Control device, control method, and program

Abstract

A control device for controlling electric power consumption in a service-providing system that provides a service via servers furnished to each of a plurality of sites that are geographically dispersed, said control device comprising: a target electric power setting unit that, on the basis of a request pertaining to an increase or decrease of electric power consumption at a site furnished with one of the servers, sets a target electric power value for the site; and a load balance setting unit that, on the basis of the target electric power value, carries out load transferring between the plurality of servers.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for transferring a load between servers at multiple locations. [Background technology]

[0002] Traditionally, a website is built using multiple servers, and requests are distributed to the multiple servers using a load balancer (LB). This makes it easy to expand when capacity is insufficient (scalability) and prevents the entire service from stopping when some servers fail (availability).

[0003] Global Server Load Balancing (GSLB) is also used to realize LB functions across multiple locations.

[0004] Meanwhile, at bases such as data centers and communication buildings, in addition to receiving power from commercial power sources via a power distribution network and supplying power to servers, etc., they are also equipped with power generation units that use renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic (PV) power generation, and are beginning to use the power generated by the power generation units.

[0005] Non-Patent Document 1 discloses that power optimization is performed in a distributed Web server with QoS as a constraint. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0006] [Non-Patent Document 1] "Node State Control for Power Saving Considering Load Fluctuation in Distributed Web Servers," IPSJ Journal on Computing Systems, vol.2, No.2, 75-88, July, 2009. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the future electricity supply and demand adjustment market, there will be a demand for VPPs (Virtual Power Plants) that can quickly increase or decrease large amounts of electricity, but conventional technologies are difficult to meet both the scale and response speed.In addition, in order to self-consumption of unstable renewable energy, which is expected to become cheaper and be introduced in large quantities in the future, it will be necessary to consume electricity in accordance with the amount of electricity generated.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to provide a technology that enables rapid control of increases and decreases in power consumption in response to requests for increases and decreases in power consumption in a service provision system that provides services using servers located at multiple locations. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] According to the disclosed technology, there is provided a control device for controlling power consumption in a service providing system that provides services by a server provided at each of a plurality of geographically distributed bases, the control device comprising: A request for increasing or decreasing power consumption at a site where the server is installed; Electricity charges at the relevant base, and a target power setting unit that sets a target power value for the base based on the amount of power generated at the base; a load balance setting unit that shifts loads among a plurality of servers based on the target power value; A control device is provided comprising: Effect of the Invention

[0010] According to the disclosed technology, a technology is provided that enables rapid control of increasing or decreasing power consumption in response to requests for increasing or decreasing power consumption in a service provision system that provides services using servers installed at multiple locations. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1]1 is an overall configuration diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining an example of control of wide-area load balancing. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an overview of control in the present embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a base. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a load control device. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of the apparatus. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the operation of the load control device. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a load-power consumption correspondence table. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention (the present embodiment) will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiment described below is merely an example, and the embodiment to which the present invention is applied is not limited to the following embodiment.

[0013] (System Configuration) An example of the overall configuration of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 1, this system includes a load control device 100 and a GSLB device 200, which can communicate with each other via a network 300. In addition, there are a plurality of geographically distributed bases (bases A to Z in the example of Fig. 1), and servers and the like in the bases can communicate with the load control device 100 via the network 300.

[0014] Each base has one or more servers, and the one or more servers provide services to a large number of client terminals. The services include, but are not limited to, online shopping site provision, video distribution, cloud infrastructure provision, etc. A system consisting of these multiple servers may be called a service provision system. A system consisting of multiple bases equipped with servers may also be called a service provision system.

[0015] Each base is assumed to be a building such as a communications building or a data center, but this assumption is merely an example. A "base" may be something smaller than a building (e.g., one floor, one room, etc.), or a "base" may be something larger than a building (e.g., a group of buildings, a town, a city, a prefecture, a region, etc.).

[0016] The load control device 100 controls power consumption so that the power consumption of each base approaches the target power value by shifting the server load between bases based on the DR request at each base, the power generation amount (solar radiation amount, etc.), etc. The load control device may be called a power consumption control device or a control device.

