Thermal Guidelines' X-Factor IT Reliability Data: Data Center Energy And Capital Cost Considerations

An underused portion of ASHRAE’s Thermal Guidelines for Data Processing Environments, 5th Edition, is the analysis of server reliability data and the impact this can have on both the energy consumption and the capital cost of a data center. This reliability analysis is called “x-factor” and is the focus of Section 2.4.3, Server Reliability Trend Versus Ambient Temperature of the Thermal Guidelines’ 5th Edition.