Top 5 Data Center Stories, Week of April 25

For your weekend reading, here’s a recap of five noteworthy stories that appeared on Data Center Knowledge this past week.

Server Farms Get Super-Sized for Cloud Growth - The server farms powering the Internet are getting super-sized, as demand for cloud services prompts technology companies to build larger and larger data center campuses. The trend is exemplified by three new projects that reflect the breadth of the new data center geography.

How Amazon Stays On Top in the Cloud Wars - Amazon Web Services was the first major player in cloud computing, and has maintained its clear leadership position as rivals like Microsoft and Google have poured billions of dollars into competing platforms. How has Amazon, a company with its roots in online retailing, managed to dominate one of the major tech battlegrounds of our era?

A Look Inside Apple's iDataCenter in North Carolina - Apple has provided the first look inside its data centers in a series of media interviews designed to promote its use of green energy. In interviews with Wired and The Today Show, Apple Vice President of Environmental Initiative Lisa Jackson has shown off the massive solar power arrays that power the company’s data centers in Reno, Nevada and Maiden, North Carolina.

IBM Unveils New POWER8 Systems, Built for Big Data - IBM unveiled new Power Systems servers Wednesday, leveraging POWER8 technology for a new era of big data and open innovation. Through the OpenPOWER Foundation, IBM also released detailed technical specifications for its POWER8 processor, inviting collaborators and competitors alike to innovate on the processor and server platform.

Google: We've Bought 1 Gigawatt of Renewable Energy - Google celebrated Earth Day by announcing a 407 megawatt deal with Iowa utility MidAmerican Energy to supply wind energy to support Google’s data center campus in Council Bluffs. The agreement will power both of Google’s current facilities and also allow for future expansion. This is the company’s seventh and largest renewable energy commitment to date, bringing total renewable energy contracted to more than one gigawatt (1,000 megawatts).

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