Reducing Computer Power Consumption
How IT and facilities can both win in the savings race
Dmitry Shesterin vice president of marketing, Faronics
Until recently, the focus in reducing IT energy consumption has been on the data center, and vendors have pursued a variety of exotic cost cutting technologies that range from server virtualization to storing energy in flywheels instead of batteries. But there is another opportunity for substantial reductions in power usage: the desktop. The energy used by 1,000 workstations in one year is equivalent to 880 barrels of oil, or 43,180 gallons of gasoline. Assuming those 1,000 computers are always on, this energy costs more than $90,000. All these numbers can be significantly reduced by the simple practice of turning off desktop computers when they are not in use.
Managing Desktop Power Consumption
Facility departments foot the energy bill. Therefore, any way to reduce energy waste and costs is certainly explored. Reducing computer energy is one such way, but has always been a problem because IT departments have in the past cited four reasons why computers cannot be turned off during downtimes:
1. IT departments need the not-in-use periods to perform routine maintenance such as patching and installing updates. If workstations have been shut down manually or via standard operating system functionality, maintenance is impossible.
2. Defining “not in use.” The standard power-saving functions that come with the Microsoft Windows or Mac operating systems rely solely on the absence of mouse and keyboard activity, which is often not an accurate indicator of computer activity.
3. Defining what it means for a computer to be powered down. Is it in standby, hibernating, or totally off?
4. Reporting.
The operating system’s power-saving functions cannot provide any data about the number of hours the computers are on or off. That said, there are ways that IT and facilities can work together. IT departments can be convinced to deploy a power reduction solution that does not impose any burdens of its own. It must be non- intrusive and deployable via all the popular desktop-management tools.
Using a power-saving product dramatically reduces computer energy costs by turning off desktop computers when not in use, without impeding IT’s ability to manage workstations. Such products can eliminate up to 70 percent of Windows and Mac computer energy waste, equating to savings of up to $40,000 per year for every 1,000 computers such products are deployed on. It is also important
that the power saving product selected be nondisruptive to the user and IT, while delivering real savings to the facility department. By using an enterprise energy management solution, IT and facility departments can work together to reduce an educational institution’s energy bill and carbon footprint.
About the Author:
Dmitry Shesterin is Faronics’ Vice President of Marketing. His previous experience includes working for Siemens and Seiko EPSON. Dmitry has taken a strong interest in green business practices after seeing how much of an effect our daily practices have on the environment. As a result, Dmitry assembled a Carbon Neutrality Task Force at Faronics which he also co-chairs. Through the efforts of the CNTF, Faronics has become a carbon neutral company as of 2009.
