Viruses, spyware, and network threats get most of the attention, but environmental factors like heat, humidity, airflow, smoke, and electricity can be equally devastating to server room equipment, and thus to a company’s IT operations. 

To get a sense of the danger, let’s take overheating as an example. Servers generate high levels of heat, and the facility must be kept cool to ensure optimal performance. The warmer it gets, the more likely equipment will overheat and malfunction. In fact, an increase from 68°F (20°C) to 86°F (30°C) can reduce the long-term reliability of electronic equipment by as much as 50 percent. And when air conditioning fails, temperature can skyrocket in a matter of minutes. In February 2009, Duke University Professor of Physics Robert G. Brown explained that heat weakens electronic components like power supplies, motherboards, and memory chips, so even if they don’t fail immediately, they become more susceptible to failure over time.

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