Method and apparatus for regulating temperature in a computer system

• US 8,706,314 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2008
• Issued: 04/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Lewis, Andrew J., Urmanov, Aleksey M., Gross, Kenny C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Padmanabhan, Kavita
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lin, Jason
• Application Number:
  US12/183,572
• Publication Number:
  US 20100030394A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,091 Days
• Field of Search: 700/300, 700/299, 700/276
• US Class Current: 700/300
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/19 characterised by the use of electric means G05D23/1393 takes precedence

Abstract

Embodiments of a system for regulating temperature in a computer system are described. During operation, the system estimates a thermal trajectory as a function of time in at least a portion of the computer system. Then, the system modifies a flow resistance of a cooling mechanism in a thermal-regulation system in the computer system based on the estimated thermal trajectory, where the flow resistance is modified to regulate a temperature of at least the portion of the computer system.

Claims

1. A method for regulating temperature in a computer system, comprising:

receiving a data structure that comprises temperature measurements, wherein the data structure maps each job in a set of previously executed jobs in an operational history for the computer system to at least one corresponding temperature measurement in the temperature measurements;

receiving a model that associates the temperature measurements with at least one of an internal performance parameter maintained by software within the computer system and a canary performance parameter for synthetic user transactions, wherein the model comprises one or more coefficients for a regression expression that relates the operational history and the temperature measurements to a predicted temperature;

using the model to estimate a thermal trajectory as a function of time in at least a portion of the computer system, wherein using the model to estimate the thermal trajectory comprises using at least some of the set of previously executed jobs and the corresponding temperature measurements to estimate the thermal trajectory for a set of pending jobs in a job queue for the computer system; and

modifying a flow resistance of a cooling mechanism in a thermal-regulation system in the computer system based on the estimated thermal trajectory to regulate a temperature of at least the portion of the computer system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the temperature measurements are performed using telemetry monitors in the computer system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the temperature measurements include temperature measurements in a set of time intervals.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the flow resistance is modified using closed-loop feedback control.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the flow resistance is modified by changing a viscosity of a magnetorheological fluid using a magnetic field.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein a thermal cycling load corresponding to temperature variations in the computer system of 30 degrees Celsius is regulated by modifying the flow resistance, thereby approximately maintaining the temperature at a constant value.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the at least one corresponding temperature measurement in the temperature measurements was taken while the corresponding previously executed job was executing, and

wherein using the at least some of the set of previously executed jobs and the corresponding temperature measurements to estimate the thermal trajectory comprises:

using the data structure to map the pending jobs to the previously executed jobs; and

using the temperature measurements corresponding to the mapped previously executed jobs to estimate the thermal trajectory for the set of pending jobs.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the cooling mechanism includes a fluid port of a forced-fluid driver in the computer system and wherein the flow resistance corresponds to a cross-sectional area of a circular iris opening of the fluid port.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the fluid port includes an air vent and the forced-fluid driver includes a fan.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the temperature is regulated while the forced-fluid driver operates at approximately a fixed forcing rate.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the fixed forcing rate corresponds to an approximately fixed angular rotation rate of the forced-fluid driver.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the fixed forcing rate of the forced-fluid driver is determined based on reliability characteristics of the forced-fluid driver.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the temperature is regulated while the forced-fluid driver operates at approximately one or more fixed forcing rates in a set of pre-determined fixed forcing rates.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein a given fixed forcing rate in the one or more fixed forcing rates corresponds to approximately a fixed angular rotation rate of the forced-fluid driver.

15. A computer-program product for use in conjunction with a computer system, the computer-program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and a computer-program mechanism embedded therein for configuring the computer system, the computer-program mechanism including:

instructions for receiving a data structure that comprises temperature measurements, wherein the data structure maps each job in a set of previously executed jobs in an operational history for the computer system to at least one corresponding temperature measurement in the temperature measurements;

instructions for receiving a model that associates temperature measurements with at least one of an internal performance parameter maintained by software within the computer system and a canary performance parameter for synthetic user transactions, wherein the model comprises one or more coefficients for a regression expression that relates the operational history and the temperature measurements to a predicted temperature;

instructions for using the model to estimate a thermal trajectory as a function of time in at least a portion of the computer system, wherein using the model to estimate the thermal trajectory comprises using at least some of the set of previously executed jobs and the corresponding temperature measurements to estimate the thermal trajectory for a set of pending jobs in a job queue for the computer system; and

instructions for modifying a flow resistance of a cooling mechanism in a thermal-regulation system in the computer system based on the estimated thermal trajectory to regulate a temperature of at least the portion of the computer system.

16. A computer system, comprising:

a processor;

memory;

a program module, wherein the program module is stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processor, the program module including;

instructions for receiving a data structure that comprises temperature measurements, wherein the data structure maps each job in a set of previously executed jobs in an operational history for the computer system to at least one corresponding temperature measurement in the temperature measurements;

instructions for receiving a model that associates temperature measurements with at least one of an internal performance parameter maintained by software within the computer system and a canary performance parameter for synthetic user transactions, wherein the model comprises one or more coefficients for a regression expression that relates the operational history and the temperature measurements to a predicted temperature;

instructions for using the model to estimate a thermal trajectory as a function of time in at least a portion of the computer system, wherein using the model to estimate the thermal trajectory comprises using at least some of the set of previously executed jobs and the corresponding temperature measurements to estimate the thermal trajectory for a set of pending jobs in a job queue for the computer system; and

instructions for modifying a flow resistance of a cooling mechanism in a thermal-regulation system in the computer system based on the estimated thermal trajectory to regulate a temperature of at least the portion of the computer system.