Blade server power control system and method, and blade server

By introducing the entire machine management control module and redundant power supply architecture into the blade server, the power consumption equalization and power redundancy of the multi-blade node system are achieved, which solves the problem of power consumption imbalance and heat dissipation in traditional blade servers, and improves the system Stability and reliability.

WO2024255191A1PCT designated stage expired Publication Date: 2024-12-19INSPUR SUZHOU INTELLIGENT TECH CO LTD
View PDF 6 Cites 0 Cited by

Patent Information

Application Number
PCT/CN2023/141186
Authority / Receiving Office
WO · WO
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2023-06-13
Filing Date
2023-12-22
Publication Date
2024-12-19

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Traditional blade servers lack the power balance and power redundancy of the entire machine power supply unit in multi-blade node systems, and the cold plate power consumption control is unreasonable, resulting in prominent heat dissipation problems.

Method used

Design a blade server power control system, monitor the power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module through the entire machine management control module, balance it to multiple power units, and adopt a redundant power supply architecture in case of failure to adjust Coolant flow rate and power supply for power balanced and redundant power supply.

Benefits of technology

It improves the stability and reliability of the blade server, improves the cold plate liquid cooling and multi-node adaptability and control capabilities, and solves the problem of unbalanced heat dissipation.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

Smart Images

  • Figure CN2023141186_19122024_PF_FP_ABST
    Figure CN2023141186_19122024_PF_FP_ABST
Patent Text Reader

Abstract

The present application relates to the field of servers, and in particular to a blade server power control system and method, and a blade server. The system comprises: a plurality of blade nodes; a cold plate which exchanges heat with each blade node, there being a cooling liquid in the cold plate; a liquid cooling module used for circulating the cooling liquid in each cold plate; a plurality of power supply units used for supplying power to the plurality of blade nodes and the liquid cooling module; and a system management and control module communicationally connected to each blade node, the liquid cooling module and each power supply unit, and used for monitoring the power consumption of each blade node and of the liquid cooling module and uniformly distributing the power consumption to the plurality of power supply units. According to the solution of the present application, the power consumption balance of system power supply units is achieved, the stability and reliability of a blade server are improved, and cold plate liquid cooling and multi-node adaptability and regulation and control capability are improved.
Need to check novelty before this filing date? Find Prior Art

Description

Blade server power control system, method and blade server

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application filed with the Patent Office of China on June 13, 2023, with application number 202310699361.9 and application name “A Blade Server Power Control System, Method and Blade Server”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the field of servers, and in particular to a blade server power control system, method, and blade server. Background Art

[0004] A blade server (also known as a blade server) is a server unit that can be mounted on multiple cards within a standard-height rack-mount chassis, achieving high availability and density. Its primary structure consists of a large chassis that accommodates numerous blade nodes, each of which is essentially a system motherboard. While blade servers are more space-efficient than rack-mount servers, they also present more significant heat dissipation challenges, often requiring large, powerful fans within the chassis to dissipate heat.

[0005] At present, although traditional blade servers have introduced cold plate liquid cooling technology (i.e., using working fluid as a medium for intermediate heat transfer to transfer heat from the hot zone to a distant place for cooling), this method has the following defects: it is not advantageously adapted for multi-blade node server systems, the power consumption balance of the entire power supply unit (Power Supply Unit, referred to as PSU) is not achieved, and power redundancy between multi-blade node servers is not achieved. In addition, the power consumption of the cold plate is not reasonably considered in the load control of the power supply unit, and therefore it is in urgent need of improvement.

[0006] Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of this, it is necessary to provide a blade server power control system, method and blade server to address the above technical problems.

[0008] According to a first aspect of the present application, a blade server power control system is provided, the system comprising:

[0009] Multiple blade nodes;

[0010] A cold plate that exchanges heat with each blade node and contains coolant;

[0011] a liquid cooling module for circulating cooling liquid within each cold plate;

[0012] Multiple power supply units for supplying power to multiple blade nodes and liquid cooling modules;

[0013] The whole machine management control module is connected to each blade node, liquid cooling module and each power supply unit for monitoring the power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module and distributing the power consumption evenly to multiple power supply units.

[0014] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module obtains the first power consumption by acquiring the current value and the voltage value of each blade node.

[0015] In some embodiments, the input end of the liquid cooling module is provided with a first current sensor and a first voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the second power consumption through data collected by the first current sensor and the first voltage sensor.

[0016] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to obtain a third power consumption of the whole-machine management control module itself and a fourth power consumption of peripheral components of the blade server.

