A green data center can operate with maximum energy efficiency and minimal environmental impact. This includes mechanical, lighting, electrical and IT devices (servers, storage, networks, etc.). Within companies, the focus on green data centers is driven primarily by a desire to reduce the huge electricity costs associated with running a data center. That means greening is one way to significantly reduce the operating costs for the IT infrastructure.

The Federal Government is also stimulating interest in green data centers. In 2006, Congress passed Public Law 109-431 and urged the EPA to "analyze the rapid growth and energy use of computerized data centers by the federal government and private companies."

In response, the EPA produced a comprehensive report analyzing current trends in energy consumption and costs in US data centers and servers and presenting existing and emerging opportunities to improve energy efficiency. He also made recommendations to take advantage of these energy efficiency opportunities across the country using incentive-based information and programs.

According to the EPA report, the two largest power consumers in the data center are:

• Support infrastructure - 50% of the total
• General servers - 34% of the total

Since then, significant progress has been made in improving server efficiency. Blade servers and high-density storage now offer much higher computing capacity per watt of power. Server virtualization enables companies to reduce the total number of servers they support. With the introduction of EnergyStar servers, numerous options were provided for both the public and private sectors to reduce the 34% of the electricity used for servers. General.

The biggest opportunity for additional savings is of course in the data center's support infrastructure. According to the EPA, most data centers use 100% to 300% more power for support systems than for core IT operations. A combination of proven procedures and migration to improve the fast reimbursement option (e.g. ultrasonic humidification and airflow control) can reduce this ventilation to around 30% of the IT load.

What concerns do some stakeholders have about data centers?

While the data center needs to provide the necessary resources to end users and business applications, the provision and operation of a data center is (sometimes uncomfortably) split between IT, facilities and finance, each with its own perspective and responsibility.

IT:

 It is the responsibility of the corporate IT group to make decisions about the systems and applications needed to support business operations. IT directly manages aspects of the data center that relate directly to IT systems, relying on facilities to ensure power, cooling, access, and physical space for the data center.

Facilities:

The installation group is generally responsible for the physical space - for delivery, operation and maintenance, as well as for other company buildings. The setup group generally has a good idea of ​​the overall efficiency of the data center and has understanding and access to information about IT utilization and total power consumption.

Finance:

The financial group will be responsible for the short-term adjustment to long-term investments (CAPEX) to acquire or update physical assets and operating costs (OPEX) to manage them with the general financial transactions of the companies (balance sheet and cash flow). Cashbox).

Perhaps the greatest challenge for these three groups is that a data center is naturally only operated rarely or even close to its optimally defined domain. With a typical lifecycle of 10 years (or more), it is important that the design of the data center support remains flexible enough to withstand the increase in power densities and varying levels of utilization over an insignificant period of time. This built-in flexibility should apply to power, cooling, space, and network connectivity. When an installation approaches its limits in terms of performance, cooling, and space, the company must optimize, expand, or install new ones.