Patent ID: 7865744

Claim:
A method for optimizing power consumption in a communication system comprising a network interface and a host computer, the method comprising: determining, by the network interface, at least one power mode of the host computer from a plurality of possible power modes; and selecting, by the network interface, at least one network interface power management state from a plurality of possible power management states based on the at least one power mode determined, wherein selecting further comprises: configuring a PHY layer to restart and negotiate at a predetermined speed; and increment advertized capabilities until link presence is detected; and wherein the network interface is operably coupled to the host computer and provides access for the host computer to the network, and wherein the network interface: locally detects a non-zero volume of traffic received by said network interface; and locally selects the power management state for the network interface from the plurality of possible power management states based at least in part on the volume of non-zero traffic received by said network interface.