[0017] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further used to calculate the sum of all first power consumptions, second power consumptions, third power consumptions and fourth power consumptions to obtain the total power consumption, and use the ratio of the total power consumption to the number of power supply units currently in operation as the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0018] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to recalculate the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit in response to detecting a first power consumption increase corresponding to a certain blade node.

[0019] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is also used to respond to monitoring a first power consumption increase corresponding to a certain blade node, and then increase the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption increase before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0020] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to increase the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node through the liquid cooling module based on the increase in the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module.

[0021] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to recalculate the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit in response to detecting a decrease in the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node.

[0022] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0023] In response to monitoring a first power consumption reduction corresponding to a blade node, before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is reduced based on the first power consumption reduction.

[0024] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0025] Based on the second power consumption reduction of the liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

[0026] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0027] Determine the coolant flow rate of the liquid cooling module according to the following formula;

[0028] Wherein, μ represents the coolant flow rate, n represents the number of nodes, Pn represents the first power consumption, PL represents the second power consumption, PC represents the third power consumption, PW represents the fourth power consumption, PFn represents the useful power consumption of the nth blade node for actual computing, σ represents the heat loss of the liquid cooling module and the cold plate module, ρ represents the coolant density, t represents the preset control monitoring time of the liquid cooling module, ΔK represents the temperature change of the coolant compared to the most recent control, and c represents the specific heat capacity of the coolant;

[0029] The liquid cooling module is adjusted to output coolant at the determined coolant flow rate.

[0030] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0031] In response to a power supply unit failure, the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units that have not failed.

[0032] In some embodiments, the multiple power supply units adopt a redundant power supply architecture, wherein the redundant power supply architecture includes at least one backup power supply unit.

[0033] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0034] In response to a power supply unit failure, a backup power supply unit is used to replace the failed power supply unit, and the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units and the running backup power supply unit.

[0035] In some embodiments, each blade node includes a baseboard management controller, which is used to obtain the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node and send them to the whole machine management control module.

[0036] In some embodiments, each blade node includes a second current sensor and a second voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node through the second current sensor and the second voltage sensor.

[0037] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0038] The output voltage and output current of each power supply unit are adjusted to the same value, thereby evenly distributing the power consumption to multiple power supply units.

[0039] According to a second aspect of the present application, a blade server power control method is provided, the method comprising:

[0040] Obtaining a first power consumption of each blade node;

[0041] Obtaining a second power consumption of a liquid cooling module that provides heat dissipation for all blade nodes;

[0042] Acquire a third power consumption of the whole-machine management control module and a fourth power consumption of peripheral components of the blade server;

[0043] calculating a total power consumption based on the first power consumption, the second power consumption, the third power consumption, and the fourth power consumption;

[0044] Evenly distribute the total power consumption across multiple power supply units.

[0045] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0046] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node increases, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

[0047] In some embodiments, before returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node, the method further includes:

[0048] The second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is increased year-on-year based on the first power consumption increase.

[0049] In some embodiments, the step of increasing the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption increase also includes:

[0050] Based on the increase in the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a certain blade node is increased through the liquid cooling module.

[0051] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0052] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node decreases, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

[0053] In some embodiments, before returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node, the method further includes:

[0054] The second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module is reduced year-on-year based on the first power consumption reduction amount.

[0055] In some embodiments, the step of reducing the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption reduction also includes:

[0056] Based on the second power consumption reduction of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

[0057] According to a second aspect of the present application, the present application provides a blade server, which includes the above blade server power control system.

[0058] The above-mentioned blade server power control system has at least the following beneficial effects: it advantageously adapts to the multi-blade nodes of the blade server, monitors the power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module through the whole machine management control module, and evenly distributes the power consumption to multiple power supply units, thereby achieving balanced power consumption of the whole machine power supply unit, improving the stability and reliability of the blade server, and improving the cold plate liquid cooling and multi-node adaptability and regulation capabilities.

[0059] In addition, the present application also provides a blade server power control method and a blade server, which can also achieve the above technical effects and will not be described in detail here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0060] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other embodiments can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0061] FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of a blade server power control system provided by one embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG2 is a flow chart of a blade server power control method provided by one embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG3 is a schematic diagram showing the working principle of a whole-machine management control module according to another embodiment of the present application;

[0064] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a whole-machine management control module dynamically regulating the power consumption balance of a PSU provided by another embodiment of the present application.

