Escape from data Alcatraz

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.zdnet.com.au/newstech/communications/story/0,2000024993,20262588,00.htm

By Jeanne-Vida Douglas, ZDNet Australia
27 December 2001

"There are two ways to attack a data centre very quickly," says
Richard Brown solemnly, as he leads the way through the dead mans
zone. "The first is to kill the power, and the second is to attack the
air conditioning."

He stops for a moment before continuing the tour and points out some
details which make it impossible to escape from the dimly lit metal
and glass cell in which he stands.

"It is called the dead mans zone because even if someone manages to
get this far into the building, they won't make it any further, and
they certainly won't be able to escape," Brown says.

Built initially to house currency, the Hostworks data centre in the
suburb of Kidman Park, Adelaide is a tribute to the profligacy of
Timothy Marcus Clark, former head of the State Bank of South
Australia. Nestled in a semi-industrial area, with minimum road
signage, it is at once unassuming, virtually impenetrable and to this
day an inspirational feet of excess engineering.

Any William Gibson fan knows that information is the currency of the
new age, and won't be surprised that what was built as a massive bank
vault, now preserves the integrity of vast amounts of data.

Triangular in shape, two of the sides house offices while the third, a
large rectangular block if taken in isolation, contains two data
centres, as well as the infrastructure to ensure that Web sites
continue to function come fire, flood, natural catastrophy or foreign
invasion.

"The centre itself has a lot of contingency built into the design,"  
Brown says, as his footsteps echo down a chilly concrete corridor in
the labyrinthine bowels of the centre.

Housed within the structure the air conditioning units take in air
through cooling towers encased in armour, and draw water from no less
than two totally separate water supplies, plus an onsite reservoir.

"We maintain the centre at a permanent 17-19 degrees Celsius," says
Brown. "And as the heat exchanges are located within the centre they
are protected from both the natural elements, and from direct attack."

Designed as a southern Fort Knox, the structure is earthquake proof,
bomb resistant, and provides anti ram capabilities. Doors throughout
the complex are secured with a Honeywell Access Control System, and
staff working at the facility are supplied with a proximity card,
which allows them access only to a specified area.

Fire prevention and control is provided through a FM200 fire
suppressant system under the floor, and dry pipe sprinkler systems.  
The data centres are also separated by reinforced walls designed to
retard fire.

Electricity is provided to the centre through three separate feeds
from two different substations, and three massive UPS systems ensure
that the power supply is both clean and constant. The contingency plan
requires that two units be running simultaneously, in case of failure
of a single unit.

There are also three wet cell battery rooms, providing back up in case
all three electricity feeds suddenly drop out and threaten the
centre's operations. At the heart of the electrical back up is a
spotless bright blue V16 twin turbo-charged diesel generator capable
of supplying the centre with up to 1.8 Mw.

"The generator set is started automatically if the power supply drops
below the defined building criteria," explains Brown. "The engine is
started by compressed air, and can be fed through two underground
tanks, which combine to provide seven weeks capacity of Diesel."

The generator is also started up every six weeks, to make sure it is
fully operational at all times.

However, unlike a jail or bank vault Hostwork’s data centre also has
to provide more than 75 percent of Australia’s Internet users with
regular access to the information hosted at the Kidman Park premises.  
To ensure this connectivity is maintained the centre also relies on
three pipes which plug into different exchanges, in totally different
parts of the state.

While the business of protecting data is serious, Brown admits the
Hostworks data centre is a thrilling place to work, and while he won't
be drawn on the centre's capacity, he is confident the centre is large
enough to host the companys forcast growth at least over the coming
years.

"We can increase our capacity by at least 300 percent before we have
to think about moving," Brown says smiling. “So at this stage it looks
like I will be coming down to start up the generator for some time to
come"
 


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