[0017] In this embodiment, the GSLB device 200 is used as an example of a means for transferring the load of a server between bases. However, the means for transferring the load of a server between bases is not limited to this. For example, live migration can be used as a means for transferring the load of a server between bases.

[0018] (Operation overview) First, an overview of the operation of the GSLB device 200 as a means for shifting server load between bases will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Note that the "GSLB device 200" is not limited to one that is physically composed of one device, and may be a system composed of multiple devices.

[0019] 2, there are locations A to C that are geographically distributed, and each location has a server 2 (server 2A, server 2B, server 2C). An example will be described in which a GSLB device 200 distributes a connection request (e.g., an HTTP request, hereinafter referred to as a request) from a client terminal 400 to one of the servers 2A, 2B, and 2C.

[0020] In S0 (step 0), the GSLB device 200 periodically performs a health check on each server, and if it detects, for example, a failed server, it prevents access to that server.

[0021] Furthermore, weighting, for example, 3:2:1, is set as a setting parameter for the three allocation destinations, server 2A, server 2B, and server 2C, in the GSLB device 200. In this case, of all accesses to the services provided by "server 2A, server 2B, and server 2C," 3 / 6 are connected to server 2A, 2 / 6 are connected to server 2B, and 1 / 6 are connected to server 2C.

[0022] In S1, the client terminal 400 transmits a DNS request specifying the domain name of the service to the GSLB device 200. In S2, the GSLB device 200 returns, for example, the IP address of the server 2A to the client terminal 400 based on the above weight. In this case, in S3, the client terminal 400 transmits a request to the server 2A.

[0023] In reality, there are many client terminals, and requests from each client terminal are distributed to either server 2A, server 2B, or server 2C, thereby achieving load balancing among bases based on the weights.

[0024] An example of power consumption control between site A and site B, which is realized by the load balancing control 100 in this embodiment, will be described with reference to FIG.

[0025] 3, redundant servers 2A-1 and 2A-2 are provided at base A, and redundant servers 2B-1 and 2B-2 are provided at base B. In addition, a GSLB device 200-1 performs load balancing control for the servers 2A-1 and 2B-1, and a GSLB device 200-2 performs load balancing control for the servers 2A-2 and 2B-2.

[0026] FIG. 3(a) shows a normal state, in which the GSLB devices 200-1 and 200-2 are operating so that requests are distributed between site A and site B at a ratio of 50% each.

[0027] After that, if there is a request to reduce power consumption at site B, the load control device 100 changes the settings of the GSLB devices 200-1 and 200-2 to increase the distribution ratio to the servers 2A-1 and 2A-2 and decrease the distribution ratio to the servers 2B-1 and 2B-2. In other words, the load is shifted to the servers 2A-1 and 2A-2, and the load on the servers 2B-1 and 2B-2 is reduced. This makes it possible to reduce the power consumption at site B.

[0028] Requests for increasing or decreasing power consumption at each location may include, for example, requests to increase the utilization rate of renewable energy, requests to respond to up / down DR requests from power companies, and requests to minimize power purchase prices when dynamic pricing is implemented.

[0029] As a request for improving the utilization rate of renewable energy, for example, when the weather is good at a base equipped with a solar power generation device and a large amount of power can be obtained by solar power generation, there is a request to increase the power consumption of the server at the base in order to effectively utilize the power. In addition, a request for improving the utilization rate of renewable energy also includes stabilizing the grid by making the power demand follow the renewable energy output under unstable renewable energy output such as solar power generation and wind power generation.

[0030] Minimizing electricity purchase prices when dynamic pricing is implemented means controlling server loads so that, for example, power consumption at locations with low electricity rates is higher and power consumption at locations with high electricity rates is lower when electricity rates vary according to geographic region, time of day, etc.

[0031] Since there is a positive correlation between the load on a server and power consumption, it is possible to control the power consumption by controlling the load on a specific server using the GSLB device 200. Moreover, the control can be performed quickly.

