Server in basement? Concerns?

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desolatax

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I've got three servers that I'd kinda like to move in to my basement. 2x Poweredge 2950 (ESX) and a Supermicro Tower (NAS/Homeserver). They're loud and know how to keep a room warm. They're sitting in my office right now.
I live in Canada in a condo on a lake, bottom of the basement would be around 7-10 feet above the water line, 50 feet from shore. Never had an issue with water in the basement, floor is dirt with vapor barrier, about 3 feet to the floor joists. Area is probably 800sq ft.
Any recommendations? Good Idea? Bad Idea? Anything I should look out for?
 
get it off the floor, walk the dinosaur (dust is going to be your biggest enemy)
also set up a dehumidifier just in case
 
Get the servers off the floor, and nail/screw the power cords/extensions to the wall as well. I don't know about your area, but in my city, basements typically get rats/mice and they sometimes like to chew through wires on the ground... From personal experience, I can tell you the smell is very unpleasant and the less said about the cleanup, the better.
 
Agreed with what everyone else has said. Make sure your homeowner's/renter's insurance has enough coverage to replace them if something was to happen. Insurance is more important and more helpful then physical protection.
 
I wouldn't. Dirt and servers do not mix. If you just have to put them in the basement, I'd suggest a minimum of a fully enclosed rack with filters.
My tricks for quieting servers/equipment are to put them under couches (1 or 2U). I can't remember if the 2950 is 5 or 6U, but it definitely will not fit under the couch. Back of a linen closet would work best, any closet distant from quiet areas would be equally favorable. Garage is a good place if you have one.

Another option would be to create an actual basement (not sure what to call a dirt floor under a house except a crawl space).
 
Wait a sec.. what does your basement look like? I read it too quickly the first time.
 
It sounds like a crawl space that has a 6-9mil sheet of plastic covering the dirt.
I could work, and after reading a bit online it seems that adding heat to a "basement" would actually help keep the space dry and prevent mold.

Go for it. Just make sure its all up off the ground.
 
Seeing as what the OP is really referring to is a crawl space that is completely not climate controlled and likely has moisture variations that could cause condensation on the servers...I would highly recommend against putting the servers down there.
 
desolatax said:
I've got three servers that I'd kinda like to move in to my basement. 2x Poweredge 2950 (ESX) and a Supermicro Tower (NAS/Homeserver). They're loud and know how to keep a room warm. They're sitting in my office right now.
I live in Canada in a condo on a lake, bottom of the basement would be around 7-10 feet above the water line, 50 feet from shore. Never had an issue with water in the basement, floor is dirt with vapor barrier, about 3 feet to the floor joists. Area is probably 800sq ft.
Any recommendations? Good Idea? Bad Idea? Anything I should look out for?
Click to expand...

Where in Canada ?
 
Vapor barrier always goes closest to living space. As long as there is air movement in the crawlspace, moisture should be minimal. You would run into problems in the crawlspace if there is an additional vapor barrier above the crawlspace/in the floor (expected). If you don't have insulation and a vapor barrier in your floor joists already, you would want to at some point to make the home more efficient to heat/cool.
Running electrical into a non-living, seldom used space has some specific requirements, such as lights must have a pilot switch in the living area, I can't remember if power outlets have the same requirement or if they are even allowed.
Add to all the above issues- if the space between your 'basement' and 1st floor isn't actually insulated, the floor won't stop as much noise as you might think- especially if you are mounting the servers from the joists, far away from the floor.
Unless I have the completely wrong picture about your crawlspace, it is dimensions of bad idea.
 
I'd look into pouring concrete there at some point and converting that into conditioned space. Make that into a real proper basement/crawlspace. Just keep an eye on humidity and temp levels if you're going to do it. If anything, build a mini room in there that is conditioned. Insulate it and add an air supply and return. Though you probably don't really want to pump heat in there, so maybe make it a separate system that just circulates with the rest of the house.
 
Thanks for the input guys. Yes, I do mean crawlspace. Vapor barrier and insulation is in between the joists, and there is some plastic sheeting over 30% of the dirt area. I live in the Okanagan valley.
Red Squirrel I like your idea of pouring concrete and making a mini room, have the perfect spot to do that where I could pipe in air from the office (typically the coolest room) and send it outside or in to the vents in the winter.
 
as far as the dust, I dont feel you will have much dust, seeing how there will be no one down there kicking it around, as far as concrete, thats a nice future plan, for now, an aerial mount built from 2x4's and maybe some plywood would be just fine. Keep the cords off the floor from water, and your all set. you can network away safely for now.
 
Humidity would be my first concern....I used to have a waterfront home, about 12' above sea level but water was <100' from back of my house. Basement will be damp...your ground is damp. Traditional server room air recommendations are to keep below 45% RH.

Cellar spiders and other little insects laying webs all around. This can be easily handled by some form of enclosure.

Fallling dust/sawdust from the floors of your house. You'd be surprised at the constant rain if fine dust over time....from foot traffic on the floor above a basement. This could also be easily handled by some form of enclosure.

Only slightly difficult part will be maintaining your humidity control.
 
I have servers in the basement (NOT in a crawlspace).

Here is what you should watch out for:

* Keep servers CLOSED. no open cases, keep all slotcovers on.
* Keep out of crawlspace
* Have a dehumidifier running 24/7 to keep it ~ 40-50% humidity
* Keep off the floor. My servers are a couple feet above the floor on shelving, and in case of flooding.
* Run a separate circuit for the Computer stuff
* Keept outlets high off the floor (mine are about 5').

After that you should be good to go.
 
With the vapor barrier against your floor joists, that is a clear sign not to put your equipment down there. I wouldn't use that space as a vegetable cellar, much less an equipment room. You might as well put your stuff in a tent- and before anyone gets ideas, that is not a good idea either.
Converting the space (properly) will cost crazy amounts of money; you would probably be able to build a garage cheaper.
You are talking to the guy that shoves network equipment under couches, and I wouldn't do what you plan.
 
Not worth it. Your crawl space must be much nicer than any I've ever seen to even be considering this. Not only are you going to have to deal with dust, insects and environmental conditions, but every time you need to work on one of them you will have to crawl under there.

I also don't see the point of pouring concrete under there. Concrete's not cheap, at least not here. And since it's only 3ft tall, even if you pour concrete and put in some kind of climate control, in the end you're still only left with a crawl space.;)
 
Change the fans to quieter models and pipe the heat output into the crawl space instead of moving the servers?
 
I would highly recommend against this. I had a client in central NC, high humidity area, who kept a PC in a space that only ran AC when he was present and over the course of 1.5 years went through 3 motherboards, power supply and a hdd. My best guess was moisture. He moved the box into space with full time AC and 5 years later no issues.
 
Eh.. they are 2950s, they are pretty cheap and easy to acquire now days. I'd keep the NAS inside the office and just run those 2950s in a horrid dirty environment.

It'll also test out your fail over vmotion fun. You could pretend you are the network server admin at a dinosaur dig site out in the desert.
 
Thanks guys. I think I'm gonna go the route of building a small "room/rack/shelf" on a small concrete pad, seal that off and put one fan and some venting pulling in air from the office, and another fan with venting pushing it outside. Fortunately I've got most of the materials to do that already, just take a weekend and do that. Now I'll need a solution for environmental monitoring. Arduino?
 
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