Power measures insufficient to achieve comprehensive Green IT

Power efficiency will drive the evolution of green data centres, but will be insufficient on its own to create environmentally-friendly models, it has been claimed.

According to IT industry analyst Gartner, data centres constructed in the last decade are essentially obsolete in terms of green IT.

Rakesh Kumar, vice president at the company, said: "Tomorrow's data centre is moving from being static to becoming a living organism, where modelling and measuring tools will become one of the major elements of its management."

He added that green solutions require an integrated view of the facility, which takes into account energy efficiency, waste management, asset management, capacity management, technology architecture, support services, energy sources and operations.

Earlier this month, research carried out by IT services provider Zycko indicated UK firms plan to reduce the carbon emissions of their IT departments within the next 18 months, although many managers do not know how much power their data centres use.