[0032] Furthermore, by also controlling associated equipment at the site, such as air conditioning and lighting in the server room, it is possible to cause larger-scale increases or decreases in energy consumption, although the response speed will be somewhat slower.

[0033] The configuration and operation of this system will now be described in more detail.

[0034] (Example of base configuration) Fig. 4 shows an example of the configuration of base A in this embodiment. Although Fig. 4 shows base A as an example, other bases also have the same configuration. However, there may be a base that does not have a power generation unit 1.

[0035] As shown in Figure 4, base A has a power generation unit 1A that generates electricity using renewable energy such as solar power, a server 2A that provides services, a power distribution unit 3A that is connected to a power distribution network 10A provided by an electric power company or the like, ancillary equipment 4A such as air conditioning and server room lighting, and a monitoring and control device 5A.

[0036] The "server 2A" may be a single physical server, or a server group consisting of multiple servers. The "server 2A" may also be a virtual function such as a container. However, even if it is a virtual function such as a container, it actually runs on a computer (physical server) that consumes power.

[0037] 4 shows a server as a device for providing a service, but in addition to the server, communication devices such as routers and switches may be provided, and the communication devices may also be subject to the power consumption control in this embodiment. The communication devices may also be assumed to be realized by the server. The server and communication devices may be collectively referred to as consumer devices.

[0038] The power distribution unit 3A supplies the power received from the power distribution network 10 to the server 2A and the associated equipment 4A. However, when the power generation unit 1A is generating sufficient power (when the voltage is high), the power supply to the server 2A is performed by the power generation unit 1A. In addition, the power distribution unit 3A can also lend surplus power generated by the power generation unit 1A to other bases as necessary.

[0039] The monitoring and control device 5A is capable of performing control communication with each unit through an intra-site communication network. The monitoring and control device 5A is also connected to the load control device 100 through a network 300.

[0040] For example, the monitoring control device 5A can obtain the load on the server 2A (eg, the number of requests, the number of simultaneous connections, the CPU usage rate, the memory usage rate, etc.) from the server 2A and notify the load control device 100 of it.

[0041] Furthermore, the monitoring and controlling device 5A can control the associated equipment 4A based on, for example, a command from the load control device 100. Examples of control include turning lights on and off and changing the temperature setting of the air conditioner.

[0042] (Example of load control device configuration) Fig. 5 shows an example of the configuration of the load control device 100. As shown in Fig. 5, the load control device 100 includes a target power setting unit 110, a service load prediction unit 120, a load balance setting unit 130, a load-power consumption correspondence table storage unit 140, and a service load measurement unit 150. The operation of each unit will be described later. The load control device 100 may be a single physical device (computer), or may be a system made up of multiple devices.

[0043] <Hardware configuration example> The load control device 100 in this embodiment can be realized, for example, by making a computer execute a program in which the processing contents described in this embodiment are described. Note that this "computer" may be a physical machine or a virtual machine on the cloud. When a virtual machine is used, the "hardware" described here is virtual hardware.

[0044] The above program can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium (such as a portable memory) and can be stored or distributed. The above program can also be provided via a network such as the Internet or e-mail.

[0045] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the computer. The computer in Fig. 6 includes a drive device 1000, an auxiliary storage device 1002, a memory device 1003, a CPU 1004, an interface device 1005, a display device 1006, an input device 1007, an output device 1008, and the like, all of which are interconnected via a bus BS.

[0046] The program for realizing the processing on the computer is provided by a recording medium 1001 such as a CD-ROM or a memory card. When the recording medium 1001 storing the program is set in the drive device 1000, the program is installed from the recording medium 1001 to the auxiliary storage device 1002 via the drive device 1000. However, the program does not necessarily have to be installed from the recording medium 1001, but may be downloaded from another computer via a network. The auxiliary storage device 1002 stores the installed program as well as necessary files, data, etc.

