Processor thermal management

• US 20070074071A1
• Filed: 09/27/2005
• Published: 03/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Rothman, Michael, Zimmer, Vincent
• Application Number:
  US11/236,404
• Publication Number:
  US 20070074071A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/10
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/206 comprising thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/00 Error detection; Error correction; Monitoring error detection, correction or monitoring in information storage based on relative movement between record carrier and transducer G11B20/18; monitoring, i.e. supervising the progress of recording or reproducing G11B27/36; in static stores G11C29/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5088 involving task migration

Abstract

Apparatus and systems, as well as methods and articles, may operate to sense a thermal trip condition indicated by a first processor executing a process, and to transfer the process from the first processor to a second processor in response to sensing the thermal trip condition.

Claims

1. An apparatus, including:

a first processor to indicate a thermal trip condition associated with the first processor; and

a second processor to receive a process from the first processor and to execute the process after the thermal trip condition is indicated.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further including:

an integrated circuit package to house the first processor and the second processor.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, further including:

a computer motherboard attached to the first processor and the second processor.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first processor includes:

a register having a status bit to indicate the thermal trip condition.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the thermal trip condition is indicated by a status of one of a status flag or a log flag.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the thermal trip condition is indicated by a throttling condition associated with the first processor.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the thermal trip condition is indicated in response to one of a relative core temperature or an absolute core temperature.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first processor is substantially thermally isolated from the second processor.

9. A system, including:

a first processor to indicate a thermal trip condition associated with the first processor;

a second processor to receive a process from the first processor and to execute the process after the thermal trip condition is indicated; and

a flash memory to store information generated by the process.

10. The system of claim 9, further including:

a computer motherboard to supply operational power to the first processor and the second processor.

11. The system of claim 9, further including:

at least one of a bus or a network to transport the process from the first processor to the second processor.

12. The system of claim 9, further including:

a register to record a history of multiple events including the thermal trip condition.

13. The system of claim 9, further including:

a computer motherboard attached to the first processor; and

an expansion board coupled to a computer motherboard and attached to the second processor.

14. The system of claim 9, further including:

an antenna to transmit information generated by the process to a wireless network.

15. A method, including:

sensing a thermal trip condition indicated by a first processor executing a process; and

transferring the process from the first processor to a second processor in response to the sensing.

16. The method of claim 15, further including:

transferring the process from the second processor to the first processor in response to sensing a thermal trip condition indicated by the second processor.

17. The method of claim 15, further including:

reading a register of the first processor to sense the thermal trip condition.

18. The method of claim 15, further including:

locating the second processor as a processor having a thermal loading less than a thermal loading of the first processor.

19. The method of claim 15, further including:

indicating the thermal trip indication in response to a processor throttling condition.

20. The method of claim 15, further including:

containerizing the process; and

transporting the process from the first processor to the second processor.

21. The method of claim 15, further including:

surveying multiple processors, including the second processor, to determine a relative thermal loading of the second processor with respect to the first processor.

22. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:

sensing a thermal trip condition indicated by a first processor executing a process; and

transferring the process from the first processor to a second processor in response to the sensing.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:

transferring the process from the first processor located in a first computer coupled to a network to the second processor located in a second computer coupled to the network.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:

reading a register to determine the condition of one of a thermal status flag or a thermal status log associated with the first processor.

25. The computer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform a method comprising:

transferring the process from the first processor located in a first integrated circuit package to the second processor located in a second integrated circuit package.