Managing server power consumption in a data center

• US 9,104,405 B2
• Filed: 03/04/2013
• Issued: 08/11/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Enterprise Solutions (Singapore) Pte., Ltd. (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Archibald, Matthew R., Blackwell, Edward L., Buterbaugh, Jerrod K.
• Primary Examiner(s): MISIURA, BRIAN THOMAS
• Application Number:
  US13/783,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20130191664A1
• Time in Patent Office: 890 Days
• Field of Search: 713300-340
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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: H05K 7/1492 having electrical distribution arrangements, e.g. power supply or data communications
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20836 Thermal management, e.g. server temperature control

Abstract

Methods, system, and computer program products are provided for managing server power consumption in a data center. Embodiments include detecting, by a circuit monitoring interposer, a type of a power circuit that is currently coupled to the circuit monitoring interposer; determining a power capacity of the power circuit based on the type of the power circuit; receiving, by the circuit monitoring interposer, a power consumption server measurement from each server monitoring interposer of a plurality of server monitoring interposers, each power consumption server measurement corresponding to a server of the plurality of servers; determining a total power consumption of the power circuit in dependence upon a total of the power consumption server measurements; and determining whether the total power consumption exceeds the power capacity, and if the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity, instructing one or more servers to reduce their power consumption.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring power consumption, the method comprising:

determining, by a circuit monitoring interposer, a power capacity of a power circuit based on a type of the power circuit, wherein the circuit monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a power supply;

receiving, by the circuit monitoring interposer, a power consumption server measurement from each server monitoring interposer of a plurality of server monitoring interposers, each power consumption server measurement corresponding to a server of the plurality of servers, wherein a server monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a server;

determining a total power consumption of the power circuit in dependence upon a total of the power consumption server measurements received from the server monitoring interposers coupled to the power circuit; and

determining whether the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity of the power circuit, and if the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity, instructing, by the circuit monitoring interposer, one or more servers to reduce their power consumption.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting, by the circuit monitoring interposer, the type of the power circuit that is currently coupled to the circuit monitoring interposer including detecting an actual plug receptacle type of the power circuit.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes selecting a particular server to reduce power consumption in dependence upon the power consumption server measurement of the particular server.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to throttle-down a CPU of the one or more servers.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to shut down a fan within the one or more servers.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to reassign a processor job to another server.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to shut down.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction to reduce the power consumption of the particular sever is transmitted wirelessly to the server.

9. A system comprising:

a circuit monitoring interposer to;

determine, by a circuit monitoring interposer, a power capacity of a power circuit based on a type of the power circuit, wherein the circuit monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a power supply;

receive, by the circuit monitoring interposer, a power consumption server measurement from each server monitoring interposer of a plurality of server monitoring interposers, each power consumption server measurement corresponding to a server of the plurality of servers, wherein a server monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a server;

determine a total power consumption of the power circuit in dependence upon a total of the power consumption server measurements received from the server monitoring interposers coupled to the power circuit; and

determine whether the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity of the power circuit, and if the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity, instructing, by the circuit monitoring interposer, one or more servers to reduce their power consumption.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes selecting a particular server to reduce power consumption in dependence upon the power consumption server measurement of the particular server.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to throttle-down a CPU of the one or more servers.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to shut down a fan within the one or more server.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to reassign a processor job to another server.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to shut down.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the instruction to reduce the power consumption of the particular sever is transmitted through a wire link coupled to the circuit monitoring interposer.

16. A computer program product for signaling completion of a message transfer from an origin compute node to a target compute node, the computer program product disposed upon a computer readable storage medium, the computer program product comprising computer program instructions capable of:

determining, by a circuit monitoring interposer, a power capacity of a power circuit based on a type of the power circuit, wherein the circuit monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a power supply;

receiving, by the circuit monitoring interposer, a power consumption server measurement from each server monitoring interposer of a plurality of server monitoring interposers, each power consumption server measurement corresponding to a server of the plurality of servers, wherein a server monitoring interposer comprises a device that provides an electrical contact between the power circuit and a server;

determining a total power consumption of the power circuit in dependence upon a total of the power consumption server measurements received from the server monitoring interposers coupled to the power circuit; and

determining whether the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity of the power circuit, and if the total power consumption of the power circuit exceeds the power capacity, instructing, by the circuit monitoring interposer, one or more servers to reduce their power consumption.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes selecting a particular server to reduce power consumption in dependence upon the power consumption server measurement of the particular server.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to throttle-down a CPU of the one or more servers.

19. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to shut down a fan within the one or more server.

20. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein instructing the one or more servers to reduce their power consumption includes instructing the one or more servers to reassign a processor job to another server.