The new and advanced dcTrack, with its user-friendly web interface for connectivity management, visualizes the network's power and data circuits—two key components of data center infrastructure. Circuits are displayed end-to-end, including all intermediate nodes, providing detailed information about each node or connection point. The intuitive dcTrack circuit builder offers the flexibility to model any data network topology, traversing any number of patch panels without violating connectivity standards. It also allows users to model the data center's UPS power path, through power distribution units (PDUs), circuit breakers, rack PDUs, and the load—servers and switches—without allowing power capacity to be exceeded at any node.
dcTrack's accurate information on network, power, and available space aids in equipment deployment and troubleshooting by saving time in locating and selecting infrastructure resources and equipment. This software, for example, allows customers to build an end-to-end network more precisely and in less time. It also helps save on capital expenditures by identifying unused capacity and untapped infrastructure resources in data centers.
Users can create connections more easily, with as many hops as needed. Connections can be defined with the level of granularity desired by users: physical port attributes; logical attributes, such as VLANs; groupings; and color codes. The dcTrack software can use these definitions for intelligent management in circuit creation, whereas other systems only allow users to define connections by manually entering connection information into static fields. It also has the ability to build virtual and physical connections, from virtual ports to virtual machines on physical hosts, and from there to all upstream connections.
To help dcTrack calculate and track power utilization and capacity anywhere along the power circuit, dcTrack 2.6 and Power IQ® are available as a pre-integrated solution for customers who want to deploy the two software products together. dcTrack powers Power IQ to collect power and environmental data. Power IQ identifies unused capacity to accurately determine, in real time, the design of independent data center equipment. In many cases, the actual design is approximately 50 percent of the power or amperage listed on a device's nameplate.
