Within the data center, there are a handful of concerns that should be at the top of every chief technology officer's list when considering monitoring solutions for the server room. These include, but aren't limited to, reliability, scalability, connectivity and innovation. An effective monitoring solution should include and strengthen all of these characteristics within the data center.

Let's take an in-depth look at the top concerns CTOs have for monitoring solutions within the data center:

1. Reliability
When running a successful data center environment, it's crucial that both the computing equipment and monitoring solutions are reliable. Especially as regulations surrounding the optimum operating temperature and humidity continue to fluctuate, it's important for data center managers to make sure the temperature within their facilities stays at a level that won't affect computing equipment in the long term.

According to a white paper by The Green Grid on maintaining energy efficiency in the data center, it's generally accepted that environmental factors can impact the reliability of computing equipment. If machines get too hot, it can impede processing speeds or, in a worst-case scenario, cause a server room fire - never a good thing. If machines get too wet from excess humidity, it could cause sparking within the machines and compromise the equipment itself.

TechTarget contributor Bill Kleyman warned that if server racks aren't at a proper inlet temperature, it can create serious server room problems. With an effective monitoring strategy, however, the corrosion of equipment can be avoided. Armed with real-time data, managers can adjust temperatures to keep within the accepted ranges.

2. Scalability
Monitoring equipment like temperature sensors and power distribution units should be capable of scaling at some point during their lifespan. When data center managers invest in new servers or management software, they don't also want to have to scrap their temperature sensors and buy all new ones. Special tools like analog sensors can measure door position, water level and power utilization - and can help managers know how best to scale their equipment.

3. Connectivity
It's also critical for monitoring devices to be able to connect with the current infrastructure management tools being utilized by the data center operators. Having an efficient system to track temperature, humidity and power usage doesn't mean much if managers can't view the collected data in a centralized location. Therefore, it's important to make sure monitoring solutions can connect to data center infrastructure management software.

4. Innovation
Effective monitoring systems can alert managers about potential problems within the data center so that issues can be taken care of immediately, instead of waiting until it's too late. For instance, temperature sensors can detect where hot spots occur near the servers so that managers know where to direct cooling attention and manage environmental concerns more effectively.

Data Center Knowledge contributor Michael Potts reported that in order for data center managers to have the best idea of what's going on in their server rooms, DCIM software can model certain "what-if" scenarios and aggregate data from across the facility. However, without innovative sensors collecting that data and successfully transmitting it to a central hub, capacity planning and modeling would be useless. Therefore, investing in these monitoring solutions could have a direct impact on manager effectiveness when it comes to keeping equipment in tip-top condition.

When managers invest in effective monitoring solutions like the ones offered by Geist, they can be sure that they are getting optimum functionality out of their computing equipment on the server room floor. Get in touch with Geist today to see how our temperature sensors and power monitoring equipment can help your data center succeed.