ChannelVision Magazine

However, just as with ensuring physi- cal security, implementing systems for fully redundant facility operation is not simply a matter of installing more of the latest equipment. Ensuring data center redundancy is a hugely complex undertaking. Initial design is clearly important, as is the correct installation and interlinking of redundant systems, whether for power, cooling, monitoring or communications. But most important of all, once again, are the protocols and procedures that must be implemented and followed in order to ensure that re- dundant gear actually kicks in to action if and when it needs to. Regardless of whether the data center in question is hyperscale or a relatively small edge facility, having the right processes in place and the right people following them are typically what makes the difference between, on the one hand, a data center’s security be- ing fully maintained and on the other, a catastrophic failure. So when securing even the most technical of environments, technology is only part of the answer. Without the disciplined application of associated poli- cies and processes, success cannot be guaranteed. After all, the best tools in the tool box are of little value without the appropriate knowledge and experi- ence to use them. o Arturo Maqueo is region- al sales engineering director LATAM, Flexenclosure. For Ultimate Data Center Security,TechnologyAlone is Not theAnswer T he security of data – and in particular people’s personal data – has been a hot topic in recent months. The EU’s rollout of new GDPR regu- lations; the Cambridge Analytica scandal; or the seemingly weekly revelations of financial institutions or consumer service providers which have had their databases hacked, are all examples most of us will be aware of. Less often discussed but just as important as the security of our data is the security of the data centers that house it. And at first glance, identifying, reviewing and prioritizing all the elements that a data center must contain in terms of security would appear to be a very com- plex subject, depending on myriad variables including facility size, organization type, service commit- ments, system complexity, customer requirements … the list goes on. However, independent of the variables mentioned above, data center security can be boiled down to just two areas – physical secu- rity and operational security.  And while both of these clearly depend to a great extent on technology, the single most important element is the establishment of appropriate poli- cies, processes and operating pro- cedures – and critically, of course, actually following them. Unfortunately, over the years we have seen many examples of security – both physical and op- erational – being seriously compro- mised through the lack of clear and well-defined security processes and procedures. And ironically, we have seen this most often in data center facilities that had state-of-the-art security equipment installed. For example, implementing the latest and most sophisticated biometric access systems does not, by itself, ensure that supposedly secure ar- eas are actually secure and that access is fully controlled. On the contrary, I have witnessed unauthor- ised and unsupervised personnel wander in and out of secure areas at will. The failure here not being due to any fault with the access control equipment itself but to appropriate security protocols not being imple- mented or maintained. As for operational security, a standard requirement for any mod- ern data center is to have redun- dancy capabilities fully integrated in order to ensure continuous opera- tion even if disaster strikes. And for many data center operators’ customers, this is non-negotiable, given their dependence on the often mission-critical systems the data centers house. virtual reality By Arturo Maqueo July - August, 2018 | Channel Vision 49

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