macOS Sequoia Massive memory leak

Same issue here. And I believe this is related to iPhone Mirroring App.

I tried to keep away from that for 2 days, then the memory usage is acceptable even I connected to two 4k external displays (3 displays if internal included).

But when I accidentally clicked on the iPhone notification on my Mac this morning, the memory usage of window server went up instantly and keeps growing. Also that usage never decrease since then.

I am using macOS 18.0.1 on M1max MacBook Pro, so I deeply believe the memory leak problem is still not fixed.

Post the free EtreCheck report using the Additional Text option when posting. It contains no personal information and will provide more information about what is going on with your System.

How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community

No offense, but I’m using 2021 m1max with 64gb ram and 2t storage.

And windowserver process takes 13+gb memory after I quit all applications and services. When I put it away for one night, no memory was released. Also, no external display connected.

Before posting here, I’ve done several experiments and identify this issue is associated with iPhone mirroring.

I've now identified that GroundNews extension might be to blame *about:processes* in Firefox for reference. I was running version 3.1 on Firefox 131.0.3 on Sequoia 15.0.1. The developer said they are working on an updated version for this issue.

Start with this...

Delete these files & restart...

/Library/LaunchAgents/com.easeus.EaseUSNotify.plist

/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.easeus.ensdaemon.plist

Not seeing that either. My Mac was rebooted 5 days ago after installing Sequoia and the Window Server process is not eating RAM. This is after opening and closing many tabs and having Mail open the entire time. I suspect as others have mentioned you may have an app the is running on startup that is causing the problem and can be identified using EtreCheck at the previous link. Very common to see this with Cleaners or Antivirus software on any MacOS version.

This happens on my MacBook Air M3 (16gb/512gb); it's related to external monitors (communities on reddit similarly report this). Using a Samsung QHD monitor without any software downloaded on my Mac. I try to unplug it and MacOS still allocates memory towards the external display (hence windowserver memory does not go back down to baseline). Definitely a MacOS issue that is only fixable by Apple.

Yep mine too. Open your Activity Monitor so you can see which app is causing the problem. Although some here think it's one specific app, I disagree. My main problem was with the dynamic background and screen saver. I switched to a basic background and disabled the screensaver for now until this gets resolved. Now my problem only occurs once or twice a day and it's my Citrix app causing the issue. At least I can work for now.

HELP US APPLE!!!!!!

Turns out it was one or more Safari extensions causing the memory grab. I don’t know which one but the system has settled down.

Activity Monitor simply won't show the cause of the problem, it just shows the effects. There is no doubt you have a problem that is causing WindowServer to balloon. That is why it has been recommended to use EtreCheck.

Graig1122 wrote:

I found the Reason！

When the mouse passes over the top window special effect every time, Windowser would be larger and larger and won't be erased.

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/7c31920a-ec9d-4317-8368-84afc1758a31

As you can see from cytan in this thread, their case was caused by a third party process that was launching on startup and once removed by using the suggested tools, the problem went away. You have not identified the cause to your problem, you have seen what happens when the third party add-ons in your System folders conflict with the OS.

I run dual displays, have a ton of App's open, haven't restarted in days and like Barney, I'm not seeing a memory leak.

To get a better look at what might be ailing your system,

Download and run the free version of EtreCheckPro, from > https://etrecheck.com/en/index.html

Then post the Report, as per > How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community

chenpeel wrote:

Me too. （M1 Air）

And there's a started with qemu- process used more than 10GB, I killed it and nothing happened

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/30cfd9f9-9419-4412-bdf3-bf30991aebdb

Sounds like you have a third party process or malware related to crypto mining software that may have been attached to an application you downloaded.If you download torrents, that is the source. As stated many times in this thread, the way to determine that is by posting the free EtreCheck report. It is likely that the same problem will come back the next time you reboot your computer.

MCC_Mac wrote:

My MacBook Air is now virtually unusable, since "upgrading" to Sequoia 15.1.1. Out of memory about every 5-10 minutes. Rebooting 3-4x per hour. Closing apps doesn't seem to help.

Review the processes you have launching on startup. The easiest way is to use EtreCheck.

How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community

If you use Google Chrome, be aware that it is a memory hog and that is compounded with multiple tabs.

iTimod wrote:

HELP US APPLE!!!!!!

Apple is not here on these forums. We are just other regular users such as yourself.

Open an official support case with Apple. Apple cannot do anything unless they are made aware of the problem (assuming it is not due to some third party software that is installed). In order to fix a problem, Apple needs to know about it, and Apple needs to work with some users to figure it out such as needing to have the user submit some log reports & exact details on what triggers the problem.

In order for Apple to help you.....you need to help Apple. If you haven't opened an official support ticket for the issue, then you are just hoping & praying that by some miracle everything will be fixed. Do not assume anyone who has posted in this thread has actually contacted Apple directly to open an official support ticket for the issue. And if one person has done so, and they are the only one to do so, then Apple will think it is just a fluke with that person's system.

Even when Apple is made aware of a problem, it can take weeks or months before a fix is provided.