Contents Overview 1 Identifying the Data Center Environment 2 Identifying People Considerations 3 Identifying Data Center Processes 4 Identifying Technology Considerations 12 Identifying Facility Considerations 13 Microsoft Operations Framework: People, Process, and Technology 15 Lab A: Planning a Data Center Environment 17 Review 19 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment Information in this document is subject to change without notice. The names of companies, products, people, characters, and/or data mentioned herein are fictitious and are in no way intended to represent any real individual, company, product, or event, unless otherwise noted. Complying with all applicable copyright laws is the responsibility of the user. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of Microsoft Corporation. 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Program Manager: Don Thompson Product Manager: Greg Bulette Instructional Designers: April Andrien, Kelley Umphrey Subject Matter Experts: Conrad Cahill (Entirenet), Jack Creasey Classroom Automation: Lorrin Smith-Bates Graphic Designer: Andrea Heuston (Artitudes Layout & Design) Editing Manager: Lynette Skinner Editor: Lori Kane Copy Editor: Gwen Bloomsburg (S&T Consulting) Production Manager: Miracle Davis Build Manager: Julie Challenger Print Production: Lori Walker (S & T Consulting) CD Production: Eric Wagoner Test Manager: Eric R. Myers Test Lead: Robertson Lee (Volt) Creative Director: David Mahlmann Media Program Manager: Scott Daniels Media Producer: Dean Connolly Lead Production Artist: Scott Serna Localization Manager: Rick Terek Operations Coordinator: John Williams Manufacturing Support: Laura King; Kathy Hershey Lead Product Manager, Release Management: Bo Galford Lead Technology Manager: Sid Benavente Lead Product Manager: Ken Rosen Group Manager, Courseware Infrastructure: David Bramble Group Product Manager, Content Development: Julie Truax Director, Training & Certification Courseware Development: Dean Murray General Manager: Robert Stewart Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment iii Instructor Notes This module identifies the facility, process, technology, and people issues that must be considered when planning a data center environment. During the lab at the end of the module, students will have an opportunity to practice planning a data center environment. After completing this module, students will be able to:  Identify the data center environment.  Identify people considerations for managing a data center environment.  Identify process considerations for managing a data center environment.  Identify technology considerations for a data center environment.  Identify facility considerations for a data center environment.  Describe Microsoft® Operations Framework concepts and how they apply to a data center environment. Materials and Preparation This section provides the materials and preparation tasks that you need to teach this module. Required Materials To teach this module, you need the following materials:  Microsoft PowerPoint® file 2089a_02.ppt  Module 2, “Planning a Data Center Environment”  Appendix A: Checklist 1 – Planning a Data Center Environment Preparation Tasks To prepare for this module, you should:  Read all of the materials for this module.  Complete the lab.  Read the following white papers about Microsoft Operations Framework. They are on the Trainer Materials and Student Materials compact discs: • Executive Overview • Team Model for Operations • Process Model for Operations • Best Practices in Change, Configuration and Problem Management Presentation: 30 Minutes Lab: 30 Minutes iv Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment Module Strategy If you did not teach Module 1, “Introducing Windows 2000 Datacenter Server” in course 2089A, Planning a Windows 2000 Datacenter Server Environment, be sure to define the difference between Microsoft Windows ® 2000 Datacenter Server and the data center environment during the Overview slide before you teach this module. Use the following strategy to present this module:  Identifying the Data Center Environment This topic provides an opportunity to introduce how a data center environment is more than just the technology. Explain how a data center environment is a conglomeration of components that include people, processes, technology, and facilities. The slide in this section introduces the concept of the data center environment as a whole. The slides that follow detail each of the four components of the data center environment.  Identifying People Considerations This topic provides an opportunity to identify the people considerations that have an impact on planning for a data center environment The staff that works directly with the systems, as well as the organization’s culture, can significantly affect the availability and reliability of a data center environment. Reinforce this topic by encouraging stories from your participants about how people issues prevented or caused system problems. This could include a discussion about effective and ineffective communication.  Identifying Data Center Processes This topic provides an opportunity to identify the process considerations that have an impact on planning for a highly reliable and available data center environment. The most prevalent cause of unplanned downtime is when system changes are made without careful planning and deliberate justification. Implementing effective processes can eliminate these concerns. Discuss process issues such as analysis, change management, documentation, and security. Reinforce this topic by inviting participants to share effective processes that they use. You may want to also provide handouts showing samples of how these processes are used in real-world situations.  Identifying Technology Considerations This topic provides an opportunity to identify the technology considerations that have an impact on planning for a highly reliable and available data center environment. Focus on the relationship between system components. Discuss the importance of knowing how applications will function on the server as well as with the operating system and other applications.  