Hypervisor Display Power Management in Virtualized Systems
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Applications executing within virtual machines fail to manage display power effectively, particularly in dimming video displays, due to the lack of direct communication facilities between guest and host operating systems, leading to incorrect dimming or volume attenuation in remote video displays.
Innovation Solution
A hypervisor in a first computer system receives a notification from the host operating system of a second computer system to dim a video display and forwards it to the guest OS, which then sends signals to prevent the host OS from executing the dimming command, ensuring proper power management and output control within virtualized environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a virtual machine executes applications that need to control display power, then the application can run in a virtualized environment, but the application cannot effectively manage display power due to lack of direct communication facilities between guest and host operating systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a hypervisor as an intermediary layer between the guest operating system and the host operating system. The hypervisor receives notifications from the host OS about display dimming commands and forwards them to the appropriate virtual machine's guest OS. This mediator enables communication without direct access, resolving the contradiction by allowing display power management in virtualized environments while maintaining the virtualization architecture.
2Loss of energy
If the host operating system receives a command to dim a video display, then power saving can be achieved, but the dimming may be incorrect or unintended when the display is being used by a virtual machine application
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the hypervisor monitors display dimming commands from the host OS and communicates with the guest OS to determine whether dimming should be applied. The system receives notifications about dimming commands, processes them through the virtualization layer, and only applies dimming when appropriate. This feedback loop ensures energy saving while maintaining reliable and accurate dimming control for virtual machine displays.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for display power management in a virtualized environment are disclosed. In accordance with one embodiment, a hypervisor that is executed by a first computer system receives a notification that a host operating system of a second computer system has received a command to dim a video display of the second computer system, and forwards the notification to a guest operating system of a virtual machine hosted by the first computer system. The hypervisor receives from the guest operating system a first signal that indicates that the hypervisor is to notify the host operating system to refrain from executing the command. The hypervisor then transmits a second signal that notifies the host operating system to refrain from executing the command.