LinuxQuestions.org
Welcome to the most active Linux Forum on the web.
Go Back   LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Newbie
User Name
Password
Linux - Newbie This Linux forum is for members that are new to Linux.
Just starting out and have a question? If it is not in the man pages or the how-to's this is the place!

Notices


Reply
  Search this Thread
Old 11-06-2009, 12:02 AM   #1
biiuser
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Nov 2009
Posts: 1

Rep: Reputation: 0
low processor memory


Dear linux users

I wonder why I often run on low memory, when I just open a firefox, a text editor & some terminals (no graphic visualization softwares being used).

cat /proc/meminfo
MemTotal: 4121656 kB
MemFree: 783220 kB
Buffers: 115252 kB
Cached: 2507872 kB

Many thanks!
 
Old 11-06-2009, 12:45 AM   #2
evo2
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Jan 2009
Location: Japan
Distribution: Mostly Debian and CentOS
Posts: 6,724

Rep: Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705Reputation: 1705
As you can see from the last two lines the vast majority of your ram is just being used for buffers and cache. Linux will do this with unused memory, but then hand it over to active processes that need it.

There is plenty of info about this very topic on the web.

Evo2.
 
Old 11-06-2009, 01:09 AM   #3
puneetgomzi
LQ Newbie
 
Registered: Aug 2009
Distribution: Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Posts: 5

Rep: Reputation: 0
cat /proc/meminfo shows just a snapshot of the memory usage at the instant of time when the command is processed. As such, it doesn't give a good idea of your system's behavior.

I'd suggest you use "top" command to view your system's performance in real time and see how your system behaves. May be then you'll have better idea where your system's resources are being used and sort out the problem.
 
Old 11-06-2009, 09:00 AM   #4
johnsfine
LQ Guru
 
Registered: Dec 2007
Distribution: Centos
Posts: 5,286

Rep: Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197Reputation: 1197
Quote:
Originally Posted by biiuser View Post
I wonder why I often run on low memory
The stats you quoted do not indicate you are on low memory.

Memory allocation is not the simple "used vs. free" that most people expect.

If you need to think about memory with a simple "used vs. free" viewpoint, then you should add the Cached and Buffers value to free.

The most meaningful single measure of free memory is the sum of MemFree, Buffers, and Cached.

That does not mean that sum really measures the amount of free memory. Memory use is too complex for any one value to really represent the effective amount of free memory. That sum just is the closest you can come to a single number that is a meaningful measure of free memory.

Since that sum is well over half your total memory (in the example you posted), you don't need to worry about subtleties of whether that exactly measures the effective amount of free memory. It is reliably telling you that you have plenty of free memory.

Last edited by johnsfine; 11-06-2009 at 09:03 AM.
 
  


Reply


Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off



Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
BIOS settings for processor? Command to get processor speed?? Memory speed? newtovanilla Linux - Newbie 9 12-04-2008 09:23 PM
LXer: Low-cost, customizable processor runs Linux LXer Syndicated Linux News 0 06-28-2007 07:31 AM
Linux Showing Low Processor Speed than windows vijay_sastry Linux - Hardware 2 03-21-2006 11:20 AM
memory low ?? time112852 Linux - Software 8 09-28-2005 09:12 PM
RedHat 7.1, Low Memory BigBrother Linux - Software 7 07-11-2001 10:23 PM

LinuxQuestions.org > Forums > Linux Forums > Linux - Newbie

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:02 AM.

Main Menu
Advertisement
My LQ
Write for LQ
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute content, let us know.
Main Menu
Syndicate
RSS1  Latest Threads
RSS1  LQ News
Twitter: @linuxquestions
Open Source Consulting | Domain Registration