[0065] [Description of Figure Reference Numerals] 100: Blade server power control system; 101: Blade node; 102: Cold plate; 103: Liquid cooling module; 104: Power supply unit; 105: Whole-machine management control module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0066] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of this application more clear, the embodiments of this application are further described in detail below in combination with specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0067] It should be noted that all expressions using "first" and "second" in the embodiments of this application are for the purpose of distinguishing two non-identical entities with the same name or non-identical parameters. It can be seen that "first" and "second" are only for the convenience of expression and should not be understood as limitations on the embodiments of this application. Subsequent embodiments will not explain this one by one.

[0068] In one embodiment, as shown in FIG1 , the present application provides a blade server power control system 100. Specifically, the system includes the following components:

[0069] Multiple blade nodes 101;

[0070] In this embodiment, the blade node 101 refers to a computing board used to provide computing power. For example, the blade node 101 is used to provide network, data computing, image processing, storage and other services. In the specific implementation process, the functions and configurations of different blade nodes may be the same or different. Multiple blade nodes 101 are inserted into a standard height chassis as follows (1U, 2U, etc.). Multiple blade nodes are used to implement a low-cost server platform of HAHD (High Availability High Density) to handle high-density computing tasks. Please continue to refer to Figure 1, which shows n blade nodes 101, where n is a positive integer greater than or equal to two. In the specific implementation process, the number of blade nodes 101 can be set according to the business scenario or user needs. This application does not limit the specific number of blade nodes and is only used for illustration.

[0071] A cold plate 102 for heat exchange with each blade node 101 , wherein the cold plate 102 contains a coolant (not shown in the figure);

[0072] In this embodiment, the cold plate 102 is filled with liquid cooling, that is, the working fluid is used as the medium for intermediate heat transmission to transfer heat from the hot zone to a distant place for cooling. The cold plate 102 and the coolant of this application both adopt the existing cold plate liquid cooling technology.

[0073] a liquid cooling module 103 for circulating cooling liquid within each cold plate 102;

[0074] In this embodiment, the liquid cooling module 103 can realize the cooling function of the coolant, for example, reducing the coolant from a relatively high temperature to a pre-set relatively low temperature. The liquid cooling module 103 is usually arranged outside the heat dissipation area and can drive the coolant to circulate between the heat dissipation area and the non-heat dissipation area.

[0075] Multiple power supply units 104, used to supply power to the multiple blade nodes 101 and the liquid cooling module 103;

[0076] In this embodiment, the power supply unit 104, namely the PSU, is used to provide power for the server. It converts high-voltage AC power into stable low-voltage DC power to supply various electrical components of the server, such as the motherboard, blade nodes, air-cooled heat sinks, liquid cooling modules, etc.

[0077] The whole machine management control module 105 is in communication with each blade node 101 , the liquid cooling module 103 and each power supply unit, and is used to monitor the power consumption of each blade node 101 and the liquid cooling module 103 , and evenly distribute the power consumption to multiple power supply units 104 .

[0078] A blade server power control system in this embodiment is advantageously adapted to the multiple blade nodes of the blade server. The power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module is monitored through the whole machine management control module, and the power consumption is evenly distributed to multiple power supply units, thereby achieving balanced power consumption of the whole machine power supply units, improving the stability and reliability of the blade server, and enhancing the cold plate liquid cooling and multi-node adaptability and regulation capabilities.

[0079] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module 105 obtains the first power consumption by acquiring the current value and the voltage value of each blade node 101 .

[0080] In some embodiments, the input end of the liquid cooling module 103 is provided with a first current sensor and a first voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module 105 obtains the second power consumption through data collected by the first current sensor and the first voltage sensor.

[0081] In some examples, the whole-machine management control module 105 is further configured to obtain a third power consumption of the whole-machine management control module 105 itself and a fourth power consumption of peripheral components of the blade server.

[0082] In this embodiment, peripheral components refer to components shared by blade nodes 101 in the blade server other than the liquid cooling module 103 and the whole machine management control module 105 mentioned above. For example, peripheral components may be hard disks, hard disk backplanes, and fans shared by multiple blade nodes 101. The corresponding fourth power consumption refers to the total power consumption of the hard disks, hard disk backplanes, and fans.

[0083] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0084] Calculating the sum of all first power consumptions, second power consumptions, third power consumptions, and fourth power consumptions to obtain total power consumption;

[0085] The ratio of the total power consumption to the number of power supply units currently in operation is taken as the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0086] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0087] In response to monitoring a first power consumption increase corresponding to a certain blade node 101 , the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit are recalculated.