[0047] The memory device 1003 reads out and stores the program from the auxiliary storage device 1002 when an instruction to start the program is received. The CPU 1004 realizes functions related to the load control device 100 in accordance with the program stored in the memory device 1003. The interface device 1005 is used as an interface for connecting to a network. The display device 1006 displays a GUI (Graphical User Interface) or the like according to a program. The input device 1007 is composed of a keyboard and mouse, buttons, a touch panel, or the like, and is used to input various operation instructions. The output device 1008 outputs the results of calculations.

[0048] (Example of load control device operation) Next, an example of the operation of the load control device 100 will be described along the procedure of the flowchart shown in Fig. 7. In the following, an example will be described in which a target service is provided by a server 2A at a site A, a server 2B at a site B, and a server 2C at a site C.

[0049] <s101> In S101, the service load prediction unit 120 predicts the future load of a target service from information on the past load of the target service, etc. More specifically, the service load prediction unit 120 predicts the number of requests per unit time to the target service at a certain time t in the future.

[0050] For example, if the target service is provided by server 2A at site A, server 2B at site B, and server 2C at site C, the service load prediction unit 120 predicts the number of requests per unit time to server 2A, server 2B, and server 2C at a certain time t in the future.

[0051] If the time from the current time until the load (number of requests) of the server at each base is completely moved by the control of S101 to S103 is T seconds, then the time t is the current time plus T seconds. However, the time t is not limited to this.

[0052] Note that using the number of requests as the load is just one example. For example, the number of simultaneously connected users, the CPU usage rate of the entire server related to the service, etc. may be used as the load. In addition, the method of predicting the load is not limited to a specific method, but the load can be predicted using, for example, an ARIMA model, regression analysis, etc.

[0053] <s102> In S102, the target power setting unit 110 sets (determines) a target power value (target power consumption) for each base at time t, and notifies the load balance setting unit 130 of the target power value.

[0054] For example, in the case where a target service is provided by a server 2A at site A, a server 2B at site B, and a server 2C at site C, the target power setting unit 110 sets a target power value for each of sites A, B, and C. It is not essential to set target power values ​​for all sites that have servers providing the target service. For example, target power values ​​may be set only for sites that require an increase or decrease in power consumption. An example of what value is set as the "target power value" is described below.

[0055] The target power setting unit 110 periodically collects, for example, information from the monitoring and controlling device 5 of each base, such as the current power consumption of each consumer device (server, associated equipment, etc.) at each base, DR requests from power companies, power rates when dynamic pricing is realized, and the status of renewable energy (weather, wind power, etc.). From this current information, information at time t can be estimated.

[0056] Using the above information, the target power setting unit 110 sets the target power value for each base at time t. For example, assume that a target service is provided by server 2A at base A, server 2B at base B, and server 2C at base C, and that the target power setting unit 110 detects that a 50 kW downward DR request has been made at base A, and that the bad weather has turned into sunny weather at base B, which has a solar power generation facility as the power generation unit 1B. Also assume that the current power consumption (total power consumption within the bases) is 500 kW at base A, 500 kW at base B, and 500 kW at base C.

[0057] Based on the downward DR request, the target power setting unit 110 sets the target power value for site A to 450 kW. Furthermore, the target power setting unit 110 knows that the power generation amount on a sunny day at site B is 50 kW, and determines the target power value to be 550 kW. The target power value for site C remains unchanged at 500 kW. With regard to setting the target power value in this manner, the service load prediction is not taken into consideration at this point, so the actual power consumption after the load balance setting may differ from the target power value.

[0058] Also, for example, when the power rates for the time period t differ between the locations, the target power value may be set so that the power consumption at the location with the lower power rate is higher, that is, so that the overall power rate approaches the lowest. For example, when the power rate is "location A = location B > location C", the target power value may be set so that the power consumption at location C is higher, with the total power consumption of locations A to C providing the target service being 100%, as "location A = 30%, location B = 30%, location C = 40%".

[0059] Also, the target power value may be set with ambiguous information such as "large or small." For example, in the above situation (site A = lower DR request, site B = sunny weather), the target power value may be set to "small" (reducing power consumption) for site A and "large" (increasing power consumption) for site B.

