Patents by Inventor Steven Wade Hunter

Steven Wade Hunter has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6996751
    Abstract: A method (and system) of reducing warranty costs includes discriminating between hardware- and software-induced problems or outages in a computer system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2001
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2006
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6978398
    Abstract: A method (and system) of reducing a time for a computer system to recover from a degradation of performance in a hardware or a software in at least one first node of the computer system, includes monitoring a state of the at least one first node, and based on the monitoring, transferring a state of the at least one first node to a second node prior to the degradation in performance of the hardware or the software of the at least one first node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 15, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2005
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6964539
    Abstract: A method for managing power consumption of multiple computer servers is disclosed. The number of computer servers required to meet a current workload demand is initially determined. Next, a thermally optimized configuration of powered-on computer servers to meet the current workload demand is determined. At least one computer server is powered on or powered off, based on the thermally optimized configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2005
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David John Bradley, Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6820215
    Abstract: In a method for automatically rejuvenating a component of a distributed data processing environment while minimizing the disruptive effects of the rejuvenation, a usage history for a distributed data processing environment is stored. The usage history describes multiple levels of overall usage of the distributed data processing environment over time. Also, health data relating to at least one component of the distributed data processing environment is received, and, in response, the health data is automatically utilized to determine a failure time within which that component is likely to require rejuvenation. In response to determining the failure time, the usage history is automatically utilized to identify an optimum rejuvenation time. In response to identifying the optimum rejuvenation time, that component is automatically rejuvenated according to the optimum rejuvenation time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2000
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2004
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6795928
    Abstract: A method for managing power consumption of multiple computer servers is disclosed. The current workload information and the current capacity information of a group of computer servers within a computer server pool are determined. A short term history and a long term history of the workload information are then built based on the determined workload information. Next, the information regarding short-term variations in workload is determined. Similarly, the information regarding long-term variations in workload is determined. Based on a combination of the above-mentioned determined short-term and long-term information, at least one of the computer servers is powered on or powered off.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2004
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David John Bradley, Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6629266
    Abstract: A method (and system) for increased software dependability, includes learning how to predict an outage of a software system running on a computer, and, based on the learning, predicting an imminent outage, and avoiding the outage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter, Thomas Dixon Pahel, Jr., Kalyanaraman Vaidyanathan, William Paul Zeggert
  • Publication number: 20030177406
    Abstract: A method for managing power consumption of multiple computer servers is disclosed. The number of computer servers required to meet a current workload demand is initially determined. Next, a thermally optimized configuration of powered-on computer servers to meet the current workload demand is determined. At least one computer server is powered on or powered off, based on the thermally optimized configuration.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2002
    Publication date: September 18, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David John Bradley, Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Publication number: 20030177165
    Abstract: A method for managing power consumption of multiple computer servers is disclosed. The current workload information and the current capacity information of a group of computer servers within a computer server pool are determined. A short term history and a long term history of the workload information are then built based on the determined workload information. Next, the information regarding short-term variations in workload is determined. Similarly, the information regarding long-term variations in workload is determined. Based on a combination of the above-mentioned determined short-term and long-term information, at least one of the computer servers is powered on or powered off.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 18, 2002
    Publication date: September 18, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: David John Bradley, Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Patent number: 6594784
    Abstract: A method of enhancing software dependability, includes measuring an elapsed time in a software system running on a computer, determining whether the elapsed time matches a threshold, and when the elapsed time matches the threshold, rejuvenating at least a portion of the software system to reduce the likelihood of an outage and without modifying an application running in the software system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2003
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Publication number: 20030055969
    Abstract: An improved system and method for performing power management on a distributed system. The system utilized to implement the present invention includes multiple servers for processing a set of tasks. The method of performing power management on a system first determines if the processing capacity of the system exceeds a predetermined workload. If the processing capacity exceeds a predetermined level, at least one of the multiple servers on the network is selected to be powered down and the tasks across the remaining servers are rebalanced. If the workload exceeds a predetermined processing capacity of the system and at least a server in a reduced power state may be powered up to a higher power state to increase the overall processing capacity of the system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 17, 2001
    Publication date: March 20, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Ralph Murray Begun, Steven Wade Hunter, Darryl C. Newell
  • Publication number: 20030037288
    Abstract: A method (and system) of reducing warranty costs includes discriminating between hardware- and software-induced problems or outages in a computer system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 15, 2001
    Publication date: February 20, 2003
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Publication number: 20030036882
    Abstract: A method (and system) of reducing a time for a computer system to recover from a degradation of performance in a hardware or a software in at least one first node of the computer system, includes monitoring a state of the at least one first node, and based on the monitoring, transferring a state of the at least one first node to a second node prior to the degradation in performance of the hardware or the software of the at least one first node.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 15, 2001
    Publication date: February 20, 2003
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Publication number: 20020087913
    Abstract: In a method for automatically rejuvenating a component of a distributed data processing environment while minimizing the disruptive effects of the rejuvenation, a usage history for a distributed data processing environment is stored. The usage history describes multiple levels of overall usage of the distributed data processing environment over time. Also, health data relating to at least one component of the distributed data processing environment is received, and, in response, the health data is automatically utilized to determine a failure time within which that component is likely to require rejuvenation. In response to determining the failure time, the usage history is automatically utilized to identify an optimum rejuvenation time. In response to identifying the optimum rejuvenation time, that component is automatically rejuvenated according to the optimum rejuvenation time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2000
    Publication date: July 4, 2002
    Applicant: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter
  • Publication number: 20020087612
    Abstract: A method of operating a node of a computer network which uses a plurality of servers, by determining that one of the servers has degraded health due to software aging, assigning tasks to the other servers while reducing workload at the first server, rejuvenating the first server once its workload has terminated and, after rejuvenation, assigning tasks to the first server. The servers are clustered to provide service based on a single server address (TCP/IP). The node may include a gateway interface which receives the server requests and passes them on to a dispatcher at the node. Tasks are assigned in response to health-related messages sent by the servers and received by a workload monitor agent of the dispatcher.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2000
    Publication date: July 4, 2002
    Inventors: Richard Edwin Harper, Steven Wade Hunter, Gregg Matthew Margosian
  • Patent number: 5754804
    Abstract: In a data processing system, a first system processor is coupled to a first system bus. The first system processor includes a first bus controller. A second system processor having a second bus controller is coupled to a second system bus. The first bus controller is then coupled to a management bus, and the second bus controller is coupled to the same management bus. Thereafter, at least one feature device is coupled to the first system bus, the second system bus, and the management bus. The feature device is also configured to communicate system processor communications with the first system processor via the first system bus. Next, a problem that affects system processor communications over the first system bus between the feature device and the first system processor is detected. In response to detecting such a communications problem, a command is sent to the feature device via the management bus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 1996
    Date of Patent: May 19, 1998
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventors: Harry Cheselka, Steven Wade Hunter, Charles Steven Lingafelt, James Gregory Mulkey, John Wagner Yarbrough