Chapter 11 Cabling Guidelines - Dell EMC VxFlex Ready Node Installation Manual

CHAPTER 11
Cabling Guidelines
Follow these general rack and stack guidelines for positioning equipment in the rack, and for routing cables to the
equipment.
Rack and Stack is an integration process to stack up switches, servers and storage equipment in a rack or cabinet for
deployment. The following issues need to be taken into consideration during this integration process.
Proper sizing of the Power Distribution Units (PDUs) based on the power requirements of nodes and switches
l
Redundant PDUs for power cables
l
Redundant network data connection switches
l
Provision of optimal airflow in the rack. System performance can be limited if improper air flow causes uneven
l
and localized high temperature zones.
Data port connection through cable needs to have a pre-planned cable management strategy, for better service
l
experience
Cable management plans should ensure that it will be easy to remove a node or a component from the rack
l
Insertion of a replacement component should not change the existing port and cable configuration
l
It should be possible to rapidly add new components to the system
l
When adding a new component to the rack, it should be possible to follow the existing cabling and port strategy
l
Dell EMC recommends that the switches are installed in the middle of the rack, but it is also possible to position
switches at the top of the rack. While the middle switch configuration uses shorter cable length on average, and is
therefore more cost effective, top-of-rack configuration has better wire management capabilities.
Dell EMC also recommends connecting the cables to the nodes (data port of node to switch) from left to right.
Note: For an example of how to cable the R840 servers, use the examples provided in this guide for R740xd
servers.
Dell EMC VxFlex Ready Node Server Installation Guide
89