Managing power consumption based on historical average

• US 8,082,454 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2007
• Issued: 12/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Totten, Brian Christopher
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): YANCHUS III, PAUL B
• Application Number:
  US11/936,152
• Publication Number:
  US 20090119523A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,504 Days
• Field of Search: 713/300, 713/320, 713/322, 713/324, 713/340
• US Class Current: 713/300
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/32 Means for saving power
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

An upper power limit and an average power limit that is less than the upper power limit are selected for each server of a computer system having a plurality of servers. The instantaneous power consumption and the average power consumption of each server is determined and the instantaneous power consumption of each server is prevented from exceeding the respective upper power limit. A first subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is less than the average power limit are identified. The instantaneous power consumption of each server is allowed to exceed the respective average power limit. A second subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is not less than the average power limit is identified, and the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the second subset is prevented from exceeding the respective average power limit.

Claims

1. A method of managing power in a computer system having a plurality of servers, comprising:

selecting for each server an upper power limit and an average power limit that is less than the upper power limit;

determining the instantaneous power consumption and the average power consumption of each server;

preventing the instantaneous power consumption of each server from exceeding the respective upper power limit;

identifying a first subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is less than the average power limit and allowing the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the first subset to exceed the respective average power limit; and

identifying a second subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is not less than the average power limit and preventing the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the second subset from exceeding the respective average power limit.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the servers for which the average power consumption is substantially equal to the average power limit, and reducing the instantaneous power consumption of the identified servers to maintain the average power consumption substantially equal to the average power limit.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the servers for which the average power consumption is greater than the average power limit, and reducing the instantaneous power consumption of the identified servers below the average power limit.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

allowing the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the first subset of servers to temporarily exceed the respective average power limit until the respective average power consumption is substantially equal to the respective average power limit.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting a time period during which the instantaneous power consumption of the first subset of servers are allowed to exceed the average power limits; and

allowing the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the first subset of servers to exceed the respective average power limit only during the scheduled time period.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of preventing the instantaneous power consumption of the servers from exceeding the respective upper power limits and the step of preventing the instantaneous power consumption of the second subset of servers from exceeding their respective average power limits comprise throttling processors or memory on the servers, powering off unused circuitry, reducing a processor clock frequency, reducing a processor operating voltage, introducing wait or hold states into processor activity, performing processor clock gating, or migrating workload between servers.

7. A computer program product including computer usable program code embodied on a computer usable storage medium for managing power in a computer system having a plurality of servers, the computer program product comprising:

computer usable program code for inputting for each server an upper power limit and an average power limit that is less than the upper power limit;

computer usable program code for obtaining the instantaneous power consumption and the average power consumption of each server;

computer usable program code for preventing the instantaneous power consumption of the servers from exceeding the respective upper power limits;

computer usable program code for identifying a first subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is less than the average power limit and allowing their respective instantaneous power consumptions to exceed the respective average power limits; and

computer usable program code for identifying a second subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is not less than the average power limit and preventing the respective instantaneous power consumptions from exceeding their respective average power limits.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer usable program code for identifying the servers for which the average power consumption is substantially equal to the average power limit, and reducing the instantaneous power consumption of the identified servers to maintain the average power consumption substantially equal to the average power limit.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer usable program code for identifying the servers for which the average power consumption is greater than the average power limit, and reducing the instantaneous power consumption of the identified servers below the average power limit.

10. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising computer usable program code for allowing the instantaneous power consumption of the first subset of servers to temporarily exceed the respective average power limits until the average power consumption is substantially equal to the average power limit.

11. The computer program product of claim 7, further comprising:

computer usable program code for inputting a time period during which the instantaneous power consumption of the first subset of servers are allowed to exceed the average power limits; and

computer usable program code for allowing the instantaneous power consumption of the first subset of servers to exceed the respective average power limits only during the scheduled time period.

12. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein the computer usable program code for preventing the instantaneous power consumption of the servers from exceeding the respective upper power limits and the computer usable program code for preventing the instantaneous power consumption of the second subset of servers from exceeding the respective average power limits comprise computer usable program code for throttling processors or memory on the servers, powering off unused circuitry, reducing a processor clock frequency, reducing a processor operating voltage, introducing wait or hold states into processor activity, performing processor clock gating, or migrating workload between servers.

13. A power-managed multi-server computer system, comprising:

a plurality of power-consuming servers each in communication with a power supply for receiving a variable amount of power, a power meter for detecting the power consumption of each server and outputting a power consumption signal representative of the detected power consumption, and a throttling mechanism configured for selectively limiting the power consumption of each server to prevent the instantaneous power consumption of each server from exceeding an upper power limit selected for the server;

a power management module in communication with the plurality of servers for receiving the power consumption signal from the power meter of each server, determining the instantaneous power consumption and the average power consumption of each server, and determining a first subset of the servers for which the average power consumption is less than the respective average power limit; and

wherein the instantaneous power consumption of each server in the first subset is allowed to exceed the respective average power limit, and wherein the instantaneous power consumption of each server not in the first subset is prevented from exceeding the respective average power limit.

14. The power-managed multi-server computer system of claim 13, wherein the management module is configured for identifying each server for which the average power consumption is substantially equal to the average power limit, and instructing each identified server to reduce the respective instantaneous power consumption to maintain the average power consumption substantially equal to the average power limit.

15. The power-managed multi- server computer system of claim 13, wherein the management module is configured for identifying each server for which the average power consumption is greater than the average power limit, and instructing each identified server to reduce the respective instantaneous power consumption to below the average power limit.

16. The power-managed multi-server computer system of claim 13, wherein the power management module is configured for instructing the servers to throttle processors or memory on the servers, power off unused circuitry, reduce processor clock frequency, reduce processor operating voltage, introduce wait or hold states into processor activity, perform processor clock gating, migrate workload between servers, or combinations thereof, to prevent the instantaneous power consumption of each server from exceeding the respective upper power limit and to prevent the instantaneous power consumption of each server not in the first subset of servers from exceeding the respective average power limit.