Budget

How did the government miscount 1,000 data centers?

The federal government found it had 1,000 more data centers than previously estimated, Government Computer News reports. In the past eight months, agencies have...

Federal News Network Staff

October 18, 2010 2:55 pm

< a min read

The federal government found it had 1,000 more data centers than previously estimated, Government Computer News reports.

In the past eight months, agencies have been identifying data centers as part of the Federal Data Center Consolidation Iniatiative.

According to a memo from Federal CIO Vivek Kundra, the number of data centers as of July totals 2,094 — not the original estimate of 1,100.

One explanation for the miscount is agencies use a combination of automated and manual tools for inventory. Doug Duenkel, chief operating officer at Knight Point Systems, told Government Computer News that organizations’ automated systems might not have counted servers that cost less than $2,500 or do not have IP addresses.

Another problem was the definition of a data center, which the government has refined since launching FDCCI, according to the article.

Before the added 1,000 centers were taken into account, the consolidation iniatiative already faced several challenges, including the lack of upfront funding, time and resources.

Listen to Monday’s Federal Drive about how to consolidate data centers.

This story is part of our daily DorobekINSIDER Must Reads. Be sure to check out the full list of stories.