IBM Linux Initiative Greens Data Centers (9-Aug-07)

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Full article: IBM Linux Initiative Greens Data Centers (9-Aug-07)

As part of IBM’s Big Green Project, the corporation has launched its Big Green Linux initiative. This will involve the consolidation of 3,900 data centre servers onto around 30 Linux-based System Z mainframes, reducing energy consumption by 80%. IBM also plans to unleash Linux-based server blades for virtualizing and simplifying enterprise information management. IBM believes that software can save energy consumption in data centres by improving the integration between hardware and software.

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Section: 02. Industry News

By Madan Sheina

IBM this week launched its "Big Green Linux" initiative, its first open source contribution to saving the plant by reducing emissions from power-hunger data centers.

The initiative, unveiled at the LinuxWorld conference running in San Francisco this week, comprises of new Linux-based products and services designed to support energy-efficient data centers.

IBM is eating its own dogwood by announcing plans to consolidate 3,900 of it data center servers onto around Linux-based 30 System z mainframes. IBM claims the new system will consume 80% less energy, and also result in savings over the next five years through reduced software and system support costs.

IBM operates the world's largest and most sophisticated data center, which takes up 8 million square feet and serves over 350,000 users worldwide. Since 1997 IBM has consolidated its data centers from 155 to seven worldwide.

Additionally IBM also said it is planning to unleash now Linux-based Information Server blades for virtualizing and simplifying enterprise information management. The new Linux-based Blades are come as pre-tested and optimized hardware, software and services bundles.

IBM's Linux Technology center is also building new features into the Linux kernel to scale-up processing speeds and voltage while at the same time maintaining idle servers in a "tickles" powered-down state.

"We're helping our clients to further integrate Linux into the enterprise as a way to reduce costs and energy consumption by building cooler data centers," said an IBM spokesman at the LinuxWorld.

The Linux initiative is part of IBM's Big Green project, which IBM announced in May to reduce data center energy consumption for its customers.

It is being supported by the Linux Foundation and Novell, the developer of SUSE Linux Enterprise. Novell's flavor of Linux, for example, now provides policy-driven power management and system monitors for servers, along with better suspend functionality for laptops.

Our View

So how can open source software, or software for that matter, save energy consumption in data centers? That's an interesting question. IBM believes it can be answered by improving the integration between hardware and software, specifically the inclusion of power-saving governance and management features as embedded into the core operating system features. In IBM's Linux world that points to Linux-consolidation capabilities of IBM's System z and System p platforms. IBM now estimates that 30% of IBM's Linux-related server revenue now comes from non-x86 platforms.

• Source: [Computergram]