Keep Your Top-of-Rack Switches Cool

For years, managers have relied on the hot aisle-cold aisle configuration as the foundation of their data center cooling strategy: where cabinets are placed in alternating rows, with IT air intakes (cold aisles) and IT air exhausts (hot aisles) each facing one another. This configuration allows data center operators to direct cooling airflow only where it’s needed. However, the top-of-rack switch (TORS) throws a crank into the system, putting heat where it shouldn’t belong.

A TORS offers many advantages, mainly because they can be mounted closer to the equipment, and they reduce the amount of cabling needed to link servers. However, depending on the manufacturer, model, and configuration, these pieces of equipment often must be mounted at the top and back portion of the rack, furthest away from the cold aisle airflow at the front of the cabinet with the ports facing the hot aisle. Depending on where the cooling inlets are located on the equipment (side, front, or rear), they often end up taking in the exhaust air of all the other devices in your data center.

What is the risk?

A switch that is continuously ingesting warmer air than it should, will have its useful life cut short and could fail unexpectedly, compromising the continuity of your operations. It can also exacerbate existing thermal problems, such as not having enough cooling airflow at the rack location. Some data center managers remove a blanking panel from the front of the cabinet to try to manage this heat. But this decreases efficiency and can jeopardize cool airflow to adjacent IT equipment.

A simple solution that saves you time, money and headaches

The good news is that data center managers have a third choice, and it’s an easy one to adopt. The Vertiv™ Geist™ SwitchAir® airflow management solution is retrofit-friendly. It works like a duct to shroud the switch and access cooling airflow from the cold aisle supply, channeling the conditioned air back to the hard-to-reach inlets.

The SwitchAir solution complements the data center’s existing cooling strategy and helps protect expensive TORS with minimal effort and expense. It works to cool switches regardless of their inlet location and where they are mounted, and installation can occur when the switch is in operation.

What’s more, it is simple to find the right SwitchAir for your specific equipment and configuration. Two options are available:

· An active SwitchAir that uses embedded fans to push air to the switch inlets

· A passive SwitchAir that channels cool air to the switch inlets and prevents hot air exhaust from entering the switch

Great for retrofits

The Geist SwitchAir is retrofit-friendly. The SwitchAir channels become an extension of the switch’s native mounting kit, which is generally only connected to the rear set of 19” rails. By installing around this kit and extending its reach to the front 19” rails, the SwitchAir can access cooling airflow from the cold aisle supply.

Will It Fit?

In a word, yes. The SwitchAir Finder, available on Vertiv.com, is a comprehensive resource with over 350 unique switch part numbers to match the right SwitchAir with your network switch model(s). Contact your local Accu-Tech representative to learn more.