Green IT

Green computing or green IT, refers to environmentally sustainable computing or IT. In the article Harnessing Green IT: Principles and Practices, San Murugesan defines the field of green computing as "the study and practice of designing, manufacturing, using, and disposing of computers, servers, and associated subsystems—such as monitors, printers, storage devices, and networking and communications systems—efficiently and effectively with minimal or no impact on the environment."[1] The goals of green computing are similar to green chemistry; reduce the use of hazardous materials, maximize energy efficiency during the product's lifetime, and promote the recyclability or biodegradability of defunct products and factory waste. Research continues into key areas such as making the use of computers as energy-efficient as possible, and designing algorithms and systems for efficiency-related computer technologies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_computing

Task – Green IT

Lander Toyota has asked the help desk to investigate and price how it can “Green” it’s IT and save money on energy, it is suggesting a budget of $250 -$500 per pc for a total of 50 PC’s. Assume the work is done by the Helpdesk staff during normal business hours, no additional labour cost.

Power consumption baseline

Using an online calculator to determine the existing power consumption baseline

See: http://www.csgnetwork.com/energycostcalc.html.

Hardware

Look and price the following:

1. Replacing motherboard and processor with energy efficient components

2. Replacing hard drive with Solid State Drive and re- install operating system

3. Replacing power supply and screen with energy efficient components:

Hardware List

Component / Cost / URL / Notes
Motherboard
Gigabyte MB AM2 GA-MA770-US3 / $110.00 / http://www.opentech.com.au/shop/Gigabyte-MB-AM2-GA-MA770-US3.html / ·  Ultra Durable 3 Technology with copper cooled quality for lower working temperature
·  Revolution energy saving design with Easy Energy Saver technology
· Dual Channel DDR2 1200+ for remarkable system performance
Processor

AMD AD235EHDGQBOX ATHLON II X2 Dual Core 235 Energy Efficient CPU 2.70 GHz (45W) 2 x 1MB L2 cache

/ $78.00 / http://www.getprice.com.au/AMD-AD235EHDGQBOX-ATHLON-II-X2-Dual-Core-235-Energy-Efficient-CPU-2-70-GHz-45W-2-x-1MB-L2-cach-Gpnc_36--44498312.htm
Solid state drive
A-Ram SSD Alpha 32GB 2.5 MLC SSD, max up to 150/70MB/s, SATA II 3.0 Gb/s + USB2.0, ECC support, 2-year warranty / $80.53 / http://www.tech4u.com.au/a-ram-ssd-alpha-32gb-25-mlc-p171064.html / ·  power consumption active 1.5W
·  stutter-free, silent
·  fully compatible with notebooks and PCs
Power supply
Professional 430 Watt ATX12V 2.3 80 Plus Computer Power Supply Active PFC / $90.99 / http://intrl.startech.com/product/ATX2PW430PRO-Professional-430-Watt-ATX12V-23-80-Plus-Computer-Power-Supply-Active-PFC / This 430 Watt Power Supply is 80 Plus® certified, providing stable power while balancing maximum energy efficiency. Providing 80.5% or greater efficiency at 20%, 50% and 100% loads and compliant with ATX12V 2.3 standards, this EPS12V 2.91 power supply offers four 12V power rails, two 6-pin PCI Express connectors and an 8-pin EPS connector.
Screen
Acer G195HQLBD / $129.00 / http://www.scorptec.com.au/computer/38192-g195hqlbd / The G195HQLbd's mercury-free LED backlight guarantees safer usage, environmental care, and ultra-low power consumption of less than 0.5 W in standby mode for up to 68% savings.
TOTAL / $ 488.52

Attachment A: Sketch

Try one of the following software programs to create a sketch for the Green PC:

• Microsoft Visio - www.microsoft.com

• DiaCze

• PowerDraw

• Diagram Designer 1.16

• ConceptDraw NetDiagrammer - www.conceptdraw.com

• EDraw Network Diagrammer - www.edrawsoft.com

• SmartDraw - www.smartdraw.com

Software

Sample dashboard for power management software for PC

There are many network based power management software solutions available: Surveyor, Edison, EZ GPO, Night Watchman, BigFix, Faronics Power Save and Apple Remote Desktop. None of these software packages costs more than $20 per license with the exception of Apple Remote Desktop (which is $499 for unlimited licenses), and two are even free (Edison and EZ GPO).

Review power saving software

Software / Cost / Advantages / Notes

Faronics Power Save for Windows with 1 Year Maintenance Package

/ $14.40 / Power Save delivers PC power management that does not interfere with user or IT requirements. Power Save keeps computers running when users need them and accurately determines when computers are inactive so they can be powered down. / Works with both Windows and Mac computers
With an average savings of $50 per computer per year for every computer deployed, Power Save is the ultimate PC power management software solution for desktop and laptop computers.
http://www.virtualizationworks.com/Faronics-Power-Save.asp
Apple Remote Desktop 3 / $499 unlimited / Apple Remote Desktop 3 offers a wide range of high performance features, including lightning-fast Spotlight searches across multiple systems; more than 40 Automator actions for easy automation of repetitive tasks; a Dashboard widget that provides quick and convenient observation of remote systems; and AutoInstall for automatically updating software on mobile systems once they return to the network. / Apple Remote Desktop is the best way to manage the Mac computers on your network.
http://www.apple.com/remotedesktop/
Prof Shutdown / $50 / It allows network administrators to shutdown, reboot, hibernate or wake up (Wake-on-LAN) multiple machines simultaneously. / Organisations save on electricity bills and administration time. The program performs efficiently in enterprise-scale network with hundreds of computers and can be used just as well in a smaller network of just a few PC.
http://www.profshutdown.com/order.aspx
Spiceworks / Free / · Schedule network devices to shut-down or suspend
· Automatically track & chart power & cost savings
· Boot machines remotely via Intel vPro or Wake On Lan
· Integrate with other power management software / http://www.spiceworks.com/free-pc-power-management-tool/
Granola – Energy Saving Software / Free / · Energy savings without compromising performance and availability
· Supports x86 platforms running Linux and Microsoft Windows on physical/virtual servers
· Immediate energy saving for most deployments <5 years old
· User-level max, min, and auto energy and performance policy management
· User-level reporting of energy savings without additional hardware required
· Energy savings and software complimentary to consolidation techniques such as virtualization
· Installation takes less than 5 minutes on average
· Little to no maintenance / http://www.techmixer.com/granola-energy-saving-software-windows/

Recommend a power saving software and give reasons supporting your choice.

I would recommend Granola Energy Saving Software. It is free, compatible with both windows and Linux systems. It does not compromise performance, and little to no maintenance.

What overall power saving could Lander Toyota expect on their power bill?

Contribution from energy efficient hardware = 15% (approx)

Contribution from power saving software = 15% (approx)

Overall = 30% (approx)