One of the major factors that is noticed while buying a server rack is its dimensions. Today, server racks are available in different sizes and you can get them according to your requirements. But while selecting the racks, it is extremely essential to understand the differences in the sizes of the racks available.

Height of the Server Rack

The most prominent size factor that you need to check in a server rack is its height. The height of the rack is also measured in terms of units. Usually, when you are searching for a server rack heightism, you need to actually search it unit-wise. 1U or 1 rack unit measures 44.45 mm or 1.750”. Now, different racks come in different units such as 22U, 27U, 42U, and others. On average, a 42U server rack measures about 7 feet.

When you are on the hunt for racks height-wise or unit-wise, you can get a rack as small as 5U and as huge as 70U.

Depth of the Server Rack

The next thing that you need to check after the height of the server rack is the depth of the rack. While the height of the rack is measured in units, the depth of the rack is measured in inches. Also, unlike the height of the rack, there are much lesser variations in terms of the depth of the rack. While the depth of the rack ranges from 0” to 50”, there are a few most commonly used depths available.

A rack with a depth of 24 inches is mostly used for patch panels, networking equipment, and others. Similarly, a server rack with a depth of 29 inches is used for servers from a wide range of brands such as HP, Dell, IBM, and many others. Apart from these two standard depth sizes, there are also server racks available with a depth of 48 inches.

Width of the Server Rack

Apart from the height and the depth of the racks, another important size that you must check out while buying a rack is to check out the width of the rack. Usually, the 19 inches server rack is the most commonly found option that is perfect for servers from different brands. But now there are also racks available in many other widths such as 24 inches and 48 inches.

There are also many such racks available today that have an interior width of 19 inches while an exterior width of 24 inches. This extra width on the exterior part is provided for the management of the cables in a proper way.

Getting the Right Size

Now when it is quite clear that the server racks are available in so many sizes and the difference between the dimensions, it becomes a bit easier for anyone to select the right one. The selection of the right size mainly depends on two major factors. The very first factor is the size of the server that you are installing depending upon your business size. The second factor is the types of equipment that you wish to house on the rack.