[0088] In this embodiment, when a single blade node experiences a burst of traffic, power balancing intervention is performed in a timely manner to achieve flow balance and ensure data reliability during the service operation of the server, as well as the reliability and life of the stable operation of the server itself.

[0089] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0090] In response to monitoring a first power consumption increase corresponding to a blade node 101 , before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module 103 is increased based on the first power consumption increase.

[0091] In this embodiment, the liquid cooling module 103 can make corresponding adjustments to the increased power consumption of the blade node, timely improve the cooling demand, solve the problem of untimely heat dissipation of the server, and significantly improve the timeliness and efficiency of heat dissipation.

[0092] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0093] Based on the increase in the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module 103 , the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate 102 corresponding to a certain blade node 101 is increased through the liquid cooling module 103 .

[0094] In this embodiment, in response to the increase in power of blade nodes, the corresponding blade nodes are quickly cooled down in a targeted manner, which can effectively avoid the problems of local high temperature or uneven heat dissipation of the entire server.

[0095] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0096] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node 101 is reduced, the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit are recalculated.

[0097] In this embodiment, when the traffic of a single blade node decreases, power balancing intervention is performed in a timely manner to achieve flow balance, thereby avoiding waste of resources and ensuring data reliability during the service operation of the server, as well as the reliability and life of the stable operation of the server itself.

[0098] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0099] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a blade node 101 is reduced, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module 103 is reduced based on the first power consumption reduction before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0100] In this embodiment, the liquid cooling module 103 can make corresponding adjustments while taking into account the reduction of power consumption of the blade node, thereby timely reducing the demand for cooling, avoiding waste of resources, and improving heat dissipation efficiency.

[0101] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0102] Based on the second power consumption reduction of the liquid cooling module 103 , the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate 102 corresponding to a certain blade node 101 is reduced through the liquid cooling module 103 .

[0103] In this embodiment, in response to a situation where the power of a blade node is reduced, the cooling capacity of the corresponding blade node is reduced in a targeted manner, thereby avoiding the problem of uneven heat dissipation.

[0104] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0105] Determine the coolant flow rate of the liquid cooling module according to the following formula;

[0106] Wherein, μ represents the coolant flow rate, n represents the number of nodes, Pn represents the first power consumption, PL represents the second power consumption, PC represents the third power consumption, PW represents the fourth power consumption, PFn represents the useful power consumption of the nth blade node for actual computing, σ represents the heat loss of the liquid cooling module and the cold plate module, ρ represents the coolant density, t represents the preset control monitoring time of the liquid cooling module, ΔK represents the temperature change of the coolant compared to the most recent control, and c represents the specific heat capacity of the coolant;

[0107] The liquid cooling module is adjusted to output coolant at the determined coolant flow rate.

[0108] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0109] In response to a power supply unit failure, the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units that have not failed.

[0110] In some embodiments, the plurality of power supply units 104 adopt a redundant power supply architecture, wherein the redundant power supply architecture includes at least one backup power supply unit.

[0111] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0112] In response to a power supply unit failure, a backup power supply unit is used to replace the failed power supply unit, and the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units and the running backup power supply unit.

[0113] In some embodiments, each blade node 101 includes a baseboard management controller, which is configured to obtain the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node 101 and send the obtained values ​​to the whole-machine management control module 105 .

[0114] In this embodiment, since each blade node usually has a separate baseboard management controller, the baseboard management controller itself has the function of monitoring each device on the node. Current, voltage and other data are directly obtained from the baseboard management controller, avoiding the need to individually modify the blade nodes. This can be achieved using existing conventional blade servers, which helps save costs.

[0115] In some embodiments, each blade node 101 includes a second current sensor and a second voltage sensor, and the whole-machine management control module 105 obtains the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node 101 through the second current sensor and the second voltage sensor.

[0116] In this embodiment, in order to ensure the stability of power control, current and voltage sensors are set separately to improve safety. When the baseboard management controller is not working properly or has not started normally, it can still ensure that the power consumption of the entire machine can be evenly distributed. When the baseboard management controller is working normally, it switches to the baseboard management controller corresponding to the blade to obtain accurate power consumption, which has better stability.

[0117] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module 105 is further configured to:

[0118] The output voltage and output current of each power supply unit are adjusted to the same value, thereby evenly distributing the power consumption to the multiple power supply units 104 .