Identifying Facility Considerations This topic provides an opportunity to identify the facility considerations that have an impact on planning for a highly reliable and available data center environment. Discuss issues such as the physical manageability of the facility, the physical impediments to availability, and the physical security of the location. Reinforce this topic by encouraging students to tell stories about how facility issues caused system problems such as unplanned downtime. Discuss how these problems can be prevented with planning. Im p ortan t Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment v  Microsoft Operations Framework: People, Process, and Technology This topic provides a brief introduction to Microsoft Operations Framework (MOF). Briefly discuss the MOF process model and team model. For more information about Microsoft Operations Framework, refer students to the white papers on the Student Materials compact disc.  Lab A: Planning a Data Center Environment This lab gives students an opportunity to apply the planning considerations that were identified throughout Module 2. Arrange students in small teams and have them review a scenario that involves facilities, processes, people, and technology. Each team identifies the point of failure in one or more of these areas and then discusses how they could have prevented it. Customization Information Make sure that the students meet the following prerequisites before they are taught this module. Students need to be able to:  Differentiate between Windows 2000 Datacenter Server and a data center environment.  Discuss components of Microsoft Windows Datacenter Program. Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 1 Overview  Identifying the Data Center Environment  Identifying People Considerations  Identifying Data Center Processes  Identifying Technology Considerations  Identifying Facility Considerations  Microsoft Operations Framework: People, Process, and Technology *****************************I LLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** Microsoft ® Windows® 2000 Datacenter Server is one of the many components of a data center environment. It is important to consider the entire data center when creating a highly available and reliable environment; implementing a data center environment is different from implementing other environments, such as server rooms or desktop computing infrastructures. This module identifies the components that make up the data center environment, and discusses how each component significantly contributes to the whole. This module then briefly introduces Microsoft Operations Framework and provides technical guidance for achieving mission-critical production system reliability, availability, supportability, and manageability on Microsoft products and technologies. After completing this module, you will be able to:  Identify the data center environment.  Identify people considerations for managing a data center environment.  Identify process considerations for managing a data center environment.  Identify technology considerations for a data center environment.  Identify facility considerations for a data center environment.  Describe Microsoft Operations Framework concepts and how they apply to a data center environment. Topic Objective To provide an overview of the module topics and objectives. Lead-in In this module, you will learn about components that make up the data center environment and discuss how each component contributes to the environment. 2 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment Identifying the Data Center Environment P e o p l e Technology P r o c e s s Facility *****************************I LLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** A data center is a computing facility and a set of management processes that maintain mission-critical requirements in your organization. It is not simply a server or group of servers providing an extremely high level of availability. Rather, a data center must be treated as a conglomeration of components joined together in a whole. A data center’s components do not include just technology but also people, processes, and facilities. Even if you install the most reliable technology, you can only obtain the highest level of reliability that the technology has to offer if you have the right team of people correctly managing a carefully designed process. The components of a data center environment include:  Management, operations, and support staff, as well as a corporate culture that manages the data center environment as a whole.  Clearly defined processes that detail security, analysis, change management and documentation.  Technology that emphasizes quality hardware and software, standardized configuration, and testing.  Manageable, available, and secure facilities. Topic Objective To identify the data center environment. Lead-in A data center is a computing facility and management processes that maintain mission-critical requirements in your organization. This slide provides an opportunity to introduce how a data center environment is more than just the technology. For a data center environment to be successful, the students must also put equal attention on people, processes, and facilities. Each of the items in the bulleted list will be covered in detail throughout the module. Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 3 Identifying People Considerations  Management, Operations, and Support Staff  Corporate Culture *****************************I LLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** The importance of people extends beyond those working directly with the data center. The culture of the organization must also support a data center that provides high availability and reliability. Management, Operations, and Support Staff The people who manage and operate the data center must understand the processes and technology and must be dedicated to preserving the integrity of the data center. Personnel must be highly trained, disciplined, and dedicated to the special concerns of the data center, and it is important that the organization ensures that data center staff has redundant skills. Corporate Culture Even if your data center has the highest quality technology, people, and processes, the entire operation will not work unless your organization has a data center culture. A company that has a data center culture treats the data center as more than just a collection of individual parts under the name of data center. It is important to manage the data center as a whole. Consider the impact of decisions on all parts of the data center. Avoid focusing exclusively on technical concerns by also considering impacts to the people, processes, and facility. The data center culture is not limited to the staff of the data center, but must be a commitment to availability that goes all the way to the executive support level. After a process has been accepted and engaged, an executive who requests that something be added to the data center cannot circumvent it. Executive commitment ensures the integrity of the processes and provides the stability required to achieve the goals of the data center. Topic Objective To identify the human resource considerations for the data center. Lead-in The importance of people extends beyond those working directly with the data center. 