FG

Will slab memory be freed when needed by user programs?

Fresh3 days ago
Mar 15, 20264656 views
Confidence Score0%
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Problem

I'd like clarification on whether or not Linux slab memory will be freed (or mostly freed) if userspace programs need it. I've noticed that one of my Linux systems had a large amount of memory allocated to "slab": (from slabtop) I realize I can clear it out manually if I want to with (sync; echo 3 …

Error Output

OBJS ACTIVE  USE OBJ SIZE  SLABS OBJ/SLAB CACHE SIZE NAME                   
834768 834766  99%    0.94K  24552       34    785664K ext4_inode_cache
…

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Fix for: Will slab memory be freed when needed by user programs?

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In short, yes, the kernel will free slabs in order to make room for userspace applications. The "slab memory" you refer to is memory allocated by the kernel using a technique to reduce RAM fragmentation. It is not a certain type of memory or space r…

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