At maincubes we always aim to identify and implement the latest developments so that we can be one of the first movers in generating added value for our customers. Since summer 2019 we’ve been operating the European OCP Experience Center together with our partners Rittal and Circle B at our AMS01 data center in Amsterdam to achieve this goal. Two articles in the most recent issue of the iX magazine show that we’re on the right track.

Innovative ideas don’t have to be complicated

Since we announced the opening of the European OCP Experience Center in early August 2019 we have received a constant influx of inquiries from interested enterprises, other data center operators and service providers. It came as no surprise because the open source hardware movement is constantly gaining in momentum. Specialist publications are also keen to explore the OCP phenomenon. At the end of 2019 we received a call from a journalist at the well-known German IT magazine iX, who wanted to see the impressive performance of the servers at the OCP Experience Center for himself.

The servers at the OCP Center, which is located at our AMS01 facility in Amsterdam, incorporate the latest developments in the open source hardware movement. For example, they are dimensioned for a 21-inch-wide OCP rack with a central 12-volt DC power supply. This means there is space for three servers in a row, as compared to just two servers in a 19-inch rack. There are two 2.1 GHz processor cores on the motherboard, and 2933 MHz memory. An 80 mm wide vent at the end ensures an adequate airflow. The simple and very narrow design ensures effective front-to-back cooling and the elimination of unnecessary components reduces hardware costs. Fewer components also lower power consumption.

Stringently tested – and approved

We set up remote server access so that the iX journalist could conduct a series of tests. He additionally measured benchmarks such as processing performance, read and write speeds and power consumption. Then he performed the same tests on a non-OCP server with similarly efficient components.

Although the standard server delivered slightly higher peak performance, over the course of the tests the OCP server demonstrated lower power consumption. Its two CPUs only consumed a maximum of 250 Watts of power, even when operating at full capacity. During further in-depth tests, the servers at the OCP Experience Center impressed the journalist in several respects. Some of their many advantages are overall high performance on two height units, lower power consumption thanks to more effective cooling, and the central 12-volt power supply and high I/O performance (input/output). The journalist’s appraisal was: not too much and not too little. If the processors’ energy consumption can be further reduced, OCP servers could even be an effective response to the current climate debate.

iX readers can check out the detailed 4-page article on the server tests at our OCP Experience Center, plus a second feature with background information about the Open Compute Project providing a more detailed description of the OCP rack design and the server architecture. If you’re interested in reading the articles, the March issue of iX – Magazin für Professionelle Informationstechnik is available at kiosks and online at www.heise.de.

And if you’d like to see the Open Compute Project for yourself, you’re very welcome to visit our OCP Experience Center at our AMS01 data center in Amsterdam.

Headquarter Frankfurt/Germany

Location Schiphol-Rijk/The Netherlands

Headquarter Frankfurt/Germany

Location Schiphol-Rijk/The Netherlands