RackML

RackML (Rack Markup Language) is an open, vendor-neutral XML schema for describing datacenter rack infrastructure with dimensional precision.

Overview

RackML defines a structured vocabulary for modeling:

Racks — enclosure geometry per EIA-310-E (post spacing, depth, rack units)
Appliances — servers, switches, PDUs, UPS units, and other rack-mounted equipment
Slots & Components — modular bays (PSU, PCIe, drive) and their installed modules
Ports — network, power, console, and video connectors with face and position
Connections — cable links between ports with cable type metadata
Annotations — user-authored notes on any rack or appliance

All measurements support millimeters, meters, and rack units (1U = 44.45 mm). Documents are plain XML — human-readable, diffable, and parseable by any language.

Schema

Version	Namespace	XSD
1.0.0	`http://rackml.org/schema/1-0-0`	rackml-1.0.0.xsd

Quick Example

<rack xmlns="http://rackml.org/schema/1-0-0"
      name="my-rack" height="42"
      A="450mm" B="465mm" C="483.4mm" D="1m">

    <appliance name="switch-01" y="1u" type="switch"
               size_x="440mm" size_y="1u" size_z="300mm">
        <port name="eth1" type="rj45" x="50mm" y="0" face="front" />
        <port name="power" type="c14" x="20mm" y="0" face="rear" />
    </appliance>

    <appliance name="server-01" y="3u" type="server"
               size_x="440mm" size_y="2u" size_z="800mm">
        <port name="eth1" type="rj45" x="300mm" y="0" face="front" />
        <port name="power-1" type="c14" x="50mm" y="0" face="rear" />
    </appliance>

    <connection from="server-01/eth1" to="switch-01/eth1" />
</rack>

Resources

GitHub Repository — schema source, examples, changelog, and validation tools
XSD Schema v1.0.0

Contact

For questions, bug reports, or schema change proposals, open an issue on GitHub.

RackML is a trademark of Logistic Support Alliance, LLC. Licensed under the Apache License 2.0.