Energy Saving for OpenFlow Switch on the NetFPGA platform Using Multi-Frequency

Abstract

Improving energy efficiency in switch is becoming an increasingly important research topic. In this paper, we present the lesson gained by experimenting with a power management mechanism aimed at reducing the power consumption. One solution for this problem is to control intelligently the power consumption of switches used in data centers. This paper proposes an extension to OpenFlow switches to support different power saving modes. The extension includes defining new messages in Openflow standard and designing a Clock Controller (CC) on the hardware of switch based on NetFPGA platform to implement a frequency driver of the switch under various ranges of traffic loads. Experimental results demonstrate an excellent energy saving according to different working modes. Our results show that all the functions of the Clock Controller of the designed system are valid, and the designed system is feasible for the switch to save energy.