GREEN COMPUTING

Virtualization Offers IT Departments the Way to a Greener Path

W ith increasing pressure on IT departments and CIOs to manage

business growth while control-ling energy consumption, an information consulting firm has assembled a package of services for them to “go greener.”

According to SandOaks of Aus-tin, Texas (www.sandoaks.com), IT power consumption in the US has more than doubled over the past six years and now accounts for more than 3 percent of energy use. More than half of the For-tune 500 companies are actively implementing revised corporate responsibility policies.

With new server and intel-ligent cooling options available today, a 20,000-square-foot data center should be able to achieve energy savings in the 40 to 45 percent range over past years, according to studies compiled by SandOaks.

The studies show that com-panies today are wrestling with managing customer and business growth rates. This increased de-mand is driving all businesses’ functions to operate at maximum

efficiency and IT is no exception. IT is becoming more aligned with the business and adopting virtual-ization as the primary strategy to address the enterprise’s growing needs. Through virtualization, IT can support new application de-ployments with reduced resourc-es for people, power, and physical space. Many companies in large metropolitan areas are simply running out of physical space for deploying additional servers.

In addition, companies are adopting virtualization as a key enabler of green strategies within their businesses. Virtualization delivers savings in the areas of power consumption, personnel requirements, and physical space requirements. The rising cost of electricity and the reduced avail-ability in some areas make re-ducing power consumption a key goal for all companies. The well-publicized power “brown outs” in California and the increased cost of power in the state are driving some of the largest corporations to move their data centers out of state. Seeking other options, Google built one of the largest so-

lar power arrays on the rooftops of its campus as a way to ensure consistent availability of power.

SandOaks says that virtualiza-tion brings with it numerous ben-efits that address all of the issues previously noted. In fact, it has become a key focus for technol-ogy enhancement for hardware and software companies. Virtual servers perform better and con-sume less power for processing a given level of business function than standalone servers. Industry estimates for server usage range from 7 to 20 percent on aver-age, meaning that most IT shops have more capacity in their data centers than is required to meet business needs. Virtualized serv-ers typically run in the 65 to 85 percent capacity range—clearly a major step forward in being ef-ficient. Add to that the reduced cooling requirements for new technology, smaller server foot-prints, and improved manageabil-ity, and it’s clear why Goldman Sachs forecasts that virtualiza-tion is going to hit the main-stream market in 2008 (www. goldmansachs.com). v

Computer Servers Use Lion’s Share of Power

T he consumption of energy by computer servers, cool-ing equipment, and related

infrastructure doubled worldwide between 2000 and 2005, with the US accounting for roughly 40 percent of that, concludes a new study by Jonathan Koomey, proj-ect scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The re-port, called “Estimating Regional Power Consumption by Servers, a Technical Note,” predicts that

if current trends continue, en-ergy consumption worldwide for servers and related cooling and infrastructure will grow roughly 76 percent from 2005 to 2010. Koomey said that in 2005 total electricity used to power com-puter servers and related infra-structure worldwide reached 123 kWh.

Together, the US, Japan, and Europe used approximately 75 per-cent of all server-related electricity

worldwide, Koomey said (http://enterprise.amd.com/Downloads/ svrpwrusecompletefinal.pdf). He said power consumption could be reduced by roughly 20 per- cent if certain energy-efficient processes and technologies were developed, including the use of virtualization soft-ware, better management of hot and cold areas in data cen-ters, and changes in corporate policies. v

January/February 2008 ITPro �

NEWS BRIEFS

8 ITPro January/February 2008

NEWS BRIEFSIT Provider Tells of Green Strategy in Construction of Data Center

GREEN COMPUTING

IYogi Computer Support Launches Green PC Initiative

IYogi, a computer support services company, announced the launch of its Green PC initiative. The service offers customers ways to save

money, conserve energy, and protect the environment by optimizing their PCs’ efficiency.

According to Energy Star, a joint program between the US Environ-mental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy, users can save up to $75 per desktop PC annually through power management.

IYogi’s Green PC initiative is a customized service that increases the energy efficiency of users’ computers starting with three primary undertakings:

computer assessment (analyzing settings and PC energy use);customized efficiency plans geared specifically to the individual’s usage patterns; andimplementing setting changes to maximize a computer’s energy use by executing more than 10 energy-saving tactics.

The service is free for iYogi’s annual subscribers or can be purchased for US$9.99 as a standalone service for new customers. IYogi’s Green PC Web site (www.green-pc.iyogi.net) helps users identify ways to recycle or dispose of their hardware and provides insight into how to select new computer equipment that’s environmentally friendly and energy efficient.

➤

➤

➤

T erremark Worldwide, a provider of managed IT infrastructure services, has

released information on the dif-ferent ways it conserved energy during construction of its Net-work Access Point of the Capi-tal Region (NCR) project (www. napoftheamericas.com).

