PowerMAN is a computer
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...
program for central
system monitor
A system monitor is a Computer hardware, hardware or software component used to monitor system resources and performance in a computer system.
Among the management issues regarding use of system monitoring tools are resource usage and privacy.
...
ing and
PC power management
PC power management refers to software-based mechanisms for controlling the power use of Personal computer hardware. This is typically achieved through software that puts the hardware into the lowest power demand state available, making it an as ...
, of computers running
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...
s. The software extends the basic features present in most operating systems to permit implementing and enforcing organization-wide power management policies.
The product is used by private and public sector organisations in Europe, UK, and US. It includes a web-based, multi-location, reporting feature that can collate data from deployments in multiple countries.
The product is more common in the academic market, where it has been used by leading institutions to manage staff and student computers.
The software is produced by Data Synergy, based in
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
, UK.
The firm is a member of the
Climate Savers Computing Initiative
The Climate Savers Computing Initiative was a nonprofit group of consumers, businesses and conservation organizations dedicated to promoting smart technologies that improve power efficiency and reduce energy consumption of computers. Formed in 2007 ...
.
Features
PowerMAN allows different power management profiles to be configured for different users, computers, and times, using native Windows
Active Directory
Active Directory (AD) is a directory service developed by Microsoft for Windows domain networks. It is included in most Windows Server operating systems as a set of processes and services. Initially, Active Directory was used only for centralize ...
tools.
This simpler approach contrasts with many competing solutions that require new consoles or administration tools to be learnt. The reporting features collect information about each computer and can generate a variety of historic and live reports. The manufacturers claim that the combination of flexible management and reporting enhance the effectiveness of the solution.
Research
PowerMAN has a background in the academic sector and has been used in several research projects:
*
Liverpool University
, mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning
, established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...
use PowerMAN to manage PC power use with the
Condor High-Throughput Computing System
HTCondor is an open-source high-throughput computing software framework for coarse-grained distributed parallelization of computationally intensive tasks.
It can be used to manage workload on a dedicated cluster of computers, or to farm out wor ...
. The
Jisc
Jisc is a United Kingdom not-for-profit company that provides network and IT services and digital resources in support of further and higher education institutions and research as well as not-for-profits and the public sector.
History
T ...
funded SusteIT conference at the
University of Sheffield
, mottoeng = To discover the causes of things
, established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions:
– Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield
, type = Pu ...
included a presentation on PowerMAN by Liverpool University
*
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...
estimated PowerMAN would save 600 tonnes/yr of CO
2 and contribute over 4% to the University’s planned annual saving for 2015. The financial saving was estimated to be £325 per day.
*
Sheffield NHS Teaching Hospitals reported that ''PC power management poses particular challenges in a hospital environment'' but using PowerMAN these problems could be overcome and save over £70,000 and 350 tonnes of CO
2 per year.
*
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...
reported a realized savings period of 23 days and projected annual savings of $49,000 for 500 computers.
*
University of Sussex
, mottoeng = Be Still and Know
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £14.4 million (2020)
, budget = £319.6 million (2019–20)
, chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar
, vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil
, ...
implemented a PowerMAN project on 3,500 PCs using Salix funding and reported an estimated 203 tonnes CO
2 saving with a project payback in around 6 months.
* The
University of Leicester
, mottoeng = So that they may have life
, established =
, type = public research university
, endowment = £20.0 million
, budget = £326 million
, chancellor = David Willetts
, vice_chancellor = Nishan Canagarajah
, head_labe ...
reported that around 379,500 kilowatt hours of savings were made in the first year. This was estimated to be approximately 5 million computer hours saved and estimated annual savings of 287 tonnes of CO
2.
* A
Salix
Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...
report contrasted similar sized (3,500) PowerMAN and Verdiem projects at the
University of Sussex
, mottoeng = Be Still and Know
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £14.4 million (2020)
, budget = £319.6 million (2019–20)
, chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar
, vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil
, ...
and the
University of the West of England
The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a public research university, located in and around Bristol, England.
The institution was know as the Bristol Polytechnic in 1970; it received university status in 1992 and ...
with payback periods of 0.5 and 2.5 years respectively.
* The
University of East Anglia
The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...
Sustainable ICT Service Provision project reported a decrease of up to 40% in PC energy costs. This equated to an average annual saving per PC of 269 kW·h and a reduction in running costs of £27 per year. The report concluded that when applied to all student IT areas this would reduce CO
2 emissions by 188,111 kg and running costs by £35,496.
* The
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
Low-carbon ICT Project conference 'Keeping IT Clean' studied a number of competitor PC power management products and included a university led case-study on PowerMAN
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powerman (Software)
System software