Implementation resources for enterprises
There are lots of ways to activate sleep settings across entire networks of computers.
These solutions utilize free software tools, and/or tools that you may already have at your disposal. There are essentially two steps involved:
- Activate sleep settings. You can accomplish this one of several different ways:
- Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system provides a way to centrally manage monitor and computer power management features. See the Microsoft Environment Website and TechNet's Conserving Energy with Group Policy and Sleep or Hibernate? for more information.
- EZ GPO allows a network administrator to centrally control computer power management and monitor power management settings using Group Policy Objects.
- If you replicate hard drives from a template image when you upgrade operating systems and/or roll out new hardware, enabling sleep settings in the template image will ensure that all computers receive these settings.
- Powerconfig.exe can be used in a logon script to configure power management settings in Windows XP and Vista. This method requires enhancing registry rights, which can be configured through Group Policy.
- Windows Task Scheduler can be used to put PCs into standby or hibernate mode.
- EZ Wizard is a simple software tool that automatically activates sleep settings on individual PCs. Because it can be launched from a website, EZ Wizard is an ideal solution for diverse computing environments like colleges and universities.
- Microsoft promotes a free power management tool, Edison, developed by Verdiem. It allows individual users to power manage their PCs and estimate their savings.
- Ensure that sleep settings do not interfere with the distribution of administrative software updates (such as Windows security patches and antivirus definitions). This may be accomplished in several ways:
- Configure client computers to apply software patches and updates as soon as computers become available on the network.
- Windows Task Scheduler can wake up sleeping computers for updates. Scripts distributed via Active Directory allow one to centrally manage these “scheduled tasks.”
- With Wake-on-LAN activated, a network administrator can wake up sleeping computers at any time in order to perform on-demand software patches or updates.
A number of commercial software packages offer more feature-rich solutions and may deliver more energy savings, but they involve fees.
EPA contractors can answer technical questions about deploying these settings — and about the various options for keeping sleeping PCs up to date with security and other software patches. A quick conference call can save you time researching various solutions, and arm you with lessons learned from dozens of large and small IT departments. To schedule a technical assistance call, send an email to powermanagement@cadmusgroup.com.
Quick Links:
Open Source Software:
Additional resources for enterprises: