Is your data center ready for the Internet of Things?

The massive adoption of connected devices, including everything from smart locks to wearable devices and smart cars, has many companies and organizations wondering if they’re ready to to meet the demand for data.

The Internet of Things (IoT) revolution is shaping up to be the next game-changer. Here are just a few of the trends that have been developing: During the holidays alone, 50 million smart gadgets were projected to be sold worldwide. More is coming. By the end of 2016, the research firm Gartner predicts there will be 339 million smart homes worldwide — up from 174 million last year.

The IoT trend is projected to grow to 26 billion units by 2020, Gartner predicts. Because of the demands generated by IoT, data centers will be challenged to keep up with extensive network connections and data. As a result, Garter said, a variety of optimally-sized data centers will be required to manage the additional capacity.

“The recent trend to centralize applications to reduce costs and increase security is incompatible with the IoT,” said Gartner vice president Joe Skorupa.

A Dell report also pointed to the need for data centers of multiple sizes tohandle these demands. It quoted Mindtree’s Soumendra Hohanty, vice president of global data and analytics.

“IoT deals with streaming data from globally distributed sources; transferring these data to a single location for processing will be challenged both from a technology and economics perspective,”Mohanty said. “Rather, there is a greater need to aggregate IoT-generated data in multiple, distributed, smaller data centers where initial processing can occur to provide capture-and-respond kind of values at real time.”

Another challenge facing companies is the need to back up a massive amount of data, which could lead to potential governance issues, including network bandwidth and remote storage bandwidth.

The IoT is changing our lives at a rapid pace. Companies will need to aggressively go after innovative solutions to keep up with the demands on data centers.

Lifeline Data Centers, a wholesale colocation center operating in the Midwest, has been helping companies in different industries with solutions that will keep them viable in a rapidly changing environment. Contact us to how we can do the same for you.

Other resources:

• Infographic: The 22 Data Center Compliance Acronyms You Need to Know
• White Paper: Why Data Center Compartmentalization is Important
• Lifeline One Sheet: What You Need to Know About Lifeline Data Centers

Rich Banta

Managing Member at Lifeline Data Centers

Rich is responsible for Compliance and Certifications, Data Center Operations, Information Technology, and Client Concierge Services. Rich has an extensive background in server and network management, large scale wide-area networks, storage, business continuity, and monitoring. Rich is a former CTO of a major health care system. Rich is hands-on every day in the data centers. He also holds many certifications, including: CISA – Certified Information Systems Auditor CRISC – Certified in Risk & Information Systems Management CDCE – Certified Data Center Expert CDCDP – Certified Data Center Design Professional