SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 helps you achieve a greener desktop without hurting productivity. It includes new smart power management capabilities such as CPU throttling, switching off the hard drive when not needed, and dimming the display when idle. It also includes improvements that put the desktop into hibernation and sleep modes. Finally, a new Power History interface makes your green IT experience very visual. You can see how your usage behavior is affecting battery life and how the operating system is adapting to this usage.

Secondly, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop has significantly lower system requirements than Windows, making this an inherently green operating system. For instance, you can run SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop on as little as 512 MB of RAM and 3 GB of hard disk space. As a result, you can now turn older systems into Linux desktops or Linux thin clients instead of throwing them away. This can deliver impressive hardware savings as well as green IT benefits.

On the other hand, Windows 7 requires 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB to run effectively ¹. For many businesses, it is important to leverage older business and productivity programs requiring Windows XP. To do this, the PC must run Windows XP Mode which requires an additional 1 GB RAM and 15 GB hard disk space along with a processor capable of hardware virtualization with Intel VT or AMD-V turned on. Thus, you will likely have to buy new hardware at considerable expense.

Thirdly, SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 features Nomad. Nomad is a suite of remote desktop protocol tools that deliver near-native graphics performance when you access SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop remotely. This allows you to dramatically cut costs by configuring SUSE Linux Enterprise for server-based computing environments. You can now run SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop virtually in the data center or in the cloud, without compromising the high-quality and performance you would expect from a local desktop experience.

• Windows 7 system requirements