Walked into a data center I helped build back in 2008 and noticed all the fiber patch panels are still using the same color code scheme we argued about for weeks.

The senior engineer who insisted on purple jumpers for storage traffic retired in 2012 but that whole rack layout is still exactly how he drew it, has anyone else gone back to an old site and found their old decisions still running the show?

2 comments

2 Comments

sam_scott5914d ago

You're actually dead wrong about this being a problem lol. That purple jumper system probably works better than anything you'd design today because it was built by someone who actually understood the physical layout instead of just following some generic standard. The fact that it's still in place 12 years later proves it works fine. People get way too obsessed with updating stuff that's already running smoothly. The old engineer's color system and rack layout are basically proven at this point. Redesigning it would just waste time and risk breaking something that's been stable for over a decade.

harris.uma13d ago

Purple jumpers are a bold choice but honestly that engineer had the guts to commit and it stuck. That's more than most of us can say about our projects from 2008. The rack layout probably works because he knew where the heat pockets and cable tangles always happened. Changing it now would be like ripping out a perfectly good engine just because the paint is old. Sometimes the weird old ways just win.