[0119] In some embodiments, referring to FIG. 2 , the present application further provides a blade server power control method 200 . Specifically, the method includes the following steps:

[0120] Step 201: Obtain a first power consumption of each blade node;

[0121] Step 202: Obtain a second power consumption of a liquid cooling module that provides heat dissipation for all blade nodes.

[0122] Step 203: Obtain a third power consumption of the whole-machine management control module and a fourth power consumption of peripheral components of the blade server.

[0123] Step 204, calculating the total power consumption based on the first power consumption, the second power consumption, the third power consumption, and the fourth power consumption;

[0124] Step 205 : Evenly distribute the total power consumption to multiple power supply units.

[0125] A blade server power control method of this embodiment is advantageously adapted to the multiple blade nodes of the blade server, monitors the power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module through the whole machine management control module, and evenly distributes the power consumption to multiple power supply units, thereby achieving balanced power consumption of the whole machine power supply unit, improving the stability and reliability of the blade server, and improving the cold plate liquid cooling and multi-node adaptability and regulation capabilities.

[0126] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0127] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node increases, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

[0128] In some embodiments, returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node further includes:

[0129] Before returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is increased year-on-year based on the first power consumption increase.

[0130] In some embodiments, the step of increasing the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption increase also includes:

[0131] Based on the increase in the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a certain blade node is increased through the liquid cooling module.

[0132] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0133] In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node decreases, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

[0134] In some embodiments, returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node further includes:

[0135] Before returning to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node, the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module is reduced year-on-year based on the first power consumption reduction amount.

[0136] In some embodiments, the step of reducing the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption reduction also includes:

[0137] Based on the second power consumption reduction of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

[0138] In another embodiment, to facilitate understanding of the solution of the present application, this embodiment takes a blade server including n blade nodes as an example to explain the solution of the present application in detail. A blade server power control system is provided, wherein the power input of the blade server is jointly supported by n PSUs. In addition, modules commonly used between blades may also be involved, such as hard disks, hard disk backplanes, fans, cold plates, and a whole-machine management and control module. On the basis of the original air-cooled multi-node system, the whole-machine management and control module implements heat dissipation control of the cold plate, including controlling fluid replenishment and coolant flow rate management. The power supply of the cold liquid module is also controlled by the whole-machine management and control module.

[0139] As shown in Figure 3, the operating principle of the system management and control module is as follows: Multi-node blade servers utilize multiple PSUs, each powered individually and managed and power-balanced by the system management and control module. Balanced power output across the PSUs during normal server operation ensures optimal server operation. In the event of traffic bursts on a single node, timely power balancing intervention is implemented to achieve even power distribution, ensuring data reliability during server operations and the reliability and longevity of the server itself. To ensure data stability, power redundancy is implemented, ranging from N+1 to N+N. N represents the number of PSUs required to support normal system operation, and the remaining digits represent the number of PSUs that can be used in the event of malfunction. To ensure normal operation of cold-plate servers, in addition to ensuring PSU power distribution, the server system and the system management and control module must implement redundant design support. This implementation must not affect power balancing within the blade servers. When redundancy is activated, the system management and control module must rapidly rebalance power across multiple PSUs.

[0140] The following describes in detail the specific functions of the whole machine management control module:

[0141] In practical applications, the whole machine management control module can be used to detect the total power consumption required by the blade nodes and the liquid cooling module.

[0142] Detecting the power consumption of blade nodes is already a mature solution. Usually, the total power consumption of each node is calculated through the sensor on the BMC chip (baseboard controller) of each node, and the relevant data is transmitted to the whole machine management and control module through the signal line. This application needs to increase the power consumption detection of the liquid cooling module. For the liquid cooling module, it only needs to realize the cooling function of the coolant, so the sensor only needs to be equipped with a temperature sensor under standard circumstances. In order to achieve accurate judgment of its power consumption, a current sensor is added to the input end of the entire liquid cooling module. Since its power supply voltage is constant (usually set at 12V DC), the power consumption of the liquid cooling module can be calculated by the whole machine management and control module.

[0143] It should be noted that using the above calculation method will result in more accurate power consumption, and the entire machine management and control module will also more accurately obtain the power consumption of each blade node and liquid cooling module. If the node's BMC module is not functioning properly or has not yet started properly, the entire machine's power consumption can be obtained by total output current and input voltage. Since the PSU's power consumption output is implemented through the entire machine management and control module, the entire machine management and control module can directly obtain relevant power consumption data in this situation. When the BMC is functioning normally, it will switch to the above-mentioned state of accurate power consumption acquisition for each blade.

