Data center moves are often triggered when your facility has run out of space, power, or cooling. With the proliferation of virtualization, you may view the data center move as a catalyst for moving forward the virtualization agenda. In fact, many information technology projects often appear out of nowhere to hitch their ride to the data center move.

The common mistake made in a data center move is the failure to consider the impact that virtualization will have on the success of the data center move. This is particularly true when the same resources are used for both projects.

To include virtualization before your data center move, you’ll need to adopt a different approach to the typcial go-slow methodology that can take 18 to 24 months to realize any benefits.

Freezing changes in the data center several months before the actual move is a difficult principle to enforce. Many organizations say they’ll implement a freeze, but few have the discipline to impose a successful no-change period. Introducing new technology right before a data center move is a recipie for uncertainty. Your staff is typically not adequately trained, your project is rushed into production without adequate “soak” time, and the project itself can prove to be a distraction from important data center move tasks.

Our data center move plan assessments often reveal that too much risk is involved when virtualization is rushed into production prior to a data center move. In fact, more organizations are attempting to run virtualization for the very first time during the actual data center move.  This illustrates another common data center move mistake — constructing a plan where everything has to go right.

Data Center Relocation, Data Center Relocation Checklist

While much has been written about data center site selection and data center commissioning, post move tasks are often overlooked entirely. Decommissioning is one of those often overlooked efforts.

How do you properly decommission a previously active data center?

First, you need to decide what decommisioning actually means to you. Are you stripping the space to the bare four walls? The decommisioning steps will vary widely depending on your end game. If you have even one piece of active equipment in your data center, you are not yet ready for decommissioning.

Here are some questions to ask yourself when your data center needs to be decommissioned:

1. What outside imperatives such as lease terminations drive the timeline for decomissioning?
2. What end state are you leaving the data center?
3. What outside experts do you need so you properly budget for their time? For example, if you are going to sell the CRAC (Computer Room Air Conditioners) units, then you’ll need some skills to properly drain and cap the entire chilled water system. You’ll need skills to disable the sprinkler or fire suppression systems.
4. What project manager are you going to put in charge of the decommissioning remembering that you’ve likely already over allocated your entire staff for the new location?
5. Who is paying attention to the proper termination of telecommunications circuits remembering that it’s not uncommon for a telco to disconnect the wrong circuit (such as your new circuits versus your old circuits) so extra vigilance is required.
6. Who has reviewed the relevant contractual details for building leases, equipment contracts, and facility services? It’ s not uncommon to discover that you are contracutally obligated to pay for items for 6 to 12 months  because you failed to give proper written notice.

Data Center Relocation Checklist

It’s not uncommon to be planning a data center move into a facility that is being designed or is already under construction. Schedule pressures often compress necessary commissioning activities and shortcuts often lead to surprises later.

The Emergency Power Off (EPO) system should be tested before you move a single piece of equipment into your new data center. Push the big red EPO button and allow plenty of time in your commissioning schedule for the orderly testing and calibration of all of your electrical, cooling, fire suppression, and life safety systems in your data center.

Data Center Relocation, Data Center Relocation Checklist