School of Information Systems

GREEN IT: Cloud Computing Recomendation

11 Oct 2014
  • Cloud computing is no longer the preserve of larger enterprises. Now small and medium-sized businesses can subscribe to IT services that are hosted by a third party, typically paying a monthly subscription based on the number of PCs that access this software.
  • There are many reasons for moving to cloud computing, but a company choosing to do so for pure energy-efficiency reasons need to look closely at whole IT set up as well as those of third-party offerings. Not all clouds are created equal. An on-site server room that is run with energy-efficiency best practices may be a greener alternative to a ‘brown cloud’.
  • Cloud computing comes with the great advantage of providing great energy savings, a fact which translates into being environmentally friendly. Cloud computing can help with energy reductions through the employing of large scale virtualization. Also, software architecture can be optimized so that it provides the same functionality with less energy.
  • Cloud computing only assesses the direct electricity used by servers and associated infrastructure equipment. But it is not attempt to estimate the effect of structural changes in the economy enabled by increased use of information technology, which in many cases can be substantial.
  • Cloud computing does not always prove to be an ecological choice. Some of choice: (1) using paper-less meeting solutions, (2) considering the green options when making a purchase decision, (3) conducting public awareness programmes on the reuse and recycling of waste computers, (4) encouraging the use of planning and resource management systems to optimise waste collection and disposal, etc.

Recommendation:

  • Emerging technologies have the potential to improve the efficient design and operation of datacenters, but the consensus among experts is that most of the tools required to effect dramatic improvements in datacenter sustainability already exist.
  • The future of the datacenter is not driven by technology, it’s driven by regulations. Energy efficiency is at the heart of much legislation, and reducing the cost of power to the datacenter goes hand-in-hand with going green, but there are concerns this will affect legacy datacenters.

References

Books/Magazine

  • 2011. Carbon Disclosure Project Study 2011. Verdantix.
  • Hurwitz, Judith et al. 2012. Comparing Traditional Data Center and Cloud Data Center Operating Costs. John Wiley & Sons.
  • Masanet, Eric el al. 2013. The Energy Efficiency Potential of Cloud-Based Software: A U.S. Case Study. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
  • October 2012. Is Cloud Computing Always Greener?. Natural Resources Defense Council  (NRDC).

Articles on internet

  • Angeles, Sara. 2013. “Cloud vs. Data Center: What’s the difference?”.

http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4982-cloud-vs-data-center.html

  • Angeles, Sara. 2013. “Cloud Computing: A Small Business Guide”.

http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4427-cloud-computing-small-business.html

  • Blaisdell, Rick. “Environmental Benefits of Cloud Computing”.
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