Facebook started working on a project a year ago, with a well defined goal. And the goal was to build an infrastructure for itself which would be one of the most energy efficient, and at the same time built at the least possible cost!
And in doing so, Facebook designed software, servers and the data centers that house these servers from scratch. And how well has the project has been implemented, can be judged from the fact that the servers are 24% less expensive while churning out 38% more efficiency.
Refer opencompute.org and now let us look at some of the aspects of this project.
Server fb open compute project
The servers, as part of this project are called “Vanity Free”. What does this mean? By constructing “Vanity Free” servers, Facebook has cut down on the utilization of plastic and other parts than most traditional servers do. So in effect this means, such servers are void of the aesthetics involved and at the same time are more efficient, inexpensive and easy to service. After all, who wants a server to look good?
Data Center fb open compute project
The data centers are designed to maximize mechanical performance and electrical efficiency. The data centers are equipped with an integration of 48V DC UPS with a 277V AC server power supply. Now that would mean, more electrical energy from the electrical grid to the data center would be transmitted across to the various server components. Coupled with this is the state of the art cooling system, which makes use of the evaporative cooling technology.
Energy Efficiency fb open compute project
Now let’s take a look at the key pointers towards energy efficiency of the Facebook’s data centers, thanks largely to the Open Commute Project.
- Power usage effectiveness (PUE), which is a measure of how efficiently a data center makes use of the available power supply, stands at a staggering 1.07 vis-à-vis US Environmental Protection Agency defined average of 1.5.
- Now that means 93% of the electricity transmitted across the electrical grid gets transmitted to the data center. Fewer losses!
Make this OPEN!
And if this wasn’t a path breaking effort by Facebook, there’s more to this project. Facebook has made it an open project, meaning just about anybody and everybody can make use of the developments by Facebook, and working in tandem with the various stakeholders into making this a success worldwide. Facebook has already worked with Alfa Tech, AMD, Delta, Intel, Power One and Quanta to make this a grand success. And few more biggies are joining hands and following suit with the likes of Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Skype, Zynga.
Yet again Facebook seems to have done it, and done it in a big way.
