Apple Event: May 7th at 7 am PT

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Why So Much RAM Going to "File Cache"

Hi,

I seemed to be maxing out my RAM in my 5,1 Mac Pro when I had Adobe Lightroom, PhotoShop, and DxO's OpticsPro 10 open, which are the 3 apps I use in tandem quite a bit. So, I bought 8 GB's more RAM (not a great deal but as much as I can afford at the moment), popped it in on Saturday, and was happy to see that I seemed to have plenty of RAM when the 3 apps were open. By the end of yesterday, however, almost all of my RAM was being chewed up. I opened Activity Monitor this morning and saw that almost 12 GB is being used up by "File Cache". Is this normal? Right now - after installing the 8GB's and after 1.5 days almost being back to where I was before I bought the additional memory, it feels like I'm in a Memory Black Hole. Any insight?

Thanks,

Robert

Mac Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.1), 2 x 2.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon

Posted on Nov 17, 2014 10:09 AM

Reply
Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Nov 17, 2014 10:13 AM

Yes. OS X uses the file cache to store frequently used code and files in order to make the computer run a little bit faster instead of spending a lot of time loading and unloading data from disk. It improves memory management. It's a good thing.


About OS X Memory Management and Usage


Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory & determine how much RAM is used

OS X Mavericks- About Activity Monitor


Understanding top output in the Terminal


The amount of available RAM for applications is the sum of Free RAM and Inactive RAM. This will change as applications are opened and closed or change from active to inactive status. The Swap figure represents an estimate of the total amount of swap space required for VM if used, but does not necessarily indicate the actual size of the existing swap file. If you are really in need of more RAM that would be indicated by how frequently the system uses VM. If you open the Terminal and run the top command at the prompt you will find information reported on Pageins () and Pageouts (). Pageouts () is the important figure. If the value in the parentheses is 0 (zero) then OS X is not making instantaneous use of VM which means you have adequate physical RAM for the system with the applications you have loaded. If the figure in parentheses is running positive and your hard drive is constantly being used (thrashing) then you need more physical RAM.


Adding RAM only makes it possible to run more programs concurrently. It doesn't speed up the computer nor make games run faster. What it can do is prevent the system from having to use disk-based VM when it runs out of RAM because you are trying to run too many applications concurrently or using applications that are extremely RAM dependent. It will improve the performance of applications that run mostly in RAM or when loading programs.

4 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Nov 17, 2014 10:13 AM in response to hapycampr2002

Yes. OS X uses the file cache to store frequently used code and files in order to make the computer run a little bit faster instead of spending a lot of time loading and unloading data from disk. It improves memory management. It's a good thing.


About OS X Memory Management and Usage


Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory & determine how much RAM is used

OS X Mavericks- About Activity Monitor


Understanding top output in the Terminal


The amount of available RAM for applications is the sum of Free RAM and Inactive RAM. This will change as applications are opened and closed or change from active to inactive status. The Swap figure represents an estimate of the total amount of swap space required for VM if used, but does not necessarily indicate the actual size of the existing swap file. If you are really in need of more RAM that would be indicated by how frequently the system uses VM. If you open the Terminal and run the top command at the prompt you will find information reported on Pageins () and Pageouts (). Pageouts () is the important figure. If the value in the parentheses is 0 (zero) then OS X is not making instantaneous use of VM which means you have adequate physical RAM for the system with the applications you have loaded. If the figure in parentheses is running positive and your hard drive is constantly being used (thrashing) then you need more physical RAM.


Adding RAM only makes it possible to run more programs concurrently. It doesn't speed up the computer nor make games run faster. What it can do is prevent the system from having to use disk-based VM when it runs out of RAM because you are trying to run too many applications concurrently or using applications that are extremely RAM dependent. It will improve the performance of applications that run mostly in RAM or when loading programs.

Why So Much RAM Going to "File Cache"

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple ID.