Patent ID: 7770173

Claim:
A method managing use of a computer resource, the method comprising, in a hardware-implemented computer: determining an actual use of the computer resource for a first interval, wherein the computer resource comprises a processor, and wherein the actual use of the computer resource corresponds to an amount of active processor utilization relative to the first interval; adjusting according to the determined actual use an available use of the computer resource during a second interval, wherein the adjusted available use corresponds to an available amount of processor utilization for the computer resource during the second interval; enabling use during the second interval of the computer resource according to the adjusted available use, wherein enabling the use during the second interval further includes exceeding a normal interval usage limit; using a ledger to maintain a balance associated with at least one of resource usage and resource availability; adjusting the balance of the ledger according to the determined actual use; comparing the balance of the ledger to a reference value to determine future resource usage, wherein the reference value may comprise a processing unit allocation for an interval or a balance count; and restricting the future resource usage according to the comparison.