Green Options » data center

Digital Green Turns Gold

Jake Kulju — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:12:11 +0000

When the Internet extended its wiry tentacles to the small town that I grew up in, I had no idea what it was. I pictured it being a room full of wires and lights, like a super computer android version of a phone operator.

As I matured, I realized it wasn’t that at all, but a more mystic existence of floating pockets of digital information in constant flux, existing in digital clouds that were suspended just above the atmosphere.

Of course, neither of those images is or was correct. But as it turns out, I was closer to the target with my first guess. Massive server rooms take up space and energy all over the world, storing the information and websites we web junkies feed on for survival. Luckily, they are starting to go green.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc., a technology real estate company, has taken a bold step into the green world by renovating a 90-year-old printing facility in Chicago. They have turned the plant into the world’s first LEED gold-certified data center. Not only is this a paradigm shift for future data centers—it may change the way LEED building companies approach renovations.

Virtualization: A Boon for Green Computing

Kristin Dispenza — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 16:59:43 +0000

At the end of the 1970s, the world saw a computer revolution, and waves of new business development followed. By the early 1990s, there were signs of a green computing revolution, and now businesses are taking advantage of the industry’s need for environmentally-friendly products. Data centers, in particular, have become a target market, since the past few years have seen a sharp increase in their rate of energy consumption.

One of the more successful technologies to have been developed is virtualization. Broadly speaking, to virtualize is to make a single piece of hardware function as multiple pieces. Different user interfaces isolate portions of the hardware, and make each one operate as a separate entity. As applied to data centers, installing virtual infrastructure allows more operating systems and applications to run on fewer servers, which reduces overall energy use and cooling requirements. Running fewer servers also means that data centers could reduce their building size as well.

The Greening of Information Technology

jeffatdell — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:45:19 +0000

Infomration technology (IT) should have a minimal environmental impact. But many companies still sell computers, monitors and other IT equipment with lead, fire retardants and other harmful chemicals. There are, however, some companies that go way beyond simplly recycling cans and paper at the office. Let’s have a conversation about those companies like Dell and others that are making environmentalism a standard business practice.

Information Technology should be greener

jeffatdell — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:42:41 +0000