In what IBM is calling the most significant transformations of its worldwide data centres in a generation, the company says it will consolidate 3,900 computer servers onto about 30 Z Series mainframes running Linux.
The result, IBM says, will be an 80 per cent reduction in the amount of energy required to drive the processing power compared to its current set up. The company says it expects to generate significant savings through the consolidation to mainframes – in lower power costs, and cheaper software and support costs.
As an exercise in ‘eating its own dog food’, IBM wants to demonstrate to potential customers that mainframes are at least part of the answer for companies seeking to reduce power consumption to meet emissions commitments.
The initiative is part of Project Big Green, a broad commitment that IBM announced in May to sharply reduce data centre energy consumption for the company and its clients.
Data centres are voracious users of electricity. IBM has more than eight million square feet of data centre space worldwide – the equivalent of 139 football fields.
IBM says that mainframe systems will be the key to the IT industry successfully reducing its power consumption requirements.
“The mainframe is the single most powerful instrument to drive better economics and energy conservation at the data centre today," said IBM System z mainframe general manager James Stallings.
“By moving globally onto the mainframe platform, IBM is creating a technology platform that saves energy while positioning our IT assets for flexibility and growth,” Mr Stallings said.
IBM plans to recycle the 3,900 servers through IBM Global Asset Recovery Services.
The IBM mainframe's ability to run the Linux operating system is key to the consolidation project, providing an open foundation for a wide variety of applications.
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