The Fedora Project is planning a significant move to a new data centerA data center or data processing center (DPC) …, marking a milestone in its growth. Currently, most of the Fedora infrastructure is housed in a Red Hat-sponsored data center in Virginia, United States. However, the increasing demands for space, power, and hardware have led to the need to move to a new facility near Raleigh, North Carolina.
This change aims to ensure that Fedora continues to grow and improve performance for developers and users.
Why is the move taking place?
The decision to relocate is based on several key challenges at the current location:
- Lack of physical space: The current data center has reached its maximum capacity, leaving no room to expand the necessary hardware to meet growing demands, such as RISC-V compilers RISC-V.
- Power limitations: Some racks are operating near their critical power limits, which poses the risk of outages in the event of a failure in one of the circuits.
- Hardware renewal: Many of the current machines were acquired during the previous relocation in 2020. This move presents an opportunity to upgrade to faster, more efficient, and higher-density hardware.
What does the new data center in Raleigh offer?
The new data center in Raleigh, North Carolina, presents several benefits:
- More space: The new facility provides ample space for future expansions.
- Increased power availability: Enhanced power capacities allow for denser, more powerful configurations that are compatible with advanced technologies.
- Updated hardware: Most of the new hardware has already been acquired, promising significant improvements in speed and efficiency.
Moving plan
The transition is being carefully planned to minimize disruptions. The process will unfold as follows:
- Installation of new hardware: The team will install and configure the new equipment at the Raleigh data center.
- Logical shift of operations: Fedora will temporarily move operations to the new site, albeit with slightly reduced capacity, primarily in testing environments.
- Transfer of existing hardware: The machines from the current data center in Virginia will be shipped to the new location to restore and expand the overall capacity.
The move will take place over several weeks, aiming to minimize the impact on Fedora’s operations.
Timelines and Objectives
The Fedora Project plans to start the move after the release of Fedora 42, tentatively scheduled for mid-May 2025. The final date will be confirmed based on key milestones, such as the Beta Go/No-Go decision. Once the move is completed, users and developers can look forward to:
- Faster builds and tests: The improved hardware and infrastructure will deliver superior performance.
- Scalability: The new installation ensures space for ongoing growth and innovation.
- Stability: Increased power availability and space will reduce the risks of disruptions and downtime.
Looking to the Future
This relocation underscores Fedora’s commitment to staying at the technological forefront and ensuring a seamless experience for its community. By investing in modern infrastructure and planning for future growth, Fedora is positioned to continue providing high-quality open-source solutions.
via: Fedora Project