Koomey believes the actual figure is at the low end. Because most data centers are built to withstand terrorist attacks and other calamities, California's rolling blackouts have not posed a serious threat to the traffic they process daily. It also has contracts with two diesel suppliers. The company also has contingency plans in place to enter into energy contracts or construct its own power plant, Adelson said. Planning started last year, before the energy crisis exploded, said chief executive officer Ellen Hancock.
Centers are limited in what they can do to conserve power.
Server processors are sensitive to the slightest changes in electricity. Exodus, like most firms, dims the lights when possible. Center operators note that by centralizing servers, they use less power than if their clients ran separate server farms, each with its own air conditioning and support. Though the Crusoe chips are not as fast as Intel Corp.'s high-end chips, servers could be stacked more tightly, giving more processing punch per square foot.