
Data Mining? 104
portmonk writes: "Interesting article on ISP-Planet regarding subterranean co-lo. Bomb shelter and hosting in one easy package..."
A language that doesn't have everything is actually easier to program in than some that do. -- Dennis M. Ritchie
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Re:Slashdot is fixed... (Score:1)
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Mine sweeper... (Score:1)
Haven't we seen exactly the same before? (Score:3, Informative)
Not quite the same (Score:3, Insightful)
These guys appear to concentrate on bringing a cost-effective service to their customers rather than nuclear bunker bragging rights. Have you seen the prices on thebunker.net?
In the beginning.. (Score:1)
Crackers using tactical nukes (Score:1, Funny)
Therefore locating servers in secure environment must be banned.
Crackers? STFU jigaboo (Score:1, Interesting)
UG (Score:1)
Isnt this a redundant concept but ? (Score:5, Insightful)
There is a secure need for co-lo fdacilites etc but why not just build a mirrod system with 4-5 sites carrying the data - a sort of broadband raid, this would cut down the need for these facilites.
Now this is only an idea and it might have a million logical reasons behind it but would it not be cheaper that concrete bunkers and dedicated power systems and such ? (i am asking would it or not?)
Or is it that clients like a cool ultra secure bunker - it makes them feel good and powerfull ?
Any thoughts?
Re:Isnt this a redundant concept but ? (Score:3, Insightful)
It also has some other unique features, it'd be awfully hard for someone to steal your box, as its inside a mine
Re:Isnt this a redundant concept but ? (Score:3, Interesting)
How about cost, performance, and design restrictions?
I think you're assuming that such a site would be serving basic, somewhat static html, in which case that may be an option. But I don't think that it would work out for a more complex application.
I design/develop/administrate a lot of Oracle-specific system architectures, specifically for sites with large numbers of financial transactions *cough - gambling - cough*, and let me tell you that such physically distributed systems can be EXPENSIVE, both in cash (eg: network/storage infrastructure is almost duplicated) and performance (latency involved in a physically distributed 2-phase commit will kill performance on the client side). Lets not even talk about the logistics involved in running/managing/designing a large physically distributed Oracle cluster!
Sometimes it is WAY cheaper to put all of your eggs into one cushy, bomb-proof basket.
These guys really thought this out! (Score:4, Insightful)
First off though - the line "it has a virtually unlimited supply of free, humid, 50-degree Fahrenheit air. USDCO simply hooks up two large fans in each room" Humid? Err - isn't that a BAD thing for a data center? I know it was when I managed one. But man - 50 degrees abient temp would be sweet! The 10K sq ft data center I used to manage had like 5 Liebert cooling towers and it STILL seemed to get too warm at times!
I love how they know they'll be back on-grid quickly because of the food storage - and hey - you don't have to go up to the surface to eat lunch! Sweet!
How nice to see a tech company say "We've had VC offers because our business plan is obviously good and obviously different, but we want to grow organically. Alsoâ"it may be a Western Michigan thingâ"but we believe in something called 'service.' We don't want to expand too fast." If only more tech companies had realized that the VC money was a bad thing!
I wish them the best of luck! Course it would suck working there - man talk about being a pasty white geek! Time to invest in some fiber to pipe in sunlight :)
Re:These guys really thought this out! (Score:1)
I'm really looking for the day when I can find my way to a co-location site like this just by looking for the cooling towers steaming outside [tssphoto.com]...
Re:These guys really thought this out! (Score:3, Informative)
Re:These guys really thought this out! (Score:2)
Floods a "geological rarity" in Michigan? Not when I lived there. Every spring there are floods around the state on various rivers. I forget the name of the river that flows through Grand Rapids, but Grand Rapids wasn't named for fast-moving concert pianos...
In any event, near a river or not, most mines (don't know about gypsum mines) have some ground water seepage, and as a result have sumps and electrically powered pumps to keep the water at bay. I'd be a bit worried about losing power for an extended periods. Of course you have short-term data issues then, but it could easily lead to long-term...er...damage issues.
Looks like a winner (Score:1)
What I would like to know is, what type of demand for co-location services are there in Michigan?
And how long does it take to get from ground level to the data center?
Anyone?