4 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment    Identifying Data Center Processes  Analysis of a Data Center Environment  Change Management Process  Data Center Documentation  Data Center Security *****************************I LLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** The most prevalent cause of unplanned downtime is that someone makes an untested change to a server and that change causes an issue. To maintain high availability in the data center, all changes must be strictly controlled. And the best way to control changes is by implementing unchangeable processes that describe every aspect of the data center. Processes need to be strictly enforced, difficult to change, and fully justified. Just as a modification to any business process requires justification, so does modification to the data center. In the data center, changes must be implemented with caution. Improvements are good, but they must be fully justified changes. For example, if you change the list of people who are allowed entry to the facility or change the air conditioner in the data center, there must be a business justification. If you add or reconfigure servers in the data center, there must be a business justification. After the data center processes have been established, everyone must adhere to them. The people in the data center, some of whom may be responsible for the processes, are still bound by those processes. A legitimate alteration should be submitted according to established process, evaluated, and justified. Only then can it be a candidate for implementation. Topic Objective To identify the process considerations in the data center. Lead-in The most prevalent cause of unplanned downtime is that someone makes an untested change to a server and that change causes an issue. [...]... availability, and the physical security of the data center Managing a Data Center Facility Managing a data center refers to the management of the facility that houses the people, process, and technology There are certain factors that must be addressed when planning a manageable data center facility, including temperature, humidity, dust, and contamination Assessing Single Points of Failure The data center facility... support staff, as well as a corporate culture that manages the data center environment as a whole Process Clearly defined processes that detail analysis, change management, documentation, and security Technology Technology that emphasizes quality hardware and software, standardized configuration, and testing Facilities Manageable, available, and secure facilities 2 Why is a data center culture important?... sufficient data about the system to make decisions about how these changes will impact your data center Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 7 Change Management Process Topic Objective To identify change management processes in a data center Identify Issue Identify Issue Lead-in Change management is a process that ensures stability no matter what changes are made to the data center environment. .. The data center must be treated as a whole Consider the impact of a decision on all parts People should be expected to support the facility, processes, and technology 3 Why is it important to have a change management process in a data center environment? A change management process ensures stability no matter what changes are made to the data center environment 20 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment. .. service will be Hardware ought to be checked for functionality before it is introduced to the data center environment As with the original hardware, any additional hardware must meet Windows Datacenter Program hardware requirements Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 11 Process for Admitting Software The introduction of new software to the data center also has an aspect that must be covered... Configuration, and Problem Management Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 17 Lab A: Planning a Data Center Environment Topic Objective To introduce the lab Lead-in In this lab, you will plan for a data center environment *****************************ILLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** Objective After completing this lab, you will be able to plan a data center environment. .. your data center, you must partition areas to reflect the security needs of those spaces Partitions can be established through access levels, locks, smart cards, biometric devices, and other security devices 14 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment Recommendations The following table lists several physical plant considerations for a data center and recommendations for managing a data center. .. data center must be high quality and reliable But, above all else, all hardware added to the data center must fulfill some fully justified need; it cannot be extraneous Each piece of equipment that you introduce establishes another cause of possible failure and another need for management In the data center, the addition of more hardware and software introduces expense and takes up valuable space and... implementation of the Microsoft Windows Datacenter Program requirements Windows Datacenter Program has a qualification process that requires OEMs to ensure that all hardware components, hardware drivers, and software that works on the kernel level work together smoothly on servers running Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 9 Data Center Documentation.. .Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 5 Analysis of a Data Center Environment Topic Objective Capacity Planning To identify the analysis needs of the data center Performance Monitoring Lead-in System Tuning Resources The data center environment must be analyzed to ensure proactive planning current point in time Workload *****************************ILLEGAL FOR NON-TRAINER USE***************************** . with the data center. 4 Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment    Identifying Data Center Processes  Analysis of a Data Center Environment . someone makes an untested change to a server and that change causes an issue. Module 2: Planning a Data Center Environment 5 Analysis of a Data Center