back to article Fujitsu to test robot datacenter inspector that – trust us – won't take your jobs

Fujitsu Japan will trial a local 5G network as the sole connectivity option for a robot charged with inspecting a datacenter and reporting on any anomalies it finds. From December 1, 2022 until March 17, 2023, an unnamed robot will roll around the Yokohama Data Center at Fujitsu Research Institute Limited. The bot packs a 4K …

  1. Howard Sway Silver badge

    Fujitsu's datacenter bot

    They should call it "ping".

    1. Peter2 Silver badge

      Re: Fujitsu's datacenter bot

      The bot packs a 4K camera that will stream video and sound and, with the aid of unspecified analytics, detect any anomalies in servers by observing their blinking LED lights.

      The front display lights on a server can point out SMART warnings, power supplies having died and that's about it.

      All of which is available to be provided by the Simple Network Management Protocol, and you could install a (freely available) SNMP client which could be configured to obtain all of this data and then send a report to people via a number of mechanisms if something failed. (or if an HDD was getting low on space etc, which this bot won't be able to do)

      So what's the point of this bot? It's not able to even replace SNTP, let alone the person that actually responds to the error reports.

      1. Killfalcon

        Re: Fujitsu's datacenter bot

        Something moderately complex they can leave running for weeks to test out the 5G thingy.

        1. Roland6 Silver badge

          Re: Fujitsu's datacenter bot

          That 4K camera, if constantly streaming will place a nice load on the 5G, useful for 5G QoS monitoring.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Fujitsu's datacenter bot

            That 4K camera will be great for hackers to determine which racks etc...

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Fujitsu's datacenter bot

        This isn't about the datacenter, this is about the technology.

        "well it can do your simple task as it ran a data center for weeks!"

        "We've proven this is reliable by having it operate in complex environments for extended periods"

        The marketing nonsense will be endless.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    SNMP has been a thing for several years.

    You don't need to physically monitor a data centre - having a robot trundling around would be as expensive as having an engineer posted in the room. It would be cheaper to deploy web cams...

    1. Jimmy2Cows Silver badge

      RTFA

      Yeah but the article literally just told you it's not about SNMP, it's about seeing how 5G with a distributed antenna system holds up in such EM-hostile conditions.

  3. MJB7
    Headmaster

    Standard of commentards is falling

    At the time of writing there are seven comments, and _two_ of them are asking a question which El Reg has spent fully half the article on answering (to wit, why would you use a robot to do this?).

    Is it no longer considered appropriate to read at least the first page of an article before writing a comment?

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Re: IBM Engineer...

    As far as scientific research goes into this subject matter. It's a really good idea!

    What the robot is doing is irrelevant, it's more of a case of if it's possible in the environment.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: IBM Engineer...

      I would classify it as R&D rather than scientific research, and that's not meant to be a deprecatory statement, rather praise.

  5. Snowy Silver badge
    Mushroom

    Everytime

    I see Fujitsu I think the horizon post office scandal. So much so I am actively never going to buy anything from them until they face some punishment for their actions and maybe not even then if the punishment is little more than a tap on the wrist.

    1. veti Silver badge

      Re: Everytime

      I presume you're also refusing to have anything to do with the Post Office? They were the ones who tested and signed off on the system, and prosecuted their own employees based on its information.

      Fujitsu at least makes some decent kit. (I have no knowledge of their software, but since they bought ICL I wouldn't touch it with a scythe.)

      1. Snowy Silver badge

        Re: Everytime

        The Post Office has at least started to pay some compensation but I would like to see some of them who where responsible for the following to face some jail time.

        <quoue> These were largely private prosecutions by the Post Office relying on IT evidence alone, without proof of criminal intent. Public prosecutions also occurred in Scotland, Northern Ireland and in the Crown Court. Some SPMs were persuaded by their own solicitors to plead guilty to false accounting, on being told the Post Office would drop theft charges. Once the Post Office had a criminal conviction, it would attempt to secure a Proceeds of Crime Act order against convicted sub-postmasters, allowing it to seize their assets and bankrupt them. According to press reports, these actions by the Post Office caused the loss of dozens of jobs, bankruptcy, divorce, unwarranted prison sentences and one suicide. (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Post_Office_scandal]</quote>

        I think I have used the Post Office once in the last 2 years.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like