Data Room Temperature and Data Room Security
Google says that when it comes to data room temperature we can raise the temperature to 80 degrees!
Most data rooms are kept between 68-72. Did you know that data center managers could save 4 percent in energy costs for every degree of upward change in the set point? This is according to Mark Monroe of Sun Microsystems.
Security Monitoring Solutions : Industrial Security
Filed under: Data Center, environmental monitoring, Intelligent Sensors, Security Monitoring, SecurityProbes
I’ve been having some fun with our industry security monitoring solution this week. What surprised me during the security camera setup process was that I realized that auto focus is a must. When security cameras are up on buildings, is really stinks to setup a ladder, climb up and manually play with the focus while my cell phone is on speaker to my coworker who is watching the security camera image.
I also learned that the LUX rating is extremely important when choosing a night vision camera. The lower to zero the better. In other words, .001 is extremely good night vision. Configuration of the security dashboard is also important. I was able to setup a security map which listed where I had placed our temperature monitors, humidity monitors, security cameras, water sensors, air flow sensors, smoke, dry contact and DC voltage sensors. I got it all setup before I finished my morning coffee.
Believe it or not, dry contact sensors are popular especially in data room temperature monitoring. The techs love the Security web interface.
If you want to learn more about the process I went through to set up our security monitoring system, give us a call.
------------------------------------- Matthew St Jean Twitter Facebook
Expand Your Monitoring Capabilities With SecurityProbe
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, Security Monitoring
Security Monitoring and Environmental Monitoring all in one device. The securityProbe allows you to monitor temperature, monitor humidity, monitor airflow, monitor smoke, etc. It can also provide a security solution with dry contacts and motion detection with alarms.
How to Monitor Car Storage Environments
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, Security Monitoring, temperature monitoring, water leak monitoring
As a car aficionado, I love the idea of storing precious vehicles in the harshest of winter months, especially in a state like Maine. If I had my dream car (ahem, BMW M5) I would certainly put it in a place I know would keep my car safe from any harm. The question is, “How does a storage facility keep my car safe?” What precautions would it take to make sure Annabelle is safe? (yes, I named my fictional car) Implementing environmental sensors will certainly make me feel safe. Read more
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DSCP or ToS in Flexible NetFlow Configurations
Filed under: environmental monitoring, General, IPFIX, nBox, NetFlow, NetFlow probes
Do you want to export ToS or DSCP in your Flexible NetFlow export? This is an interesting question and I’ll do my best to answer it. The NetFlow RFC 3954 makes reference to ToS as the 5th field and makes NO reference to DSCP. The IPFIX standard information elements outlined in RFC 5102 lists both ToS (5) and ipDiffServCodePoint (195). Why duplicate efforts, aren’t they the same thing? NO!
Why have Both?
ToS is an 8 bit field that includes DSCP which is a 6 bit field. This being said, I could not find a Flexible NetFlow document that would make reference to both however, I know Cisco sometimes supports both in the same export.
Be aware that Cisco NetFlow v5 and traditional NetFlow v9 only export ToS. I’m sure you are aware that FnF is an extension of NetFlow v9 and supports both ToS and / or DSCP depending on the implementation.
* Cisco NBAR (requires FnF) for example, it will export both ToS = ipClassOfService (5) and DSCP ipDiffServCodePoint (195). See below.

- Cisco nBar Exports ToS & DSCP
Preventing Disasters With Environmental Probes
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, power monitoring, temperature monitoring, water leak monitoring
Environmental sensors prevent disasters. Have you ever been in a situation where you lose a server or all of your data center to something as silly as a water leak or a… lightening strike? Amazon has, sort of. On August 7th, Amazon experienced a temporary data center outage in their Dublin data center. They claimed that it was due to a lightening strike, but later admitted it was due to multiple internal technical faults, resulting from the lightening strike. Read more
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Road Construction Temperature Monitoring
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, SecurityProbes, temperature monitoring
Monitoring road construction temperatures is imperative for paving and other important jobs. Considering spring and summer are short seasons in Maine, roadside construction needs to be efficient in their hard efforts so their work would have longevity. Knowing the temperature and having the ability to alarm on it is important for the maximum effective compaction of pavement. Read more
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Monitoring Cold Temperatures
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, SensorProbes, temperature monitoring

Today, let’s take a look at an alternative way to use an environmental monitoring device. Monitoring temperatures in a data center or your corporate office is not the only way to use a temperature and humidity sensor. There are plenty of other commercial uses for these products as well. Let’s look at how to use it for a more… chill environment. Read more
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Office Temperature Monitoring
Filed under: environmental monitoring, humidity monitoring, Notifications, temperature monitoring

I recently ran into an article in the Chicago Sun-Times describing the peak efficient working conditions of an office worker. In the article they say the peak perfect temperature is 71 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit. As I sit here shivering while grasping my hot cup of chai tea, I think, “That would be perfect right about now.” Read more
Benjamin MooreFollow me on Twitter
Summertime Data Room Monitoring: Part 3
Filed under: Data Center, environmental monitoring, Security Monitoring, SecurityProbes, SensorProbes
In part one & two I went over the environmental factors that could plague your data center during the critical summer months. In this next part I will discuss the security factors you need to know to keep your data room secure and safe. In this blog I will go over 4 solid choices for security solutions in your data center: Security Sensor, Motion Detector, and the Smoke Detector, and Siren and Strobe alarms.
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