IT systems involve people, hardware, software, and networks. If we want to apply green computing, the solution must cover each one of these. Furthermore, it must also address end-user satisfaction, regulatory compliance, proper management, and a decent return on investment. Here are some of the techniques that companies can follow to adopt green computing:
Increasing Product Lifespan:
Applying green computing needs you to ensure the products have longer lifespans to limit e-waste and avoid the need to manufacture more. If we buy systems with more capacity than we need at the time of procurement or select products with modularity and upgradability. As a result, small modules or parts can be manufactured and replaced to upgrade the system instead of manufacturing the system as a whole.
Server Design:
Companies must focus on the best practices for designing eco-friendly data centres in different areas like IT systems, electrical systems, cooling systems, environmental conditions, air management, recycling waste heat, and electrical generation on the site. At the same time, the design must optimize the usage of space, efficiency, and performance of data centres.
Virtualization:
This refers to the process of abstracting or dividing computer resources such as processors, storage, memory, etc., into virtual computers or virtual machines (VMs). It also reduces the need to manufacture more hardware. Virtualization helps distribute work effectively so that servers do not consume energy when not in use.
Cloud computing:
This helps companies adopt green computing by addressing issues like resource consumption and energy usage. The approaches like virtualization, energy-efficient data centres, multi-tenancy, etc., enable cloud computing to reduce energy usage and carbon emissions. Using cloud computing eliminates the need to have energy-consuming data centres.
Power Management:
This is a big step towards green computing each company, no matter how big or small, can implement and protect the environment. machines can be set to go to sleep which allows systems to turn off their components like hard drives and monitors automatically after certain periods of being inactive. Solid-state drives (SSDs) store data in DRAM or flash memory. As there are no moving parts in them, they consume even less power.
Remote Working:
This is rising high, especially after the covid-19 breakout. Implementing teleconferencing and working from anywhere come with many benefits like reduced emissions from travel, the convenience of workers, and higher profit margins due to lower office maintenance.
Green computing is an initiative that all must welcome as an individual. Whether you are working for a company, owning a company, or working solo you can adopt some practices to support this initiative. Here are some of the tips you can follow to implement and promote green computing:
- Use products with the Energy Star label because they consume less power and are manufactured with green computing concepts.
- When you don’t use your computer, please turn it off to save power.
- If you want to catch a break but not turn off the computer, you can put it on sleep mode to save power.
- Go for energy-efficient displays like OLEDs that consume low energy, save battery life, and go easy on your eyes.
- Use dark themes or dark mode as it requires less energy.
- Try not to use screensavers as they consume power when the system is idle.
- Reduce monitor brightness as high brightness needs more power.
- Try using LED instead of CRT monitors to save energy and reduce carbon emissions.
- Dispose of e-waste safely as computing devices have hazardous materials to pollute the environment. Such materials need formal disposal in laboratories.
- Use low-VOC inks, energy-efficient printers, recycled paper, and you can also go paperless wherever you can.
- Buy energy-efficient components such as SSDs instead of HDDs.
- Use emails as your mainstream communication rather than traditional post or printing.
- Implement Voice over Internet Protocol or VoIP to reduce metallic wastes and wiring infrastructure.
- Allow your employees to work from home wherever possible, as commuting to work leads to more fuel usage.
- Try partnering with companies that also adopt green computing, not the other way around. It will help change the mindset and promote green computing.
- Create strategic power management across your organisation, to ensure proper device management, data collection, and energy consumption.
- Spread awareness on green computing within and outside your organization.
Global warming and climate change are some of the major concerns today. The level of pollution is rising across the land, water, and air. To this, green computing is an effective approach that can help reduce these environmental concerns. It can address issues like greenhouse gas emissions, increasing amount of waste, burning of fossil fuels, natural resource exhaustion.
Therefore, companies and individuals must be responsible for reducing power consumption as much as possible while implementing eco-friendly methods to run their operations and dispose of waste.