This project, currently under construction, will speed access to information, enhance communi-cations, and facilitate economic transactions, enabling enterpris-es and government to drive pro-ductivity and growth. Located 60 miles from Washington, DC, in Culpeper, Virginia, the NCR will

provide managed services in addi-tion to network security and con-nectivity. The campus will consist of five 50,000-square-foot inde-pendent data center structures and a 72,000-square-foot secure office building. Each structure is a bunker built to security stan-dards for sensitive compartment-ed information facilities and is set back 150 feet from the cam-pus perimeter. Inside each data center, a security staff maintains and operates sophisticated video surveillance systems, biometric scanners, and secured areas for processing of staff, customers, and visitors.

As an example of its green strategy, in designing the facil-ity, Terremark segregated hot and cold air in the cooling system of the data center floor to work more efficiently, thus conserv-ing the energy needed to cool the equipment.

In building the facility, Terremark employed the most energy-efficient equipment, such as vacuum fluorescent displays (VFDs) and DC motors that let the motors run at full capacity only as needed. Terremark also used a rotary uninterruptible power supply (UPS) unit that re-quires no cooling and consumes far less space, yielding a more energy-efficient design than stat-ic UPS systems (battery rooms and rectifiers). When combined, the use of these various energy- efficient components will help reduce the data centers’ overall impact on the environment.

Terremark also used a closely coupled cooling system to deliver cold air as closely as possible to heat sources, thus maximizing its effect.

The lighting infrastructure uses energy-efficient lighting and a “free cooling” system that employs economizers and dry coolers. This takes advantage of ambient cool air and lets the facility lessen its de-pendency on artificially cooled air during certain times of the year.

As Terremark embarked on its hardware refresh cycle in the US at the various facilities it services (NAP of the Americas in Miami, NAP West in California, NAP de las Americas Madrid, and NAP do Brasil among them), it virtu-alized its testing environments using products from VMware, a company that provides virtualiza-tion software for x-86-compatible computers. v

January/February 2008 ITPro �

IT History Society Debuts

INDUSTRY

Gates, Jobs Named IT’s Top Personalities of Past 25 Years

T he cofounders of two of the world’s most success-ful, recognizable, and in-

novative IT companies are the industry’s most influential per-sonalities of the past 25 years, according to a poll by the Com-puting Technology Industry As-sociation (CompTIA).

Bill Gates, chairman of Micro-soft, claimed the top spot on the most influential list. Gates, who cofounded Microsoft in 1975, was named by 84 percent of the 473 IT industry professionals who participated in the Web-based poll.

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, which he cofounded in 1976, placed sec-ond on the list. Jobs was selected by 73 percent of voters.

Placing third was Michael

Dell, chairman of the board and CEO of Dell, the company he cofounded in 1984. He was named by 53 percent of voters.

Tied for fourth, at 47 percent, were Linus Torvalds, Sergey Brin, and Latty Page. As a 21-year-old computer science student at the University of Helsinki, Tor-valds wrote the original code for the operating system known as Linux. Brin and Page founded Google in 1998 as Stanford Uni-versity PhD students.

Rounding out the top 10 were

John Chambers, chairman and CEO of Cisco Systems (44 percent);Larry Ellison, CEO and mem-ber of the board of directors of Oracle (36 percent);

•

•

Vinton Cerf, widely known as one of the “fathers of the Internet” and codesigner of the TCP/IP protocols (35 percent);Steve Ballmer, CEO of Micro-soft (35 percent); andMeg Whitman, president and CEO of eBay since 1998 (30 percent).

The poll was conducted in conjunction with CompTIA’s 25th anniversary. The majority of poll respondents (91 percent) have worked in the IT industry for at least three years, and two-thirds have been in the industry for five years or more. More in-formation is available at http://www.comptia.org/pressroom/get_pr.aspx?prid=1295. v

•

•

•

T he IT History Society formally launched on 21 October 2007 during the

History of Technology Confer-ence in Washington, DC. The IT History Society, formerly known as the Charles Babbage Founda-tion, was created with the goal of “enhancing and expanding works concerning the history of information technology, and of demonstrating the value of IT history to the understanding and improvement of the world,” ac-cording to the society’s Web site (www.IThistory.org).

The IT History Society will assist in the collaboration of like-minded institutions and in-dividuals to expand the reach of historical and archival activities while communicating to the pri-vate sector the value of preserv-

ing its history and heritage for generations to come, according to its chairman of the board, Jef-frey D. Stein.

The launch resulted in more than 130 historians and activ-ists becoming members, as well as institutions including

the Center for Technology In-novation, the Charles Babbage Institute, the Computer Histo-ry Museum, the IEEE History Center, the Mid-Atlantic Retro Computing Hobbyists, and the UK National Archive for the History of Computing. v

Visionary Web Videosabout the Future of Multimedia.

Listen to premiere multimedia experts!Post your own views and demos!

Visit www.computer.org/multimedia

10 ITPro January/February 2008

NEWS BRIEFSEMPLOYMENT

IT Certification Council Established

L eading corporations, associ-ations, and education and training providers in the IT

industry have formed the Infor-mation Technology Certification Council (ITCC) to position pro-fessional certifications for major new growth, ensuring a qualified workforce to support the world’s technology needs.

The ITCC will be a resource for employers, government officials, academia, workforce development, and individuals seeking informa-tion about the many advantages and benefits of IT certification.