[0144] In actual applications, the whole machine management control module can also be used to distribute power consumption to all working PSUs.

[0145] The output voltage and input voltage of each PSU are usually the same. In this case, to achieve balanced power consumption, it is only necessary to achieve current balance. After obtaining the value of the total power consumption M, the whole-machine management and control module obtains the total number of PSUs currently in place N and distributes the current evenly to each PSU. At this time, the power consumption that each PSU needs to bear is: M / N, and the input current it needs to withstand is: (M / N) / the input voltage of the computer room. It should be noted that the input voltage of the computer room is determined by the PSU support and the actual situation of the computer room, and there are many possibilities such as 110V, 220V, and 380V.

[0146] In actual applications, if the power consumption of a blade changes suddenly, the whole machine management control module can dynamically adjust the power consumption and current sharing among the PSUs.

[0147] Due to differences in the business flows running between blades, there may be a sudden change in the power consumption of a blade node. A sudden decrease in power consumption has little impact on the entire machine, and the possibility of damage to the entire system is low. However, if the power consumption of the entire system suddenly increases, without the intervention of the entire machine management module, the current of a single PSU may be too high, causing damage to the PSU or a system crash, which greatly affects the deployment and use of services. To avoid this, the power consumption of the entire machine is controlled by the entire machine management control module, and no single node itself uses its corresponding PSU. In other words, the power consumption resources of the PSU are treated as a whole and can be regarded as a power pool. The required power consumption values ​​are all obtained from this power pool.

[0148] As shown in Figure 4, when the power consumption demanded by a node's components suddenly increases, the node's current sensor immediately detects the current change in the demand loop. This information is then transmitted to the baseboard controller (BMC) and sent back to the system management and control module. The system management and control module then begins increasing power supply, gradually increasing the input current and distributing it evenly across the PSUs. However, this gradual increase may still not meet the actual power consumption requirements of the node with the increased power demand. In this case, the current increase strategy must adjust the system's input current accordingly based on the current increase value reported by the BMC. To ensure that the system's services do not experience downtime or outages due to insufficient power consumption, the current needs to increase slightly faster than the required power consumption. Once the current reaches the required value, the current is adjusted back down.

[0149] In actual applications, the whole machine management control module can regulate the flow rate and fan speed of the liquid cooling module.

[0150] When the power consumption of the blade node changes, its corresponding heat dissipation demand will also change accordingly. At this time, the cooling liquid module will synchronously increase the flow rate of the cooling liquid or the speed of the cooling fan. In this process, in order to increase or decrease the power supply accordingly, the current of the cooling liquid module needs to change synchronously. In order to achieve this goal and ensure that the liquid cooling module does not become a bottleneck of power consumption limitation when the power consumption required by the node increases, the current increased by the above-mentioned whole machine control management module needs to cover both the power consumption required by the node and the power consumption required to drive the heat dissipation work. In addition, the increased current margin also needs to cover the current required for air cooling and liquid cooling heat dissipation control, and after a round of control is completed, it must be synchronously called back to the appropriate current to avoid power consumption waste and excessive current supply, which will lead to insufficient overall power consumption due to the need to increase power consumption again in the future, and avoid abnormalities in subsequent control.

[0151] In actual applications, if a PSU fails, the whole machine management control module dynamically adjusts the power consumption and current sharing.

[0152] Power redundancy is achieved using existing technologies, but in addition to the power supply required by the server nodes, the power supply required by the liquid cooling module also needs to be considered.

[0153] This embodiment provides a blade server power control system that is advantageously adapted to a multi-node server system to achieve balanced power consumption of the entire PSU and power redundancy between multi-node servers to ensure high reliability and security of server products.

[0154] In some embodiments, the present application also provides a blade server, which, in addition to including a standard machine chassis, a hard disk, a hard disk backplane, a fan, and a network connection module shared by multiple blade nodes, also includes the blade server power control system of the above embodiment, the system including: multiple blade nodes; a cold plate that heat-exchanges with each blade node, and the cold plate contains coolant; a liquid cooling module for circulating the coolant in each cold plate; multiple power supply units for powering multiple blade nodes and liquid cooling modules; a whole-machine management control module that is in communication with each blade node, the liquid cooling module, and each power supply unit, for monitoring the power consumption of each blade node and the liquid cooling module, and evenly distributing the power consumption to multiple power supply units.

[0155] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module obtains the first power consumption by acquiring the current value and the voltage value of each blade node.

