To: linux-kernel@vger.kernel.org
From: Bill Davidsen <davidsen@tmr.com>
Subject: Re: LowFree pattern
Date: Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:22:11 -0400
Message-ID: <h7mgl3$v6$1@ger.gmane.org>
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Adayadil Thomas wrote:
> Greetings.
> 
> I am running a centos linux with 2.6.20 version kernel. The system has
> 1G of RAM.
> 
> As time goes by the LowFree becomes really low. Right now it shows
> 137M .. but it goes as low as 8M or so
> 
> The command -
> echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches
> brings back the LowFree to way up high.
> 
> The question I have is whether the system by itself release the cache
> (drop cache) automatically
> to maintain a reasonable LowFree?
> Is this configurable?
> 
You can change the parameters in /rpoc/sys/vm if you wish, but what makes you 
think this is needed? Cache is dropped as memory is needed, and drop_cache in 
general is a good way to slow the system.

> Any information or help is much appreciated.
> 
What problem did you see that you traced to LowFree?

> 
> cat /proc/meminfo
> MemTotal:      1034788 kB
> MemFree:        138240 kB
> Buffers:         99260 kB
> Cached:         177776 kB
> SwapCached:      51740 kB
> Active:         605172 kB
> Inactive:       113572 kB
> HighTotal:      130720 kB
> HighFree:          252 kB
> LowTotal:       904068 kB
> LowFree:        137988 kB
> SwapTotal:     1048568 kB
> SwapFree:       976332 kB
> Dirty:             380 kB
> Writeback:           0 kB
> AnonPages:      441348 kB
> Mapped:          15540 kB
> Slab:           146088 kB
> SReclaimable:   104288 kB
> SUnreclaim:      41800 kB
> PageTables:       1596 kB
> NFS_Unstable:        0 kB
> Bounce:              0 kB
> CommitLimit:   1565960 kB
> Committed_AS:   590576 kB
> VmallocTotal:   114680 kB
> VmallocUsed:     15052 kB
> VmallocChunk:    99348 kB


-- 
Bill Davidsen <davidsen@tmr.com>
   "We have more to fear from the bungling of the incompetent than from
the machinations of the wicked."  - from Slashdot

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