[0060] Also, for example, an increase or decrease value may be set as the target power value, such as decreasing the power consumption of site A by 20 kW and increasing the power consumption of site B by 20 kW. Also, a target power consumption amount (kWh) for each site may be set as the target power value.

[0061] The target power setting unit 110 notifies the load balance setting unit 130 of the target power value set as described above.

[0062] <s103> In S103, the load balance setting unit 130 calculates parameters (load balance) to be set in the GSLB device 200 based on the predicted load of the service at time t predicted by the service load prediction unit 120, the target power value set by the target power setting unit 110, the load-power consumption correspondence table stored in the load-power consumption correspondence table storage unit 140, and information from the service load measurement unit 150, and sets the calculated parameters in the GSLB device 200.

[0063] The load-power consumption correspondence table records correspondence information between the load (e.g., the number of requests to a server per unit time) and the power consumption of the server, as shown in Fig. 8. The load may be, for example, a CPU usage rate. The service load measurement unit 150 measures the load for each server (e.g., the number of requests per unit time) and notifies the load balance setting unit 130 of the measured load.

[0064] For example, suppose that the load balance setting unit 130 receives from the target power setting unit 110 target power values ​​to reduce power consumption for site A by 20 kW and increase power consumption for site B by 20 kW, and also receives "200" as the service load at time t from the service load prediction unit 120. Also suppose that the current load received from the service load measurement unit 150 is "Server 2A at site A=60, Server 2B at site B=60, Server 2C at site C=60."

[0065] In this case, by referring to the load-power consumption correspondence table, the load balance setting unit 130 determines that in order to reduce the power consumption of site A by 20 kW, the load at site A (server 2A) needs to be reduced from 60 to 20, and that in order to increase the power consumption of site B by 20 kW, the load balance setting unit 130 determines that the load at site B (server 2B) needs to be reduced from 60 to 100.

[0066] Furthermore, since the load prediction for the entire service is 200, the load balance setting unit 130 determines that the load on site C (server 2C) needs to be 200-20-100=80. In other words, the ratio of the number of requests at sites A, B, and C is site A:site B:site C=20:100:80=1:5:4.

[0067] Therefore, the load balance setting unit 130 calculates "site A:site B:site C=1:5:4" as the parameter (weight of the number of requests) to be set in the GSLB device 200, and sets this in the GSLB device 200. The GSLB device 200 that received the setting executes request distribution according to the setting.

[0068] Note that any or all of the service load prediction value, the load-power consumption correspondence table, and the current service load value may not be used. In other words, any or all of the service load prediction unit 120, the load-power consumption correspondence table storage unit 140, and the service load measurement unit 150 may not be provided.

[0069] In the case where the service load prediction value, the load-power consumption correspondence table, and the current service load value are not used, for example, if the load balance setting unit 130 sets the target power values ​​to "small" (reducing power consumption) for site A and "large" (increasing power consumption) for site B, the load balance setting unit 130 changes the parameter values ​​set in the GSLB device 200 by a certain determined value. For example, if the weights before the change are "site A:site B:site C=3:3:4", the weights after the change are set to "site A:site B:site C=2:4:4".

[0070] Furthermore, the load balance setting unit 130 may input service requirements (SLA, SLO, etc.) of a target service, and the load balance setting unit 130 may use the service requirements as constraints to calculate parameters to be set in the GSLB device 200. For example, when the service requirement constraints are not used and the weights are "site A:site B:site C=0:2:3", if the service requirements dictate that at least site A and site B must be included in the allocation destinations from the standpoint of availability or reliability, the load balance setting unit 130 may set the weights to, for example, "site A:site B:site C=1:1:3".

[0071] In the above example, the GSLB device 200 transfers the load between the servers in the form of request distribution control, but the method of load transfer is not limited to this. For example, when it is desired to transfer the load of the server 2A to the server 2B, the load balance setting unit 130 may instruct the servers 2A and 2B to transfer the virtual machine operating on the server 2A to the server 2B by live migration.