[0156] In some embodiments, the input end of the liquid cooling module is provided with a first current sensor and a first voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the second power consumption through data collected by the first current sensor and the first voltage sensor.

[0157] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to obtain a third power consumption of the whole-machine management control module itself and a fourth power consumption of peripheral components of the blade server.

[0158] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further used to calculate the sum of all first power consumptions, second power consumptions, third power consumptions and fourth power consumptions to obtain the total power consumption, and use the ratio of the total power consumption to the number of power supply units currently in operation as the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0159] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to recalculate the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit in response to detecting a first power consumption increase corresponding to a certain blade node.

[0160] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is also used to respond to monitoring a first power consumption increase corresponding to a certain blade node, and then increase the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption increase before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

[0161] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to increase the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node through the liquid cooling module based on the increase in the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module.

[0162] In some embodiments, the whole-machine management control module is further configured to recalculate the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit in response to detecting a decrease in the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node.

[0163] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0164] In response to monitoring a first power consumption reduction corresponding to a blade node, before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is reduced based on the first power consumption reduction.

[0165] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0166] Based on the second power consumption reduction of the liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to a blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

[0167] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0168] Determine the coolant flow rate of the liquid cooling module according to the following formula;

[0169] Wherein, μ represents the coolant flow rate, n represents the number of nodes, Pn represents the first power consumption, PL represents the second power consumption, PC represents the third power consumption, PW represents the fourth power consumption, PFn represents the useful power consumption of the nth blade node for actual computing, σ represents the heat loss of the liquid cooling module and the cold plate module, ρ represents the coolant density, t represents the preset control monitoring time of the liquid cooling module, ΔK represents the temperature change of the coolant compared to the most recent control, and c represents the specific heat capacity of the coolant;

[0170] The liquid cooling module is adjusted to output coolant at the determined coolant flow rate.

[0171] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0172] In response to a power supply unit failure, the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units that have not failed.

[0173] In some embodiments, the multiple power supply units adopt a redundant power supply architecture, wherein the redundant power supply architecture includes at least one backup power supply unit.

[0174] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0175] In response to a power supply unit failure, a backup power supply unit is used to replace the failed power supply unit, and the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units and the running backup power supply unit.

[0176] In some embodiments, each blade node includes a baseboard management controller, which is used to obtain the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node and send them to the whole machine management control module.

[0177] In some embodiments, each blade node includes a second current sensor and a second voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node through the second current sensor and the second voltage sensor.

[0178] In some embodiments, the whole machine management control module is further configured to:

[0179] The output voltage and output current of each power supply unit are adjusted to the same value, thereby evenly distributing the power consumption to multiple power supply units.

[0180] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined arbitrarily. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0181] The above embodiments merely represent several implementation methods of the present application. While the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention. It should be noted that a person skilled in the art could make various modifications and improvements without departing from the spirit of the present application, all of which fall within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present patent application shall be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A blade server power control system, characterized in that: The system comprises: Multiple blade nodes; A cold plate for heat exchange with each blade node, wherein a coolant is contained in the cold plate; A liquid cooling module, used for circulating the cooling liquid in each of the cold plates; A plurality of power supply units, used for supplying power to the plurality of blade nodes and the liquid cooling module; The whole machine management control module is connected to each blade node, the liquid cooling module and each power supply unit for monitoring the power consumption of each blade node and the liquid cooling module and evenly distributing the power consumption to the multiple power supply units.

2. The blade server power control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module obtains the first power consumption by acquiring the current value and the voltage value of each blade node.

3. The blade server power control system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The input end of the liquid cooling module is provided with a first current sensor and a first voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the second power consumption through the data collected by the first current sensor and the first voltage sensor.

4. The blade server power control system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used to obtain the third power consumption of the whole machine working and the fourth power consumption of the peripheral components of the blade server working.

5. The blade server power control system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is further used for: Calculate the sum of all the first power consumption, the second power consumption, the third power consumption and the fourth power consumption to obtain a total power consumption; The ratio of the total power consumption to the number of power supply units currently in operation is used as the output power consumption of each power supply unit.

6. The blade server power control system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to monitoring that a first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node increases, the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit are recalculated.

7. The blade server power control system according to claim 6, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to monitoring a first power consumption increase corresponding to a blade node, before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is increased year-on-year based on the first power consumption increase.

8. The blade server power control system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: Based on the increase in the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to the certain blade node is increased through the liquid cooling module.

9. The blade server power control system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node is reduced, the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit are recalculated.

