Patent ID: 8103893

Claim:
A method carried out by a peripheral device controller for regulating the operating temperature of the peripheral device by reducing power consumption of the peripheral device, the method comprising: while the peripheral device is operating in a performance seek mode, performing offline diagnostic activities to diagnose errors in the operation of the peripheral device or defects in the peripheral device; and if the temperature of the peripheral device exceeds a first temperature, reducing power consumption by suspending only offline diagnostic activities while continuing to execute ordinary seek commands in the performance seek mode, wherein a user's experience of the peripheral device in the reduced power state is not affected, if the temperature of the peripheral device exceeds a second temperature, then reducing operational speed in which the peripheral device fulfills requests from a host device in communication with the peripheral device, altering the performance seek mode to a silent seek mode, if the peripheral device exceeds a third temperature and if the peripheral device experienced a period of inactivity that exceeds a first time threshold, then reducing power consumption of a physical layer interface that connects the peripheral device to the host device.