IoT in industrial environments has produced an exponential volume of data. However, the capability of data centers to handle the volumes of data produced by IoT systems has raised concerns. As designers and manufacturers pack IoT systems with more features, inadequate consideration of security, scalability, and capacity, manifest as challenges to a data center. Further, given the functionality of IoT systems, the need for real-time processing and analysis of IoT data cannot be ignored. All these stress the server resources. While virtualization of server environments has become a common practice, the demand on servers continues to increase.

Smart data centers are the way forward to take on challenges posed by IoT systems. The features of a smart data center typically include real-time monitoring of the sub-optimal usage of resources and energy efficiency within the environment using heat maps. High-density servers with a greater number of servers per rack to enhance the storage capacity are typical of smart data centers. Energy, being the lifeblood of all data center activities, needs to be monitored at multiple levels such as workloads, activity, and other dynamic parameters to ensure an agile approach to data center management.

Well-performing data centers adopt a multi-pronged strategy to address energy management—the standard methodology to serve the IoT requirements, of late. Besides using standalone energy management solutions, middleware solutions to efficiently manage energy consumption in a data center environment are much in vogue. Middleware solutions are not only easy to deploy but also provide immediate ROI in the form of reduced utility bills. System integrators and console vendors are also referring to state-of-the-art dashboards with integrated energy management features.

While energy management strategies for data centers may vary, IoT as a trend is here to stay. Data centers ought to leverage the best-in-class energy management methodologies to equip themselves in order to serve the IoT market.