Microsoft’s first Data Center that makes use of shipping containers as a primary server-packaging unit, has moved into the testing phase. The facility in Chicago is the first purpose-built Data Center to accommodate containers on such a large scale. When completed the Chicago Data Center will be one of the largest in the world with it’s capacity to house hundreds of thousands of servers, each shipping container holds approx. 2,500 servers!
The Chicago Facility is much more energy efficient and environmentally friendly than Data Centers were before. All because the use of those 40ft containers! And energy efficiency isn’t the only benefit, more about that in Mike Manos’ point of view on the Chicago Data Center. Mike Manos is the general manager of data center services for Global Foundation Services/Microsoft.