System and method for dynamically adjusting power caps for electronic components based on power consumption

• US 7,539,881 B2
• Filed: 04/15/2006
• Issued: 05/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Belady, Christian L., Shaw, Mark E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel; Nitin C
• Application Number:
  US11/404,455
• Publication Number:
  US 20070245161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,137 Days
• Field of Search: 713/300
• US Class Current: 713/300
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode

Abstract

A system has a plurality of electronic components that are powered by a power source, and each of the components is associated with a respective power cap. The system further has logic configured to monitor power consumption of the electronic components over a duration and dynamically adjust at least one power cap associated with at least one of the electronic components based on the monitored power consumption.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a plurality of electronic components powered by a power source and respectively associated with power caps, the plurality of electronic components including at least a first electronic component associated with a first power cap and a second electronic component associated with a second power cap; and

logic configured to monitor power consumption of the electronic components over a duration and to limit power consumed by the first electronic component based on the first power cap, the logic configured to limit a power consumed by the second electronic component based on the second power cap and to ensure that a total power consumed by all of the electronic components is limited to an overall power limit, the logic configured to dynamically increase the first power cap based on an amount of power consumed by the first electronic component, the logic further configured to decrease the second power cap in response to the increase of the first power cap such that the total power consumed by all of the electronic components is prevented from exceeding the overall power limit.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the logic is further configured to request, from a controller of the first electronic component, a plurality of current values during the monitored duration.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the logic is further configured to determine a value indicative of how often the power consumed by the first electronic component exceeds a specified limit.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the logic is further configured to increase the first power cap if the value indicates that the power consumed by the first electronic component exceeds the specified limit at least a predetermined percentage of the duration.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a controller configured to transmit, to the logic, data indicative of current values associated with the first electronic component.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the logic is configured to increase the first power cap in response to a determination that the power consumed by the first electronic component over the monitored duration exceeds the first power cap at least a predetermined percentage of the duration.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the logic is configured to decrease the first power cap in response to a determination that the power consumed by the first electronic component over the monitored duration falls below the first power cap at least a predetermined percentage of the duration.

8. A method, comprising:

monitoring power consumption of a plurality of electronic components over a duration, the plurality of electronic components including at least a first electronic component and a second electronic component;

limiting power consumed by the first electronic component based on a first power cap associated with the first electronic component;

limiting power consumed by the second electronic component based on a second power cap associated with the second electronic component;

dynamically increasing the first power cap based on the monitored power consumption; and

ensuring that a total power consumed by all of the electronic components is limited to an overall power limit, the ensuring comprising decreasing the second power cap in response to the increasing the first power cap.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising determining a value indicative of how often power consumed by the first electronic component exceeds a specified limit.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the increasing is based on the determined value.

11. A system, comprising:

a first electronic component associated with a first power cap;

a second electronic component associated with a second power cap; and

logic configured to dynamically monitor power consumption of the first and second components the logic configured to limit power consumed by the first electronic component based on the first power cap and to limit power consumed by the second electronic component based on the second power cap, the logic configured to ensure that a total power consumed by a plurality of electronic components including at least the first and second electronic components is limited to an overall power limit, the logic further configured to increase the first power cap in response to an increase in power consumption by the first electronic component and to decrease the second power cap in response to the increase of the first power cap so that the overall power limit is not violated due to the logic increasing the first power cap.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the logic is further configured to determine values indicative of how often power consumed by the first and second electronic components exceeds a specified limit.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the logic is further configured to increase the first or second power cap if one of the values exceeds a threshold value.