ENVIRONMENTALLY AWARE LOAD-BALANCING

• US 20130283289A1
• Filed: 04/19/2012
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kannegala, Sateesh S., Sivakumar, Gandhi, Adinarayan, Geetha, Bernoth, Andrew J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,954,984 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 718/105
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5094 where the allocation takes into account power or heat criteria power management in computers in general G06F1/3203; thermal management in computers in general G06F1/206
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A method and associated systems for the environmentally aware load-balancing of components of a multi-component power-consuming system. The environmentally aware load-balancer receives continually updated values from at least two environmental sensors that monitor and report the values of environmental metrics that characterize components of the power-consuming system and the environments within which those components are located. When the load-balancer receives a task request directed to the power-consuming system, the load-balancer selects a balanced workload allocation as a function of the values of the received environmental metrics and communicates that balanced workload allocation to a routing mechanism. The routing mechanism then uses the communicated balanced workload allocation to determine which component or components of the power-consuming system should receive the task request.

Claims

1. A method for balancing workloads of a plurality of components of a multi-component power-consuming system, said method comprising:

a processor of a computer system receiving a plurality of values from a plurality of continually updated environmental sensors;

said processor receiving a task request;

said processor selecting a balanced workload allocation of at least two components of said plurality of components as a function of a plurality of factors, wherein said plurality of factors comprise said plurality of values; and

said processor communicating said balanced workload allocation and said task request to a routing mechanism, wherein said routing mechanism distributes said task request to at least one component of said plurality of components.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said plurality of factors further comprise at least one environmentally insensitive factor.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said processor receives values from at least one sensor of said plurality of continually updated environmental sensors at a time determined by a function of previous values received from said at least one sensor.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said multi-component power-consuming system comprises components located at a plurality of geographically distinct sites and wherein said balanced workload allocation selects one or more of said geographically distinct sites.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said selecting step further comprises said processor selecting said balanced workload allocation as a function of at least one weighting of a plurality of task-allocation weightings, wherein said at least one weighting of said plurality of weightings is associated with a candidate component of said plurality of components, and wherein at least one environmentally sensitive weighting of said plurality of task-allocation weightings is selected as a function of at least one value of said plurality of values.

6. A computer program product, comprising a computer-readable hardware device having a computer readable program code stored therein, said computer readable program code comprising a method for balancing workloads of a plurality of components of a multi-component power-consuming system, said method implemented by execution of program code on a processor of a computer system, said method comprising:

said processor receiving a plurality of values from a plurality of continually updated environmental sensors;

said processor receiving a task request;

said processor selecting a balanced workload allocation of at least two components of said plurality of components as a function of a plurality of factors, wherein said plurality of factors comprise said plurality of values; and

said processor communicating said balanced workload allocation and said task request to a routing mechanism, wherein said routing mechanism distributes said task request to at least one component of said plurality of components.

7. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein said plurality of factors further comprise at least one environmentally insensitive factor.

8. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein said processor receives values from at least one sensor of said plurality of continually updated environmental sensors at a time determined by a function of previous values received from said at least one sensor.

9. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein said multi-component power-consuming system comprises components located at a plurality of geographically distinct sites and wherein said balanced workload allocation selects one or more of said geographically distinct sites.

10. The computer program product of claim 6, wherein said selecting step further comprises said processor selecting said balanced workload allocation as a function of at least one weighting of a plurality of task-allocation weightings, wherein said at least one weighting of said plurality of weightings is associated with a candidate component of said plurality of components, and wherein at least one environmentally sensitive weighting of said plurality of task-allocation weightings is selected as a function of at least one value of said plurality of values.

11. A computer system comprising a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and a computer readable hardware storage device coupled to said processor, said storage device containing program code configured to be executed by the processor via the memory to implement a method for balancing workloads of a plurality of components of a multi-component power-consuming system, said method comprising:

said processor receiving a plurality of values from a plurality of continually updated environmental sensors;

said processor receiving a task request;

said processor selecting a balanced workload allocation of at least two components of said plurality of components as a function of a plurality of factors, wherein said plurality of factors comprise said plurality of values; and

said processor communicating said balanced workload allocation and said task request to a routing mechanism, wherein said routing mechanism distributes said task request to at least one component of said plurality of components.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein said plurality of factors further comprise at least one environmentally insensitive factor.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein said processor receives values from at least one sensor of said plurality of continually updated environmental sensors at a time determined by a function of previous values received from said at least one sensor.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein said multi-component power-consuming system comprises components located at a plurality of geographically distinct sites and wherein said balanced workload allocation selects one or more of said geographically distinct sites.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein said selecting step further comprises said processor selecting said balanced workload allocation as a function of at least one weighting of a plurality of task-allocation weightings, wherein said at least one weighting of said plurality of weightings is associated with a candidate component of said plurality of components, and wherein at least one environmentally sensitive weighting of said plurality of task-allocation weightings is selected as a function of at least one value of said plurality of values.

16. A process for supporting computer infrastructure, said process comprising providing at least one support service for at least one of creating, integrating, hosting, maintaining, and deploying computer-readable program code in a computer system, wherein the program code in combination with the computing system is configured to perform a method for balancing workloads of a plurality of components of a multi-component power-consuming system, said method implemented by execution of program code on a processor of a computer system, said method comprising:

said processor receiving a plurality of values from a plurality of continually updated environmental sensors;

said processor receiving a task request;

said processor selecting a balanced workload allocation of at least two components of said plurality of components as a function of a plurality of factors, wherein said plurality of factors comprise said plurality of values; and

said processor communicating said balanced workload allocation and said task request to a routing mechanism, wherein said routing mechanism distributes said task request to at least one component of said plurality of components.

17. The process of claim 16, wherein said plurality of factors further comprise at least one environmentally insensitive factor.

18. The process of claim 16, wherein said processor receives values from at least one sensor of said plurality of continually updated environmental sensors at a time determined by a function of previous values received from said at least one sensor.

19. The process of claim 16, wherein said multi-component power-consuming system comprises components located at a plurality of geographically distinct sites and wherein said balanced workload allocation selects one or more of said geographically distinct sites.

20. The process of claim 16, wherein said selecting step further comprises said processor selecting said balanced workload allocation as a function of at least one weighting of a plurality of task-allocation weightings, wherein said at least one weighting of said plurality of weightings is associated with a candidate component of said plurality of components, and wherein at least one environmentally sensitive weighting of said plurality of task-allocation weightings is selected as a function of at least one value of said plurality of values.