Specpower Eval

---
name: specpower-eval
description: Evaluates the energy proportionality and power efficiency of enterprise server subsystems under varying JVM-based web service workloads. It measures how power consumption scales with workload intensity and identifies non-proportional power draw in uncore components. Use when the user wants to benchmark on SPECpower_ssj2008, or asks about evaluating this task. Reports watts.
metadata:
  skill_kind: dataset_eval
  source_arxiv: 1501.02724
  bibtex_key: subramaniam2015towards
  confidence: high
---

# specpower-eval

> Towards Energy-Proportional Computing Using Subsystem-Level Power Management — Subramaniam and Feng (2015) (arXiv:1501.02724, 2015)

## What this evaluates

Evaluates the energy proportionality and power efficiency of enterprise server subsystems under varying JVM-based web service workloads. It measures how power consumption scales with workload intensity and identifies non-proportional power draw in uncore components.

## Datasets

- **SPECpower_ssj2008** — total ?; splits: test (-1)

## Metrics

- `watts` **(primary)** — range: watts
  - Measured directly using a Yokogawa WT210 power meter at the system level. Reported at idle and at 100% load-level (target 1,120,000 ssj_ops).

## Input / output format

**Input**: System Under Test (Intel Xeon E5-2665, 256 GB RAM, Linux 3.2.0) running 8 JVMs with 4 threads each, pinned to adjacent physical cores, with HugeTLB enabled.

**Output**: Power consumption readings in watts, throughput in ssj_ops, and response time compliance metrics.

## Scoring recipe

```python
power_idle = measure_power()
power_peak = measure_power_at_load(100)
throughput = get_throughput() # ssj_ops
energy_prop = power_idle / power_peak
return power_idle, power_peak, throughput, energy_prop
```

## Common pitfalls

- Uncore subsystem power remains constant regardless of workload load, skewing energy proportionality calculations if only core power is considered.
- Idle power consumption is significant (36–55% of peak), contradicting assumptions of near-zero idle power in traditional servers.
- Disk I/O must be eliminated (using RAMFS) to isolate processor and memory power management effects.

## Evidence (verbatim from paper)

> On an average, the SUT consumes 120 watts at idle and 330 watts at 100% load-level of SPECpower.

## Citation

```bibtex
@misc{subramaniam2015towards,
  title={Towards Energy-Proportional Computing Using Subsystem-Level Power Management},
  author={Subramaniam and Feng (2015)},
  year={2015},
  note={arXiv:1501.02724}
}
```

- arXiv: 1501.02724