The cloud
offers companies a way to move IT management and equipment to data centers.
Cloud computing warehouses house thousands of computers, and each work in
unison to offer small and large companies energy savings. Cloud computing lets
you move applications, hardware, platforms and storage into the cloud, which
reduces much of the IT overhead and real estate needed to house computer
equipment. Not only does it save you money in IT costs, but most data centers
work to be energy efficient.
Cooling Efficiency
Every
computer warehouse needs cooling. Computers and network equipment must run in
an environment that has low humidity and runs at about 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
Even with these requirements, data center managers can customize the way the
cooling systems work. For instance, data centers can take advantage of outside
air to cool systems, and heat can be centralized to keep server areas cool
while other areas maintain circulation of hot air for cool air.
Virtualization Instead of Physical Servers
Virtualization
allows data centers to run several virtual machines on one physical machine.
This means you can have dozens of servers running on one physical computer.
This not only saves the data center money, but it also reduces the amount of
space needed to house servers. Virtualized servers also reduce power
consumption used by each customer because several customers can take advantage
of one physical server.
Balance Server Hardware with Usage
It wastes
energy when you have servers with the best hardware that aren't even used. This
can happen with virtual servers or physical servers. Data center managers must
analyze which servers have the most usage and balance hardware between high-use
servers and servers that have very low traffic. Data center managers also have
software that powers servers off and on depending on usage and traffic
statistics.
Upgrading Equipment
Some older
equipment can use much more energy than newer equipment. Energy Star equipment
uses up to 40% less power than older equipment. Old monitors use much more
energy than the latest flat-screens. Solid state drives (SSDs) use much less
power than old hard disk drives (HDDs). These hardware components can be costly
to replace, but the replacement ultimately saves the data center money in
energy costs.
Use Data Centers at Night
Some big
data center companies have locations in several locations. It's more energy
efficient to use data centers where it's night, because it's cooler outside. If
the data center company has redundancy between locations, the data center can
switch usage to another location where it's night to reduce energy costs.
Better Emergency Response and Alerts
When data
center equipment goes down, it can wreak havoc on employees and customers. The
alerts result in a redirect of traffic and energy usage, which costs more time
and energy to ensure customers are running before fixing the problem. With
redundancy and alert management, the data center can lose a server without too
many customers affected.
The company
you choose for cloud computing should take steps to ensure the data center runs
with the highest amount of energy efficiency. It's important for the
environment, but it's also a cost-savings that passes to your own IT bill.
For more information please contact me at 877.860.5831 x190