[0072] Furthermore, in the above example, load control is performed only on the server, but power control may be performed on the associated equipment 4 (air conditioning, lighting, etc.) in addition to the control on the server.

[0073] For example, when a lowering DR request is made to base A, but the power consumption cannot be reduced sufficiently to meet the lowering DR request only by controlling the load of the server 2A, the load balance setting unit 130 instructs the monitoring and controlling device 5A of base A to raise the set temperature of the air conditioning in the server room by a predetermined amount (for example, 1° C.). The monitoring and controlling device 5A may automatically control the air conditioning according to the instruction, or an operator may manually control the air conditioning by looking at the instruction displayed on the monitoring and controlling device 5A.

[0074] (Effects of the embodiment) According to the technology of this embodiment, in a service provision system in which services are provided by servers installed at multiple locations, it is possible to quickly control the increase and decrease of power consumption in response to requests for an increase or decrease in power consumption.

[0075] That is, in this embodiment, for example, a business operator can utilize a GSLB device to control the server load of users, thereby controlling energy consumption and realizing the generation of negative positive watts and maximization of the utilization rate of renewable energy.

[0076] (Summary of the embodiment) This specification describes at least the control device, control method, and program described in the following sections. (Section 1) A control device for controlling power consumption in a service providing system that provides services by servers provided at multiple locations that are geographically distributed, comprising: a target power setting unit that sets a target power value for a base station in which the server is installed based on a request for increasing or decreasing power consumption at the base station; a load balance setting unit that shifts loads among a plurality of servers based on the target power value; A control device comprising: (Section 2) The load balance setting unit performs the load shift by setting a weight for distribution to a wide area load distribution device that controls distribution of requests in the service providing system. 2. The control device according to claim 1. (Section 3) The load balance setting unit controls power consumption of the associated equipment of the base in addition to the load shifting. 3. The control device according to claim 1 or 2. (Section 4) The load balance setting unit performs the load shifting using service requirements of the service as constraints. 5. A control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. (Section 5) A method for controlling power consumption in a service providing system that provides services by servers provided at multiple locations that are geographically distributed, comprising: a target power setting step of setting a target power value for a base station where the server is installed based on a request for increasing or decreasing power consumption at the base station; a load balancing step of shifting loads among a plurality of servers based on the target power value; A control method comprising: (Section 6) A program for causing a computer to function as each part of the control device described in any one of claims 1 to 4.

[0077] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to such a specific embodiment, and various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0078] 1A Power Generation Section 2A, 2B, 2C servers 3A power distribution section 4A Ancillary Equipment 5A Monitoring and control equipment 10A power grid 100 Load control device 110 Target power setting unit 120 Service Load Prediction Department 130 Load balance setting section 140 Load-power consumption correspondence table storage section 150 Service Load Measurement Department 200 GSLB Equipment 300 Network 400 client terminals 1000 Drive Device 1001 Recording media 1002 Auxiliary storage device 1003 Memory device 1004 CPU 1005 Interface device 1006 Display device 1007 Input Device 1008 Output device

Claims

1. A control device for controlling power consumption in a service providing system that provides services by servers provided at multiple locations that are geographically distributed, comprising: a target power setting unit that sets a target power value for the base station based on a request for increasing or decreasing power consumption at the base station where the server is installed, a power rate at the base station, and an amount of power generation at the base station; a load balance setting unit that shifts loads among a plurality of servers based on the target power value; A control device comprising:

2. The load balance setting unit controls power consumption of the associated equipment of the base in addition to the load shifting. The control device according to claim 1 .

3. The load balance setting unit performs the load shifting using service requirements of the service as constraints.

3. A control device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. A method for controlling power consumption in a service providing system that provides services by servers provided at multiple locations that are geographically distributed, comprising: a target power setting step of setting a target power value for the base station based on a request for increasing or decreasing power consumption at the base station where the server is installed, a power rate at the base station, and an amount of power generation at the base station; a load balancing step of shifting loads among a plurality of servers based on the target power value; A control method comprising:

5. A program for causing a computer to function as each unit in the control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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