Physics WorkStations
Status


Expected and Recent Downtime
Sep 04, 1999 23:00 - 24:00
The entire lab (alecto.physics, tisiphone.physics, and *.pws) will be shut down for ~1 hour for hardware relocation.
Hardware Configuration
The PWS lab is designed to be as fault-tolerant as possible. Features include:
  • Redundant power
    • Both servers and the drive array are powered from a TrippLite SmartPro 2200 NET Uninterruptible Power Supply. The UPS is configured with an extra battery to extend runtime from ~15 min. to ~1 hour.
    • The drive array has two power supplies. In the event that one power supply malfunctions, it will continue to operate, and the faulty power supply can be replaced without any downtime.
    • The networking equipment is also protected by TrippLite UPSes so users can continue to remotely access the lab even during a building-wide power outage.
  • Redundant data
    • All user data is on an MTI drive array. This drive array is currently configured with two 18-gig disks, which are mirrors of each other. In addition to the enhanced speed the mirroring provides, if either disk has a failure, the system will continue to operate on the other until the faulty disk is replaced. There will be no loss of data and no system downtime.
  • Long-term power outage tolerance
    • We are in the process of configuring the systems so that, in the event of a long-term power outage (longer than ~1 hour) the systems will perform an orderly shutdown to prevent the loss of data when the UPS runs out of battery power.
    • Another concern is that without power to the building, the network/server room will have a sharp increase in temperature since the air conditioner will not function. Our systems can monitor the temperature, and will perform an orderly shutdown if the temperature increases beyond operating limits.
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