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Does a memory optimization program exist for Mac OS X?

There are many programs, both in the apple store and third party, which claim to be "memory optimization" programs, but in reality are just programs that monitor memory usage and periodically run the "purge" command to free up inactive memory. Do any programs exist that truly optimize memory usage to avoid memory leaks?


Example from my console below everytime I open Safari:


objc[232]: Object 0x7fd20342bc10 of class NSUserDefaults autoreleased with no pool in place - just leaking - break on objc_autoreleaseNoPool() to debug


This bug is unrelated to hardware and/or third party software. I have run extensive hardware tests and have done a clean wipe of my whole hardrive (including the recovery partition). This warning appears everytime I run Safari.


My MB Pro 8,2 (late 2011) first ran Lion. This problem only arose after upgrading to ML.

Posted on Jun 24, 2013 7:50 PM

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12 replies

Jun 24, 2013 8:46 PM in response to red_menace

No, I am not sure. I know it is related to Safari, specifically Safari WebProcess. There is a "Webkit" and "Webkit 2" in my frameworks, as well as Java. I don't just want to go deleting system files though...is there a terminal cmd I could run to test? I would assume that an update to OS X/ Safari would remove legacy system files that would cause this problem.


This happens everytime I run Safari, after clean wipe of my volume and without any third party software installed. Hardware tested extensively as well. Memory and logicboard have no problems.


Still, larger question. Memory optimization?

Jun 24, 2013 9:09 PM in response to nbar

You might take a look at the processes that run when starting up Safari by using the Activity Monitor. The OS is pretty good at memory management, but individual applications may not manage their memory very well ((NSUserDefaults is a class typically used to save application preferences). If you have migrated stuff over from the earlier install, that would be the place to start.

Jun 25, 2013 4:55 AM in response to Frank Caggiano

The specific leak turned out to be 1password extension. I haven't tested other Safari extensions. Thank you for the suggestion Frank. This diagnosed the problem


I hope for this thread be about memory optimization programs if any are out there rather than debugging using tools like instruments, or from the cmd line as suggested. It was my fault to kind of conflate the two in asking the original question.

Jun 25, 2013 6:22 AM in response to nbar

There really isn't much out there, since memory optimization is more of a system kind of thing (you're probably not going to find anything in the App Store). What little there is are more along the lines of purging inactive memory, which doesn't help. The OS does do a good job, but there is only so much it can make a guess at - applications that are outdated or using deprecated code fall into that crack.

Jun 25, 2013 10:57 AM in response to nbar


nbar wrote:


Do any programs exist that truly optimize memory usage to avoid memory leaks?


No. Memory leaks are the responsibility of the programmer to fix. If a program is leaking memory, there is nothing you can do to fix it.


Example from my console below everytime I open Safari:


objc[232]: Object 0x7fd20342bc10 of class NSUserDefaults autoreleased with no pool in place - just leaking - break on objc_autoreleaseNoPool() to debug


This bug is unrelated to hardware and/or third party software. I have run extensive hardware tests and have done a clean wipe of my whole hardrive (including the recovery partition). This warning appears everytime I run Safari.


My MB Pro 8,2 (late 2011) first ran Lion. This problem only arose after upgrading to ML.

That is more likely a bug in the code that prints that message rather than any memory problem.


NSUserDefaults is an object that is created early in the lifetime of an application and exists until the program quits. The only time it actually "leaks" would be in the 12 microseconds after final memory clean up and application exit. It is nothing to worry about.

Jul 13, 2014 10:16 PM in response to etresoft

1. Stop unnecessary Start up items.



2. Clean up your Mac's Memory( RAM )

Launch Terminal, found in /Applications/Utilities/ and enter the following command

> purge

WARNING: Improper use of the sudo command could lead to data loss

or the deletion of important system files. Please double-check your

typing when using sudo. Type "man sudo" for more information.


To proceed, enter your password, or type Ctrl-C to abort.

Password:

Enter the Password for Admin Account.Give OS X a minute or two to complete the process

Note: You need to run this command with root privileges.some versions of OS X may require you to prefix the purge command with sudo, requiring authentication.


3.Clear System cache

4. Clear Logs

5. Defrag the Hard Drive

6. Repair your Disk Permissions

7.Embrace Cleaning Utility Tools

8.Reset the PRAM

9.Update Your OS

10Adding More RAM

11.Verify your hard disk’s integrity

12.Uninstall old or unnecessary programs

13.Run Some Antivirus Software

14.Close Dashboard widgets that you don't need

If you don’t use widgets at all, you can disable the entire Dashboard. Open your Applications folder and then open Utilities. Select Terminal. In the Terminal, run the following commands:

$ defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean YES

$ killall Dock


To get the Dashboard back, reenter the same command but change YES to NO.


15. Delete hidden .Trashes,.Spotlight-V100 folders/files,.fseventsd,._.Trashes and .DS_Store

16.Remove Unnecessary Languages

17. Clear out unnecessary desktop icons

18. Remove Mac Plugins and Extensions

19.Quit all open application

20.Reinstalling Mac OS X


To read about the steps and how to perform all the above mention task read my post bookingtohosting.blogspot.com/2014/06/how-to-speed-up-your-mac.html

Does a memory optimization program exist for Mac OS X?

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