Founding members of the ITCC include HP, IBM, Micro-soft, Novell, and Sun; the Com-

puting Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) and the Linux Professional Institute; test development and delivery provid-ers Pearson VUE and Prometric; and education provider Kaplan.

The ITCC intends to confront many issues facing the IT certifi-cation industry, including exam security; perceptions versus re-alities of IT certification value and return on investment; and the training-to-testing ratio.

“Organizations that benefit the most from their investment in technology are the ones that understand that certified IT pro-fessionals have the job skills nec-essary to run IT infrastructures

efficiently and reliably,” says Neill Hopkins, vice president of skills development at CompTIA. “The positive impact of IT cer-tification is measurable in many ways: greater network availabil-ity, higher worker productivity, and improved security are just a few examples. All of these fac-tors have a positive impact on a business’s financial bottom line. That’s why more organizations view IT certifications as a busi-ness necessity.”

The ITCC will establish and execute industry-wide market-ing and drive other projects designed to better serve the IT certification industry. v

BUSINESS

Controlling IT Budget Is Top Technology Challenge for Small, Medium Businesses

K eeping budgets under control is the most press-ing technology challenge

facing small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) today, according to research commis-sioned by the Computing Tech-nology Industry Association (CompTIA).

In a survey of 724 businesses with fewer than 1,000 employ-ees, 37 percent said their biggest IT challenge is keeping their technology budgets under con-trol. IT budgets are the number one concern among organiza-tions in specific vertical markets, including finance, insurance, government, retail, wholesale, and professional services.

The high cost of IT mainte-nance was cited as the number two concern by 26 percent of all SMBs surveyed. Maintenance

cost was the number one concern among healthcare companies.

Using technology products and services to increase worker productivity ranks as the num-ber three concern among all SMBs surveyed, at 23 percent.

Keeping current systems go-ing for another few years ranked number four. This was cited as the top concern by 20 percent of SMBs overall, and 43 percent of manufacturing companies made it their number one issue.

Another significant chal-lenge, identified by 15 percent of SMBs, is finding IT vendors and solution providers who un-derstand their business enough to provide technology solu-tions tailored to their particular needs.

“SMBs want someone who will do more than just sell them

hardware, software, and ser-vices,” said John Venator, presi-dent and CEO of CompTIA. “They’re going to work with the vendors and solution providers who put them in the best po-sition to use technology to its utmost today and in the future. The IT companies that under-stand this are the ones who will have the most success in this growing market.”

Research firm AMI-Partners estimates that IT spending by SMBs in the US will reach US $154.4 billion this year. SMBs in the UK are projected to spend US $24.5 billion on IT this year, while SMBs in Canada are expected to spend US $18.4 billion.

More information on the study is available at www.comptia.org/pressroom/get_pr. aspx?prid=1297. v

BUSINESS

Consultant Points to Need for Centralized Information Management

M ore than three quar-ters of small- and me-dium-sized businesses

(SMBs) operate more than one server, with the majority also op-erating from multiple locations, meaning their IT infrastructure is distributed geographically, says Laurie Shufeldt, vice president of strategic development for File Vision, a developer of informa-tion relationship management solutions. According to Shufeldt, SMBs with multiple locations or remote employees show the signs of a healthy, modern or-ganization. But if the appropri-ate IT resources aren’t in place to coordinate the free flow and immediate accessibility of in-formation between those loca-

tions, SMBs face a critical pro-ductivity issue.

“To be fully productive, SMBs with multiple locations need to have a central infor-mation management system in place, where all data, informa-tion, and electronic versions of documents are stored and accessible from any location with an Internet connection,” Shufeldt said. “It’s the only way SMBs can be competitive in their respective fields in the 21st century.”

SMBs without such a system in place regress from a technol-ogy-enhanced productive way of operating when they depend on manually driven processes, Shufeldt added. This includes

the physical transportation of documents or inefficient com-munication systems like faxing and e-mail that further disperse documents and critical compa-ny information.

And, as one report finds, tech-nology does improve employee productivity. According to a re-cent study by Forrester Research, 83 percent of SMBs believe ap-plication software improves the efficiency of their companies’ core operations and business processes; 80 percent believe software improves worker pro-ductivity; and 75 percent believe software makes their products and services better (www.forrester. com/Research/Document/Excerpt/ 0,7211,43029,00.html). v

DATABASE ADMINISTRATOR. Analyzed/base & sys. reqs. & analyze transactions& data volumes. Design & dvlp. d/bases& apps. Using SQLServer, VB &VisualStudio. Monitor & maintain d/base.Req: AA & 4 yr/exp. 40 hr/wk.Job/Interview Site: L.A., CA. Send resumeto: Opes, Inc. @ 1543 W. Olympic Blvd#202, L.A., CA 90015.

Classified Advertising

SUBMISSION DETAILS: Rates are$110.00 per column inch ($125 mini-mum). Eight lines per column inchand average five typeset words perline. Send copy at least one monthprior to publication date to: MarianAnderson, Classified Advertising, ITProfessional, 10662 Los VaquerosCircle, Los Alamitos, CA 90720-1314;(714) 821-8380; fax (714) 821-4010.Email: manderson@comput er.org.