Reducing power consumption on a low load server running WinXP?
I'm using a quad-core Windows XP based Dell Machine in my office as a server for an application I'm developing and for occasional remote desktop connectivity.
The machine is usually under a very light load, running a MySQL server with multiple connections and multiple Java processes that make a connection to the database every few minutes.
When I log in or when a random user makes a request to the server, there is a need for more processing power.
Is there a way to make it use less power but still keeps running 24x7? For example, on my Mac Pro, I can (manually) turn off multiple processors, which I have noticed affect power consumption. What are my XP options?
I realize this is not a programming question, but I'm sure someone has a computer running a similar usage profile.
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A good first step is to use the Power tool in Control Panel (powercfg.cpl) to create a custom profile that will turn off the screen, disks, etc. after a reasonable waiting period. Don't do too short periods of time or restart the device to waste more power than was saved by turning it off; especially important for hard drives.
Disable any services (and possibly devices) that are not required in your configuration (e.g. Content Indexer, WebClient).
Also, make sure your BIOS settings allow you to make the CPU clock run as slow as possible. Some motherboard drivers take their settings from BIOS. Turn off any overclocking software and reset these settings to perform "auto" or "default".
Use devmgmt.msc to check the power settings for each device driver. Some drivers are dumb and do not allow power control of their devices, but most USB hosts / hubs.
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I know it is late for this post, but hopefully this helps someone in the future in the future ...
In response to turning off the kernel in XP to save power, there is a built-in solution from MS. Go to Start, Run, and then type msconfig and press Enter. After the System Configuration Utility window opens, open the BOOT.INI tab and click the Advanced Options button. You can effectively limit the number of active cores by checking the "/ NUMPROC =" checkbox and entering a number in the box to the right. The number you enter will be the new number of active cores on your processor (after a reboot, of course ...). Install it however you like and restart your computer. After opening the Reboot Task Manager and under the Performance tab, you will see fewer graphs in the CPU Usage History window (each window represents the active kernel). Before,how to make the initial change, you will see all the kernels your system is using. check your task manager (after you make changes to msconfig and restart your computer) to make sure the changes you made to msconfig take effect.
Again, I know this is an old post, but I thought that someone would eventually come to see this page and hopefully it will be of some kind to them.
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