ITWire

Cisco EnergyWise technology allows companies to manage, switch and control the power consumption of their infrastructure in an EnergyWise-enabled data centre. With Eaton ePDU integration, customers are provided with further power usage management and in-depth monitoring of power consumption down to the individual server level to control their total cost of ownership.

'IT managers today are constantly seeking new ways to reduce energy consumption and cut operational costs without compromising reliability. In order to have a complete picture, a clear understanding of power consumption levels is required' says Ciaran Bolton, Product Manager for Eaton's Distributed Power Quality business, APAC region.

Eaton's advanced ePDUs offer intelligent power distribution and are able to measure consumption of Volts, Watts, Amperes and kilowatt-hours in individual servers with one per cent accuracy (over 2 amperes). Through the addition of Cisco EnergyWise, ePDUs work as a Cisco endpoint in the EnergyWise network and can be accessed directly from any EnergyWise-enabled management application. They allow Cisco's management stations to query and collect information on power consumption right from the individual outlet level and aggregate this information over multiple ePDUs in the network so that it is available at a glance. In addition, the ePDUs provide control over power usage by enabling the EnergyWise network to securely switch individual outlets on or off.

'Eaton's advanced ePDUs offer industry-leading monitoring features and, when combined with Cisco EnergyWise power management capabilities, give a comprehensive overview of energy demands and usage in a data centre - be it small, medium or large,' Bolton continues. 'Providing accurate data on power consumption in a simple and easy-to-understand way is very important for any data centre.'

A further new addition is the ability of ePDUs to allow users to define customised outlet groups. This makes it possible to attribute outlet groups so that an individual user, customer or a specific department of a company can more easily track and manage their power usage. Furthermore, power scheduling enables users to plan shutdowns of non-critical equipment, for example over a weekend or for particular nights, allowing further options for energy conservation.

Mass configuration and upgrade of Eaton ePDUs with Intelligent Power Manager

All Eaton ePDUs are fully integrated into Eaton's Intelligent Power Manager (IPM) monitoring software, which allows users to manage their power via a single interface and a single IP address. The new mass configuration and mass upgrade functionalities, performed via Intelligent Power Manager, provide further ease of use.

Through mass configuration multiple ePDU units can be simultaneously configured to user-defined settings, including, for example, alarm levels. This provides reduced set-up times for data centres and makes ePDU installation and maintenance easy. The mass upgrade functionality allows data centre managers to carry out future firmware upgrades of network interface cards on multiple ePDUs at the same time, thus allowing easier access to future functionality enhancements and releases.

Intelligent Power Manager version 1.25, released in February 2012, is required to support both mass configuration and mass upgrade capabilities. It is available for download at no charge (for up to 10 devices) at www.eaton.com/intelligentpower

All new functionalities are available via firmware update for Managed, Advanced Monitored and Switched ePDUs. To check the suitability of your products, please visit www.eaton.com/epdu More information on other Eaton products and services is available at www.eaton.com/powerquality

Eaton Corporation is a diversified power management company with more than 100 years of experience providing energy-efficient solutions that help our customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power. With 2011 sales of US$16.0 billion, Eaton is a global technology leader in electrical components and systems for power quality, distribution and control; hydraulics components, systems and services for industrial and mobile equipment; aerospace fuel, hydraulics and pneumatic systems for commercial and military use; and truck and automotive drivetrain and powertrain systems for performance, fuel economy and safety. Eaton has approximately 73,000 employees and sells products to customers in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit www.eaton.com