10. The blade server power control system according to claim 9, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to monitoring that a first power consumption corresponding to a blade node is reduced, before recalculating the total power consumption and the output power consumption of each power supply unit, the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is reduced year-on-year based on the first power consumption reduction.

11. The blade server power control system according to claim 10, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: Based on the second power consumption reduction of the liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to the certain blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

12. The blade server power control system according to claim 6 or 9, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: Determine the coolant flow rate of the liquid cooling module according to the following formula; Wherein, μ represents the coolant flow rate, n represents the number of nodes, Pn represents the first power consumption, PL represents the second power consumption, PC represents the third power consumption, PW represents the fourth power consumption, PFn represents the useful power consumption of the nth blade node for actual computing, σ represents the heat dissipation loss of the liquid cooling module and the cold plate module, ρ represents the coolant density, t represents the control monitoring time of the preset liquid cooling module, ΔK represents the temperature change of the coolant compared to the most recent control, and c represents the specific heat capacity of the coolant; The liquid cooling module is adjusted to output the cooling liquid at the determined cooling liquid flow rate.

13. The blade server power control system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to a power supply unit failure, the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units that have not failed.

14. The blade server power control system according to claim 5, characterized in that: The multiple power supply units adopt a redundant power supply architecture, wherein the redundant power supply architecture includes at least one backup power supply unit.

15. The blade server power control system according to claim 14, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is also used for: In response to a power supply unit failure, the backup power supply unit is used to replace the failed power supply unit, and the total power consumption is evenly distributed to the remaining power supply units and the running backup power supply unit.

16. The blade server power control system according to claim 2, characterized in that: Each blade node includes a baseboard management controller, and the baseboard management controller is used to obtain the current value and voltage value of the corresponding blade node and send them to the whole machine management control module.

17. The blade server power control system according to claim 2, characterized in that: Each blade node includes a second current sensor and a second voltage sensor, and the whole machine management control module obtains the current value and the voltage value of the corresponding blade node through the second current sensor and the second voltage sensor.

18. The blade server power control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The whole machine management control module is further used for: The output voltage and output current of each power supply unit are adjusted to the same value, so that the power consumption is evenly distributed to the multiple power supply units.

19. A blade server power control method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Obtaining a first power consumption of each blade node; Acquire a second power consumption of a liquid cooling module that provides heat dissipation for all blade nodes; Acquire a third power consumption of the whole machine management control module and a fourth power consumption of the peripheral components of the blade server; calculating a total power consumption based on the first power consumption, the second power consumption, the third power consumption and the fourth power consumption; The total power consumption is evenly distributed to a plurality of power supply units.

20. The blade server power control method according to claim 19, characterized in that: The method further comprises: In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node increases, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

21. The blade server power control method according to claim 20, characterized in that: Before the step of returning to obtain the first power consumption of each blade node, the method further includes: The second power consumption of the liquid cooling module is increased year-on-year based on the first power consumption increase.

22. The blade server power control method according to claim 21, characterized in that: The step of increasing the second power consumption of the liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption increase year-on-year also includes: Based on the increase in the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to the certain blade node is increased through the liquid cooling module.

23. The blade server power control method according to claim 19, characterized in that: The method further comprises: In response to monitoring that the first power consumption corresponding to a certain blade node is reduced, the process returns to the step of obtaining the first power consumption of each blade node.

24. The blade server power control method according to claim 23, characterized in that: Before the step of returning to obtain the first power consumption of each blade node, the method further includes: The second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module is reduced year-on-year based on the first power consumption reduction amount.

25. The blade server power control method according to claim 24, characterized in that: The step of reducing the second power consumption of the corresponding liquid cooling module based on the first power consumption reduction amount year-on-year also includes: Based on the second power consumption reduction amount of the corresponding liquid cooling module, the cooling liquid flowing to the cold plate corresponding to the certain blade node is reduced through the liquid cooling module.

26. A blade server, characterized in that: The blade server comprises the blade server power control system according to any one of claims 1-18.

Citation Information

Patent Citations

  • Server liquid cooling heat radiation energy saving control system and method

    CN105302182A

  • Power supply equalization method for a server system a power supply equalization method thereof and a power supply

    CN109917894A

  • Multi-node server PSU access and energy consumption heat dissipation management structure and method

    CN114461041A

  • Liquid cooling control method and system, liquid cooling cabinet, electronic equipment and storage medium

    CN115686117A

  • Blade server power control system and method and blade server

    CN116430975A