Data Backup Digest

NovaStor, one of the world's leaders in data protection for both physical and virtual operating environments, works with everyone from small business to large-scale enterprises in order to handle data backup, restoration and overall protection. Easily considered one of the most influential companies in the industry, NovaStor has recently started championing the benefits of green IT technology. As a recent whitepaper indicates, NovaStor has already developed a strategy for increased efficiency through the use of environmentally friendly IT solutions.

An Evolving Trend

During its infancy, the concept of green IT revolved around the replacement and implementation of energy efficient hardware. This was a concept that was introduced to many through Energy Star compliance campaigns with computer monitors and other hardware, and the initiative continues to perform successfully to this day.

Today, however, the focus of green IT has shifted focus. Instead, green IT in the 21st century relates directly to CO2 emissions, power consumption and the reduction of carbon footprints associated with all aspects of the IT industry; including the manufacture, distribution and use of computer hardware, IT disposal concerns and operating strategies that are far more
energy efficient.

The New Concept

By now, everyone should be well aware of the potential risks associated with CO2 emissions. What some may not be readily familiar with, however, is the carbon footprint created during the design, manufacture, disposal and ongoing usage of everyday technology.

In fact, a recent New York Times study led by Jonathan G. Koomey, Ph.D., found that data centers around the world accounted for an upswing in power consumption of approximately 56% between 2005 and 2010, totaling 1.3% of the world's entire electricity usage. The United States alone was responsible for a 36% growth during this time, a figure that accounts for 2% of the total power consumption amongst the fifty states.

NovaStor's whitepaper also noted several tips for large data centers that are looking to optimize their power consumption and reduce their own carbon footprint. According to the whitepaper, many CPUs in use today, particularly within the area of data storage and protection, are using less than 5% of their capacity the majority of the time. Using virtualization, for example, a data center can consolidate multiple physical servers into one virtual environment. Less hardware means less power consumption, a smaller carbon footprint and, ultimately, lower overhead costs.

Green Backup Solutions

Another method of implementing green IT solutions within a large-scale data center is to use an energy efficient backup process. Using a multi-tiered approach to the backup process lets IT administrators offload outdated backups, for example, onto a storage medium such as magnetic tape. While this still uses power, magnetic tape storage doesn't require the amount of cooling needed for other large-scale storage operations.

Moreover, because magnetic tape storage only uses power when the tape itself is being read or written, it's easier to utilize magnetic tape storage within an offline tier of your backup strategy. Once data reaches a certain age, simply archive it to magnetic tape storage and separate it from your network.