Efficient servers may get 'Energy Star'
Published: 02 Jan 2007 08:41 GMT
The US Environmental Protection Agency gives its Energy Star certification to energy-efficient refrigerators, DVD players, windows, air conditioners and light bulbs. Now it's considering adding servers to the list.
In a letter to computing-industry representatives on Thursday, the federal agency said it "is initiating its process to develop an Energy Star specification for enterprise computer servers". Energy Star certification is a voluntary programme identifying products that meet EPA-set efficiency requirements.
The EPA's discussions with computing-equipment makers and data centre operators has shown "compelling evidence of the need for this specification", according to the letter from Andrew Fanara, an Energy Star programme manager. But the certification isn't a foregone conclusion: "In the coming months, EPA will conduct an analysis to determine whether such a specification for servers is viable, given current market dynamics, the availability and performance of energy-efficient designs and the potential energy savings," Fanara said.
Fanara was one speaker at a conference earlier this year on energy problems afflicting the computing industry, particularly data centres packed with servers. Hot processors, power supplies, memory chips and other components raise utility bills, strain electricity distribution systems and overtax air-conditioning.
The energy problem has triggered new avenues of research in the industry. AMD and Intel are focusing on building chips with more processing cores rather than a higher clock frequency and correspondingly higher power consumption. IBM's next-generation Power6 processor has power management abilities that let it drop down to a 100-watt level. Sun has been touting the energy efficiency of its UltraSparc T1 "Niagara"-based servers for more than a year. And Dell launched an energy-efficient server line in December.
Fanara said the EPA's discussions with computing-equipment makers and data centre operators has shown "compelling evidence of the need for this specification".
Government involvement in computer efficiency is increasing. President George Bush signed a bill that urges Americans to buy energy-efficient servers, and the Department of Energy has begun trying to get involved in helping companies become more energy-efficient.
Did you find this article useful?
101 out of 112 people found this useful
- Share this article:
