32019R0424

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

It aims to limit the environmental impact of servers and data storage products with a set of rules on energy efficiency.

KEY POINTS

• The regulation establishes ecodesign¹ requirements for placing servers and online data storage products on the market and putting them into service.
• The regulation does not apply to:
  • servers² intended for embedded applications³;
  • servers classified as small-scale servers under Regulation (EU) No 617/2013;
  • servers with more than four processor sockets⁴;
  • server appliances⁵;
  • large servers⁶;
  • fully fault-tolerant servers⁷;
  • network servers⁸;
  • small data storage products⁹;
  • large data storage products.
• The regulation amends Regulation (EU) No 617/2013 to exclude computer servers from its scope.
• The ecodesign requirements are set out in Annex II.
• The regulation specifies which conformity assessment procedures apply.
• National authorities must apply the verification procedures laid down in Annex IV when carrying out market surveillance checks.
• Annex V sets out indicative benchmarks for the best-performing servers and data storage products available on the market.
• The European Commission must review this regulation in the light of technological progress and present its results, including, if appropriate, a draft revision proposal, by March 2022.

FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?

It has applied since 7 April 2019. The regulation’s amendments to Regulation (EU) No 617/2013 have applied since 1 March 2020.

BACKGROUND

Directive 2009/125/EC establishes a framework to set ecodesign requirements for energy-related products. The Commission must set these requirements for products which are widely sold and traded in the EU and have a significant environmental impact.

For more information see:

• Servers and data storage products — Ecodesign requirements (European Commission)
• The new ecodesign measures explained (European Commission)
• About the energy label and ecodesign — Energy savings (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

1. Ecodesign. Policy to improve, through better design, products’ environmental performance throughout their life cycle, especially their energy efficiency.
2. Server. A computing product that provides services and manages networked resources for client devices, such as desktop computers, notebook computers, etc.
3. Embedded application. A software application that permanently resides in an industrial or consumer device, typically stored in a non-volatile memory such as read-only memory or flash memory.
4. Server with more than four processor sockets. A server containing more than four interfaces designed for the installation of a processor.
5. Server appliance. A server that is not intended to execute user-supplied software, delivers services through one or more networks, is typically managed through a web or command line interface and is bundled with a pre-installed operating system and application software that is used to perform a dedicated function or set of tightly coupled functions.
6. Large server. A resilient server which is shipped as a pre-integrated/pre-tested system housed in one or more full frame racks and that includes a high connectivity input/output subsystem with a minimum of 32 dedicated input/output slots.
7. Fully fault-tolerant server. A server that is designed with complete hardware redundancy (to simultaneously and repetitively run a single workload for continuous availability in mission-critical applications), in which every computing component is replicated between two nodes running identical and concurrent workloads.
8. Network server. A network product which contains the same components as a server in addition to more than 11 network ports with a total line rate throughput of 12 Gb/s or more, the capability to dynamically reconfigure ports and speed and support for a virtualised network environment through a software-defined network.
9. Data storage product. A fully-functional storage system that supplies data storage services to clients and devices attached directly or through a network.

MAIN DOCUMENTS

Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/424 of 15 March 2019 laying down ecodesign requirements for servers and data storage products pursuant to Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and amending Commission Regulation (EU) No 617/2013 (OJ L 74, 18.3.2019, pp. 46–66).

Successive amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/424 have been incorporated into the original text. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.

RELATED DOCUMENTS

Commission Regulation (EU) No 617/2013 of 26 June 2013 implementing Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to ecodesign requirements for computers and computer servers (OJ L 175, 27.6.2013, pp. 13–33).

See consolidated version.

Directive 2009/125/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-related products (OJ L 285, 31.10.2009, pp. 10–35).

See consolidated version.