Choosing the Right Functionality Level for Rack PDUs

With the rise in processing being done at every cabinet, strong attention needs to be paid to the cabinet power distribution strategy so that the highest levels of availability and efficiency are achieved with minimum management overhead. Intelligent power distribution units (PDUs) provide various levels of functionalities and benefits. Some of this include:

Branch circuit & phase-level monitoring
Continual monitoring of these parameters, along with the ability to set thresholds with notifications, guarantees that the connected loads stay within capacities at all times. It also provides information on circuits with available capacity to install new equipment. Phase-level monitoring ensures that the loads stay balanced for efficiency and optimum utilization.

Outlet-level metering
Outlet-level metering provides information about energy consumption of individual IT equipment that ultimately enables charge back reports and higher accountability. In addition, it helps set baseline energy consumption for individual equipment, which can be useful when choosing new equipment to be added to the cabinets. Equipment-level power consumption trend reports utilizing centralized reporting tools over a period of time help identify ghost severs and servers that might be most suitable for virtualization.

Outlet-level switching
Outlet-level switching ensures proper provisioning by providing administrators the ability to control what equipment gets powered from the PDU. As a best practice, all unused outlets should be maintained in the “off” position until an administrator allows the connection of new equipment. This capability also allows the ability to turn equipment on in sequence at the initial startup and identify underutilized equipment, as well as minimize inrush currents after a power outage. It also provides the ability to cycle power to hung IT equipment remotely.

Achieve these benefits with Chatsworth Products’ (CPI) eConnect^® PDUs, which provide detailed monitoring and control down to the outlet level. With eConnect’s Secure Array™ IP Consolidation, you can manage up to 32 PDUs under one IP address. The product’s embedded web-based GUI provides a consolidated view and control. Power IQ^® for eConnect, centralized software application with embedded database and reporting engines, puts historical power and energy consumption reports at your fingertips.

Need Additional Help?
CPI’s technical staff a eager to assist in selecting the right power solution for your installation. For more complex projects, you can request to have one of our field engineers provide you in an onsite assessment, or take advantage of our online resources, such as the eConnect PDU Selector or eConnect product web page.

Ashish Moondra, Sr. Product Manager of Power, Electronics & Software