POWER REGULATION OF POWER GRID VIA DATACENTER

• US 20130086404A1
• Filed: 10/03/2011
• Published: 04/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Sankar, Sriram, Belady, Christian L., Sherman, Joseph M., Kurien, T. Varugis
• Granted Patent: US 9,003,216 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/324
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/305 in the event of power-supply fluctuations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/329 by task scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 1/10 Parallel operation of dc sources
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 1/106 for load balancing, symmetrisation, or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00002 characterised by monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 80/10 Efficient use of energy, e.g. using compressed air or pressurized fluid as energy carrier
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/30 State monitoring, e.g. fault, temperature monitoring, insulator monitoring, corona discharge

Abstract

One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for regulating an amount of power on a power grid using a datacenter. This allows demand to be more closely brought into alignment with supply. For example, when supply exceeds demand by a predetermined level, the datacenter may increase consumption, causing demand to increase, and when demand exceeds supply and/or comes within a predetermined threshold of supply, the datacenter may decrease consumption, causing demand to decrease. In this way, the datacenter can be utilized as a regulatory tool on the grid. It may be appreciated that given the technology used by and/or operations performed by datacenters, datacenters are uniquely situated to achieve these ends as compared to other (large) energy consumers, such as manufacturing facilities that cannot shift around and/or shut-down operations swiftly.

Claims

1. A method for regulating power on a power grid, comprising:

receiving information from a power utility entity indicative of power consumption on the power grid; and

adjusting an amount of power consumed by a datacenter from the power grid based at least in part upon the received information.

2. The method of claim 1, the received information indicative of present power consumption.

3. The method of claim 1, the received information indicative of predicted future power consumption.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising providing the power utility entity with information indicative of future power demands of the datacenter and information indicative of throttling capacity of the datacenter, the throttling capacity indicative of a minimum and a maximum amount of power that can be consumed by the datacenter at a given time.

5. The method of claim 1, adjusting the amount of power consumed by the datacenter comprising adjusting a workload of one or more servers to at least one of increase or decrease power consumption of the one or more servers.

6. The method of claim 1, adjusting the amount of power consumed by the datacenter comprising creating a virtualized environment on one or more servers, the virtualized environment configured to execute power consumption code to increase the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

7. The method of claim 1, adjusting the amount of power consumed by the datacenter comprising at least one of:

transferring load from the datacenter to a second datacenter to decrease the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess demand for power on the power grid, and

transferring load to the datacenter from the second datacenter to increase the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising:

scheduling one or more processing jobs to be performed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the grid; and

adjusting the amount of power consumed by the datacenter comprising performing one or more of the scheduled processing jobs when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

9. The method of claim 1, adjusting the amount of power consumed by a datacenter comprising:

shutting down at least one of;

one or more processes, and

one or more servers when the received information is indicative of excess demand for power on the power grid.

10. The method of claim 1, adjusting the amount of power consumed by the datacenter comprising:

identifying portions of the datacenter that comprise non-critical loads and throttling down one or more portions of the datacenter comprising the non-critical loads to decrease power consumption of the datacenter.

11. A power regulation system for regulating power on a power grid, comprising:

a power monitor component configured to receive information from a power utility entity indicative of power consumption on the power grid; and

a power management component configured to adjust an amount of power consumed by a datacenter from the power grid based at least in part upon the received information.

12. The power regulation system of claim 11, the received information indicative of present power consumption.

13. The power regulation system of claim 11, comprising a datacenter communication component configured to provide the power utility entity with information indicative of future power demands of the datacenter and information indicative of throttling capacity of the datacenter, the throttling capacity indicative of a minimum and a maximum amount of power that can be consumed by the datacenter at a given time.

14. The power regulation system of claim 11, the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by the datacenter by adjusting a workload of one or more servers to at least one of increase or decrease power consumption of the one or more servers.

15. The power regulation system of claim 11, the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by the datacenter by creating a virtualized environment on one or more servers, the virtualized environment configured to execute power consumption code to increase the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

16. The power regulation system of claim 11, the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by the datacenter by at least one of:

transferring load from the datacenter to a second datacenter to decrease the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess demand for power on the power grid, and

transferring load to the datacenter from the second datacenter to increase the amount of power consumed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

17. The power regulation system of claim 11, comprising:

a scheduler configured to schedule one or more processing jobs to be performed by the datacenter when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the grid, and

the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by the datacenter by performing one or more of the scheduled processing jobs when the received information is indicative of an excess supply of power on the power grid.

18. The power regulation system of claim 11, the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by a datacenter by increasing an amount of power supplied by one or more generators at the datacenter to decrease an amount of power supplied to the datacenter via the power grid when the received information is indicative of excess demand for power on the power grid.

19. The power regulation system of claim 11, the power management component configured to adjust the amount of power consumed by the datacenter by identifying portions of the datacenter that comprise non-critical loads and throttling down one or more portions of the datacenter comprising the non-critical loads to decrease power consumption of the datacenter.

20. A method, comprising:

providing a power utility entity with information indicative of throttling capacity of a datacenter to regulate power on a power grid; and

establishing an energy rate for the datacenter based at least in part upon the provided information, at least some of the method implemented at least in part via a processor.