Plenty of demand in Michigan.. (Score:2)
There's another mine [detroitsalt.com] in Detroit that closed down a few years ago due to unfavorable economic conditions. We went on a tour just before they shut it down, thinking we'd be some of the last humans in that mine. (They were considering turning it into a nuclear waste storage facility, because the salt vein is so geologically stable.) They modernized and reopened the mine in 1998 though. Once the salt's removed from an area, it becomes useless. Data co-lo is an ideal way for the mine companies to get income from space that otherwise sits idle.
A big secure co-lo in Detroit would be great. We already have a few large above-ground facilities, and Detroit's a great place to locate NOCs because it doesn't have hurricanes, earthquakes, etc. We get the occasional tornado but those usually just rip up awnings. A subterranean co-lo, just a few miles from the NOC, seems like an ideal scenario.
Re:Plenty of demand in Michigan.. (Score:1)
I dunno. I've been to Detroit and I'd rather live underground.
cold (Score:2)
Re:cold (Score:2)
And the security guards name is... (Score:1)
well, it sure looked like the game - and bosses name is 'Wolfson'
yeh, yeh, I know - I'm showing my age - but Wolfenstein was a top game
Best place to be when there is a war. (Score:1)
Underground hackers of a different sort.. (Score:2)
Re:Underground hackers of a different sort.. (Score:1)
dave
PS. esc : w q doesn't save and quit the post you know...
Good deal! (Score:1)
I seem to recall another
Going subterranean is, IMHO, one of the best options we've got right now. You get (1) better/cheaper cooling (unless you decide to dig around geothermal vents
Now, what really surprised me was the statement that they'd be offered base level colocation for around $100 a month for 1U. Needless to say, this is pretty decent, especially given the bandwidth they appear to be wielding (up to OC-192?!?!?! nice
"My data center is weirder than yours" competition (Score:2)
world ends (Score:1)
Someone HAS to say it.... (Score:1)
Someone is going to copy this model saying:
"We must not have a mineshaft gap!"
Miss you Stanley....
=tkk
Now if I could just work 'precious bodily fluids' into a post...
Flooding would be my big concern... (Score:1)
80 feet underground too. (Not in rural
Michigan, but in downtown Washington DC, I should
point out.) The biggest worry the insurance
underwriters have is flooding - not so much from
a natural disaster as a goof in the plumbing
above our heads. Moisture detectors everywhere
under the false floor. When I spilled coffee
in one of the machine rooms a couple of weeks ago
I saw the swiftest response by building
maintenance I've ever witnessed!
Taking out the computers that run a $10Billion
peripheral is pretty bad for your business plan,
it turns out!
Rural? Michigan (Score:1)
Re:Rural? Michigan (Score:1)
too expensive (Score:1)
Re:too expensive (Score:1)
tns.net gives me 1ru/on dual OC-48 lines, 50GB/mo +$5/extra GB/mo for $100/mo
Some clarifications (Score:1)
Humid? Err - isn't that a BAD thing for a data center?
Nope. You need 50-60% relative humidity, or static electricity starts to destroy your equipment.
These guys appear to concentrate on bringing a cost-effective service to their customers rather than nuclear bunker bragging rights.
Indeed - their price of $100+80(n-1) per month, where n=# of U's you need, is quite reasonable, especially for a smaller company like us [solidusdesign.com].
And how long does it take to get from ground level to the data center?
The elevators can take you up or down the 85-foot tunnels in about 45 seconds.
In any event, near a river or not, most mines (don't know about gypsum mines) have some ground water seepage, and as a result have sumps and electrically powered pumps to keep the water at bay.
Indeed, there are a few areas in which small pools of water form from the ground seepage. However, these are, as you say, sump pumped away, and no such pool is anywhere in the vicinity of the data center itself.
I forget the name of the river that flows through Grand Rapids, but Grand Rapids wasn't named for fast-moving concert pianos.
It's the Grand River, surprisingly enough...
hey - you don't have to go up to the surface to eat lunch! Sweet!
Sorry - the food stored down in the mine itself (as opposed to the storage in the aboveground buildings on top of the mine) consists of 2000-pound (1-ton) lugs of powdered milk for the yogurt factory close to the mine... icky for lunch.
Or is it that clients like a cool ultra secure bunker - it makes them feel good and powerfull
Not to mention 31337...
Some clarifications (Score:1)
I was on a caving trip once, and one of the NiCd packs internally shorted when we were in a fairly small chamber. Fortunately a microtemp fuse cut off the offending battery before the pack melted, so we didn't get any poisonous gases.
But how would you go in the mine? What if a tantalum shorts out and the place gets filled with smoke?
Do you all get to play with the breathing apparatus, or what?