EDITOR Eli Blevis eblevis@indiana.edu

Small Change, Big Result
Kristin Hanks

Indiana University—Bloomington | khanks@indiana.edu

Larry Riss

Indiana University—Bloomington | lriss@indiana.edu

Steve Schunk

Indiana University—Bloomington | schunk@indiana.edu

Eli Blevis

Indiana University—Bloomington | eblevis@indiana.edu

You might not consider $22 a lot of money, but when you are talking about $22 in energy savings per installed computer, per year, in a large organization, it can be meaningful in terms of both cost savings and carbon-footprint reduction. Recognizing that many people are now aware of the need for more sustainable computing practices, we conducted an experiment to actually find a way to introduce such practices at Indiana University. The problem was conceptualized not only in terms of computer hardware and software, but also in terms of interactivity and policy. Our hope is that other institutions with large installed bases of desktop computers can replicate the lessons we learned.

Can we use native operating system power- • management strategies and the creativity of our IT professionals on campus to come up with a free way to reduce the power consumption of desktop computers on campus? How much power could we save?

How can we ensure that the ordinary folks are • engaged in the process? Would systems staff and ordinary folks alike be willing to change their habits in the name of sustainability?

Two experiments—one human in nature and one technical—were conducted to answer these questions.

Photograph by Adam Arroyo

Two Experiments, One End Goal Universities and other large institutions try to provide consistent, standardized, and high-quality technology services to students, staff, administrators, and faculty. Many of these individuals engage in unsustainable behaviors such as leaving computers on at all times. They offer a variety of reasons: Ordinary folks want to avoid the inconvenience of powering up a computer, while systems staff dislike the need to install patches and upgrades at a moment’s notice. For many organizations, simply shutting down computing facilities is not feasible. Taking all of this into account, representatives from the School of Education (SOE) and the University Information Technology Services at Indiana University-Bloomington engaged in an experiment to answer the following questions:

BIOS Changes and Power Measurement

The technical aspects of the project were fairly straightforward and consisted of the following:

We arranged to visit 400-plus machines in the SOE to make minor changes to the BIOS. These changes prompted the machines to be put into a deep-sleep mode after two hours and fifteen minutes of inactivity. Machines could be easily re-awakened by moving the mouse or typing on the keyboard.

We created a way to wake up machines if someone needed to remotely access their computer. This was implemented by means of a Wake-on-LAN utility written by the SOE. A simple Web interface was created, using the user-name and password combo that faculty and staff at the SOE already use regularly.

We used Kill-a-Watt devices, which measure electricity consumption, as well as the services

[ 1] Environmental Protection Agency Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator. Retrieved July 21, 2009, from: http://www.epa.gov/ cleanrgy/energy-resources/calculator. html.

November + December 2009