Five barriers to data center automation

It’s easy to think that, in the data center and beyond, automation knows no boundaries. Artificial intelligence offers seemingly endless opportunities to improve data center operations and networks. The entire IT industry has embraced the concept that workflows can be fully automated to the point where we can achieve a NoOps state. Inside the data center, there's almost nothing we can't automate.

Despite the potential of modern technology for data center automation, it is still difficult to automate key aspects, which is the result of reality.

In fact, due to the physical characteristics of the data center, it is in some ways more difficult to automate than other types of IT infrastructure or environments.

To prove the point, let’s look at five aspects of a data center or data center operations that won’t be fully automated right away.

1. Server deployment

In the public cloud, automatically deploying servers is as simple as applying some infrastructure-as-code templates to configure cloud resources.

However, in a data center, this type of automation is not possible because servers are physical hardware. Someone has to physically install the server, connect power and network cables, ensure proper cooling, etc.

Theoretically, robots can automate much of the work of server deployment in data centers. However, for bots to operate efficiently in this regard, operations need to be done at scale, and server deployments need to be consistent and predictable to enable automation without human intervention. However, most current server deployments do not meet these standards.

While people have been discussing the potential of robotic data center automation for at least a decade, the reasons why we actually see so few robots in data centers are multi-factorial. In most cases, robotic applications are impractical. Therefore, it is expected that server deployment will continue to be manual for the foreseeable future.

2. Hardware maintenance

Normally, maintaining server hardware within the data center is not a task that can be automated. Replacing failed disks, replacing frayed cables and power supplies, and updating network cards are all common data center routines. The only way to resolve these issues is to send technicians to perform deployment and maintenance work.

3. HVAC installation and maintenance

HVAC systems prevent IT equipment from overheating and are an important part of every data center. Like servers, HVAC systems contain physical components that require manual maintenance.

Remote HVAC sensors and monitoring systems can help automate some processes related to HVAC management, but ultimately, HVAC maintenance is not a job that can be easily automated in the data center.

4. Physical Security

Data center physical security is another area where monitoring systems can help automate certain tasks, but require human intervention to deal with major issues.

You can use sensors to track the movement of people within the data center, and biometric devices can be deployed to automatically control physical access to the data center. However, if you detect an intruder, or your automated access control system is not functioning properly, you will need security personnel to respond.

5. Disaster Recovery

In some cases, disaster recovery routines can be automated - in fact, disaster recovery automation is essential to saving time when recovering data or applications after a failure. important.

However, you can only automate disaster recovery if the assets you need to recover are software-based and you have sufficient infrastructure to host the recovered assets.

If recovery requires deploying new hardware or replacing failed components (which may be the case if your data center suffers a natural disaster that renders some systems inoperable), you will need to rely on humans to perform the work manually.

Limitations of Data Center Automation

There are many good reasons to automate data center operations as broadly as possible. But many aspects of data center management are not suitable for automation.

Even in the age of generative artificial intelligence and robotics, it’s hard to imagine humans being completely removed from data centers anytime soon.

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