Network World released a study showing that servers running Red Hat Enterprise Linux uses 12% less power than those running Windows Server 2008. The tests were run using Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Edition, REd Hat Enterprise Linux 5.1, and SUSE Enterprise Linux 10 SP1. They were tested on 1U Server machines from Dell, IBM, and 2 from HP. Windows Server 2008 drew the least power when the maxium power saving settigs were turned on but RHEL was the most consistent. In the testing, the techniques for the Operating System to reduce the server’s energy draw, the CPU ‘throttle-back’ mechanism,  required firmware and driver updates making the test more difficult than normal. The main power draw comes from the CPU’s ability to throttle back the CPU to let the server rest when it is not in use. Reducing the hard disk spinning usage and putting it into a quieter state is another reduction in power use. From looking at the results and benchmarks of the study, it still seems pretty difficult to get servers to be green as it would take quite some tuning, driver and BIOS updates. Most servers play a critical part in operation and being able to perform efficiently while also being energy efficient is quite a challenge. You can read about the full study here.

via Earth2tech and Network World