The Remote Power Switch And Its Cost-Saving Implications

In all sectors of industry, maximizing profits and reducing costs is an underlying driver of many business decisions. Investment into research and improving the company's product or service can in turn lead to an increase of those profits, and ensuring the marketing and sales teams have an adequate budget to perform is often seen by senior management as the priority. It is often in areas such as IT, which is of course absolutely essential but not directly involved in most companies' revenue generation efforts, where budget cuts seem to strike first. In view of this, the best IT managers have become experts in resource management is cutting costs with the remote power switch and console management systems is one of the ways spending can be better controlled.



Implementing a remote management system should be a standard undertaking within any modern IT organization. The ability to administer systems without being on-site, or without attending a specific server, can cut costs dramatically. Remote management systems can largely be broken down into software, hardware and UPS (whilst UPS also fits into the hardware category, of course, its absolute necessity within a disaster recovery strategy means it should be given sufficient consideration).

In terms of the hardware required, utilizing console management systems is advisable. Using SSH to remotely administer machines is convenient and secure, but if the machine stops responding, an engineer will still have to be dispatched, which will increase costs and waste time. Ensuring a console management system and remote power switch is connected to every server means that the machine can be power cycled if it stops responding, and can be brought back online with the minimum of intervention.

Commercially available software can be expensive. However, by opting for open source software in which is something too many companies discount due to the availability (or lack thereof) of adequate support contracts and the costs can be dramatically lowered. In fact, the robust and reliable nature of some open source software can think Open-SSH and open source VPN implementations which means that it is often more than acceptable to use (there is a reason that significant numbers of the world's web servers now run Linux).

Modern remote control systems can also include a multitude of features to ensure the smooth running of a server room. Smart phone applications that allow for the monitoring and maintenance of servers, web-based management dashboards built into the remote power switch, and automated power controls are all available within commercial equipment. Whilst the initial costs to set up this type of operation can by high and which is dependent on the company's size and requirements are the cost and time savings in the management of servers and other IT systems can be significant.