Simply switching off idle IT equipment can be a surefire way to go green and save green. So why are IT managers so afraid of the dark? By Doug Washburn

Simply switching off idle IT equipment can be a surefire way to go green and save green. The EPA estimates that the typical 1,000-PC environment can save $40,000 annually by using existing power management features.

Considering the scale of most corporate IT operations, those savings can add up. Hewlett-Packard, for example, estimates that it saves $600,000 each year by activating the otherwise dormant energy-saving features on their 183,000 monitors worldwide.

While the financial and environmental benefits seem compelling, recent findings reveal that most IT managers are afraid of turning out the lights on idle servers and PCs. Reasons cited vary from old habits, to bad experiences, to service level agreements, to unclear ROI and budget control.

To move beyond this fear of the dark, IT managers should take baby steps by targeting the users that will be impacted, asking for their approval, and then tracking the environmental and cost benefits:

• For PCs, don’t start with the power users who demand “always on” PC needs with little patience for start-up time such as traders, call center reps and executives. Rather, focus on the users who are often away from their desk but leave their PCs on.
• For idle servers, target those in your test and development environments since the impact of any potential glitch would be less costly than in a production environment. However, get the buy-in of your applications-development team to understand or revise their availability requirements.

While this staged approach might not offer the instant gratification of immediate results, it should set you up for long-term success and adoption of power management solutions.

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Doug Washburn is a senior advisor at Forrester Research, where he advises clients on sustainable business and green IT practices and the role of technology in business. He also hosts SLM's Greener IT Update e-newsletter.