Lion - Memory Usage Problems

HippopotamusMan wrote:

I don't dispute what you are saying about the functionality of "purge". However, I have to say that at least on my own computer, periodically running "purge" to release Inactive memory causes over-all performance improvement: the system runs faster, the temperature remains lower, and the fan hardly turns on at all.

But that's just with your particular workload; I suspect if you were opening multiple apps, or closing and reopening frequently accessed files, you'd find those operations take orders of magnitude longer after a "purge" than before one.

So just because performance may be improved in your particular situation, that doesn't mean it's improved overall.

This is but one reason why performance tuning is a black art among OS engineers; one person's "improved performance" is another's degradation.

Just notices 10.7.1 update is released. The release note doesn't mention memory issue though. We'll see if it does anyting.

Nope. 10.7.1 does not resolve the memory issue.

Safari is practically unusable in my system. I get beach ball every time I want to opoen a new tab.

Too bad.

I strongly recommed that you all do a Clean Install of your computer.

I did a clean install of my laptop 3 days ago and I manually transferred all my documents I wanted and I reinstalled all applications I wanted. I didn't use migration assistant because I read on certain forums you get a better system when you do all this manually and indeed I see a big difference including memory...find it much more speedy.... It's a pain but it's worth it.

So basically:

1. Clean Install 10.7...brand new computer.

2. DONT use Mgiration Assistant and transfer your data/documents manually from your Backup (wether external HD or Time Machine) to your new 10.7 system. DO NOT manually transfer applications, libraries, or the cruft that has built up in nooks and crannies of the system.

3. Install your new applications again and update them 😉

My opinion:

Doing a clean install and then migrating would be a waste of time. Either upgrade OR clean install and then do all manually. Don't try mixing it and you'll have

Why attempt a manual migration at this point? Four reasons: applications, settings, bloated iLife libraries, and cruft left behind in the Library folder.

I’m sure the Migration Assistant can assist me in moving from my MacBook running 10.6 to a new MacBook Air running 10.7 without trouble. But after almost a decade, I’m ready to make a clean break and start from scratch, only migrating my data—no applications, libraries, or the cruft that has built up in nooks and crannies of the system.

Read these 2 articles:

http://www.macworld.com/article/161203/2011/07/should_you_clean_install_lion.htm l

http://arstechnica.com/apple/guides/2011/07/making-a-clean-start-with-lion-migra ting-without-assistance.ars

i agree, i did a fresh install by putting the os x lion install app onto a flash drive and booted off it. it seems to be running great now. i havent had it freeze once. Before i had upgraded it from a fresh install of snow leopard (since it was a brand new mac). and iv definitly seen an improvment. Its still more memory hungry than snow leopard was, but at least it runs very fast, i still think they should do an update to require less RAM. but i should be getting my 8gb upgrade soon 🙂

A clean install doesn't help with Safari memory issue. After using Safari for couple hours or more, all the memory still goes to inactive. No matter how many gigs of memory your system has (4, 8, 12 or 16).

Even though Safari and Safari Web Content processes together show taking up only, lets say, 900 MB Real Mem in the Activity Monitor, but when I quit Safari (cmd+q) I get 4 GB transfered back to the Free Memory. Even with the second largest process -- kernel_task, which takes up to 800 MB -- it doesn't add up to 4 GB.

This happens on my old Mac Pro 3,1 with 8 gigs of RAM with a clean Lion install (no other apps installed yet -- just the ones that get installed with Lion). Same happens on my new iMac 12,2 with 16 gigs of RAM (also no apps installed).

Mark Free wrote:

A clean install doesn't help with Safari memory issue. After using Safari for couple hours or more, all the memory still goes to inactive. No matter how many gigs of memory your system has (4, 8, 12 or 16).

Even though Safari and Safari Web Content processes together show taking up only, lets say, 900 MB Real Mem in the Activity Monitor, but when I quit Safari (cmd+q) I get 4 GB transfered back to the Free Memory. Even with the second largest process -- kernel_task, which takes up to 800 MB -- it doesn't add up to 4 GB.

This happens on my old Mac Pro 3,1 with 8 gigs of RAM with a clean Lion install (no other apps installed yet -- just the ones that get installed with Lion). Same happens on my new iMac 12,2 with 16 gigs of RAM (also no apps installed).

Mark,

You are right about the Safari memory issue. It hasn't solve the core Safari memory issue but I find Lion more responsive in general without Safari. I forgot to mention Safari in my previous post.

APPLE, please help us RE: Safari memory issue 😟

Just chiming in to say that I'm having the same issues as most here: Safari shows "normal" memory-usage, yet the Inactive memory gets gobbled up quickly, even after only a short while.

Opening Terminal and running "purge" helps, but I preferred it when the OS did it for me. 😝

Quitting Safari doesn't always help me -- sometimes the Inactive memory is kept until the next time Safari is started again, then quit.

Well said! Lion...[sigh]

Like I said, sometimes that doesn't happen. Unless it is happening but Activity Monitor is lying about Safari no longer running.

I'm actually suprised about the Virtual Memory of Flash Player which shows as 16 EB. EB in my eyes can't be anything else than exabyte.

OT: for me the problem is with Safari Web Content which shows extreme values.