Our ongoing World Of Servers series has been in Sydney this week, soaking up advice at Gartner's IT Infrastructure, Operations & Data Center conference. We came, we live blogged, we took lots of notes. Here are five key lessons to take away from the event.

Big data is challenging, expensive and hard to staff. However, when it comes to implementing the computing systems needed to deliver it, a handful of key principles will make the task easier.

As demand for data centres grows, relocation or expansion may seem the only option. However, it's worth thinking more broadly about your needs: you may well be able to get more data centre capacity in your existing location.

The hybrid cloud -- a mixture of private and public cloud infrastructure -- is the reality for many businesses, but much discussion of the cloud insists on treating the two as separate concepts. How can you effectively deploy and take advantage of hybrid cloud environments?

There's a fierce battle between vendors to control the virtualisation market and (by extension) the future of how cloud systems are deployed. By Gartner's reckoning, that battle comes down to two key players: Microsoft and VMware.

Server virtualisation is a common activity, but that doesn't mean you can't improve your existing process. Gartner analyst Thomas Bittman shares tips on how to improve your virtualisation approach as our World Of Servers journey to the Gartner Infrastructure, Operations & Data Centre conference in Sydney wraps up for day 1.

Every session I've attended at the Gartner IT Infrastructure Operations & Data Center Summit, which I'm covering this week as part of our World Of Servers series, has included handy ideas for IT pros. Here's a collection of some useful tips from a range of speakers and participants.

Cost reduction is a constant catchcry for most data centres. But is it possible to reduce our spending any further?

What are the key trends that will change the way IT pros work over the next five years, and how will server and data centre technology evolve? Gartner vice-president David J Cappuccio's highlighted 10 you social and technology trend you need to consider, and we captured them all live at the Gartner Infrastructure, Operations & Data Center Summit in Sydney as part of our World Of Servers coverage.