Page 3 - FCW, August 30, 2016
P. 3

Trending
New data center guidance shifts focus to optimization
$3.3B was spent on the cloud by federal
Launched in 2010 with the goal of saving $5 billion over five years, the Federal Data Center Consolidation Initiative has saved significant money and resulted in thousands of facilities being powered down.
But agencies have struggled to meet the initiative’s goals and even had trou- ble determining how many data centers they have.
So on Aug. 1, U.S. CIO Tony Scott unveiled the final version of FDCCI’s successor, the Data Center Optimiza- tion Initiative. He said the goal is to bring data center guidance in line with the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA).
Reducing the number of data centers is still a goal. Agencies are expected to close 25 percent of their larger facilities over the next three years and 60 per- cent of the “server rooms” that are scat- tered across government. Hitting those targets, Scott wrote, would more than halve the total data center inventory and reduce the total real estate footprint for federal data centers by nearly a third.
As the initiative’s name suggests, opti- mization is also an important priority. Agencies have new targets for energy
metering, effective power use, virtu- alization, automated monitoring, and utilization of both servers and facility floor space — and are expected to hit those goals by the end of fiscal 2018.
The guidance also projects $2.7 bil- lion in governmentwide savings by the end of fiscal 2018. Agency-specific goals
agencies in fiscal 2015, according to Govini
solidation efforts he has long advocated. “OMB’s guidance is consistent with FITARA and will help agencies contin- ue the good progress they have had to date optimizing data centers,” Powner said. “The targeted savings seem low compared to what agencies told us, and there needs to be more consistent
“OMB’s guidance is consistent with FITARA and
will help agencies continue the good progress they have had to date optimizing data centers.”
for cost savings and avoidance will be set by Sept. 1.
Another explicit goal is to encourage the adoption of cloud and shared ser- vices. The new guidance declares that, after Jan. 27, 2017, agencies will be pro- hibited from budgeting “any funds or resources toward initiating a new data center or significantly expanding an existing data center without approval” from the U.S. CIO’s office.
David Powner, the Government Accountability Office’s director for IT management issues, told FCW the new initiative was a positive step for the con-
— DAVID POWNER, GAO
reporting on savings to OMB and GAO. OMB’s requirement to have each individ- ual agency set cost savings goals should help to reconcile these differences.”
David Wennergren, the Professional Services Council’s executive vice presi- dent for operations and technology, was similarly optimistic.
“There are some things to be encour- aged about by the memo,” said Wenn- ergren, whose government positions included Navy CIO. “It puts explicit tar- gets and metrics and follow-on actions against the broader goal, which is key.”
— Troy K. Schneider
FCW CALENDAR
9/7 Cybersecurity
The FTC’s ransomware workshop will explore risks, tactics and the technology defenses that are available. It is part of a series of events on emerging technology issues.
Washington, D.C. is.gd/FCW_ransom
9/8 Health IT
Washington Technology’s HHS Industry Day will explore
contract opportunities at HHS, which includes the FDA, CDC and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Tysons, Va.
is.gd/wt_hhs
9/13 Acquisition
OFPP’s Lesley Field, GSA’s Casey Kelley, NOAA’s Mitchell Ross
and the Federal Communications Commission’s John Skudlarek will speak at ACT-IAC’s 2016 Mythbusters Forum.
Washington, D.C.
is.gd/FCW_myth2016
August 30, 2016 FCW.COM 3






























































   1   2   3   4   5