Modeling power flow in computer and server systems

Design of computers and server systems is becoming increasingly focused on energy efficiency. Emerging processors and peripherals are designed specifically for energy efficiency rather than sheer computing power. Auxiliary components, such as power supplies and cooling, consume significant portion of the total power in computers. Understanding how power and energy are distributed within a computer is crucial for improving efficiency and relating processing performance and cost. The majority of modeling done on computers focuses on a particular subsystem, such as cooling. Full system models that combine all the relevant subsystems are nonexisting. One reason for this is the lack of models for the power conversion components and internal power flow in computing systems. In this paper, a methodology to model power flow within computing systems and servers is presented. Polynomial and rational functions are utilized for component modeling and, furthermore, to construct a system model for an example case.