing has altered the data center landscape, Microsoft is opening up the server and rack designs that power its vast online platforms and sharing them with the world.

Lengthy Outages for Hacker News, FastHosts - January 6 - It was a rough weekend for uptime, with significant outages at UK hosting provider FastHosts and the startup news portal Hacker News.

Closer Look: Microsoft’s Cloud Server Hardware - January 27 - As it joins the Open Compute Project, Microsoft can now show the world the custom server and storage designs that power its global armada of more than 1 million servers. DCK takes a closer look.

As Bitcoin Infrastructure Booms, Mining Heads to the Data Center - January 21 - After getting started in garages and server closets, bitcoin mining is moving into data centers and the cloud. Some traditional data center providers will benefit, but this transition also has the potential to enrich a new generation of entrepreneurs emerging from within the bitcoin community.

Facebook: Open Compute Has Saved Us $1.2 Billion - January 28 - Over the last three years, Facebook has saved more than $1.2 billion by using Open Compute designs to streamline its data centers and servers, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said today at the Open Compute Summit in San Jose.

Why Does Gmail Go Down? January 2014 Edition - January 24 - So how does a widely-used app like Gmail go down, as it has today? There have been a number of Gmail outages over the years, usually involving software updates or networking issues.

Schneider Electric Acquires AST Modular - January 10 - Schneider Electric has beefed up its position in the market for pre-fabricated data centers with the acquisition of AST Modular, the company said today. The AST deal reflects Schneider's growing focus on modular solutions, coming just three months after it rolled out a new line of 15 enclosures.

NSA Will Cool its Secret Servers With Waste Water - January 6 - A new data center being built by the National Security Agency (NSA) will use up to 5 million gallons a day of treated wastewater from a Maryland utility. With its use of local waste water, the NSA is emulating a strategy adopted by Google.

Report: Data Center Leasing Surged 25 Percent in 2013 - January 9 - Data center demand from social media companies and cloud-builders contributed to a surge in leasing of wholesale data center suites in 2013, with total leasing volume up about 25 percent from 2012, according to a report from a real estate firm.

Google Glass: A Vision of the Future for Data Center Maintenance - January 9 - When fitted with safety lenses, Google Glass provides a great opportunity to revolutionize the way data center technicians perform their daily tasks. When dedicated maintenance and repair apps are developed, the data center technician will directly connect to the maintenance database. when completing usual maintenance activities.