Allocating RAM & CPU Priority - How?

Question

I was wondering if it&#x27;s possible to allocate more RAM to an individual program and/or give CPU priority to a specific program.The computer I&#x27;m using is a Mac Pro (Late 2013) with maxed specs (2.7 GHz 12-core Intel Xeon E5, 64GB 1866 MHz DDR3 ECC, 1 TB Flash Storage, AMD FirePro D700 6 GB), and it&#x27;s running on OS X Yosemite 10.10.2I have read online that Macs are using "Compressed Memory" (found at https://www.apple.com/osx/advanced-technologies/), but I am still wondering if it&#x27;s possible to manually allocate more RAM to a specific program (i.e. FCP X or iMovie) instead of relying on automatic memory caching. The only thing I have tried so far is "Prevent App Nap"; an option under most 1st party apps that disables App Nap. I haven&#x27;t seen a noticeable improvement yet. I&#x27;m asking to see if there are any 1st/3rd party programs or Terminal commands that can allow me to manually allocate more RAM to a specific program.I have only had this Mac Pro for roughly 2 weeks, and I understand that it takes time for each computer to learn your patterns and effectively cache memory based on what you do, but I would like to know if there&#x27;s a way to manually allocate RAM at any given time.The next thing is CPU priority. It&#x27;s nice that we can use Activity Monitor to see which programs are using a lot of CPU and which programs aren&#x27;t, but it would be even better if we could lower or raise the CPU priority of our programs as we monitor them. I&#x27;m aware that it&#x27;s possible to use &#x27;nice&#x27; commands in Terminal as an alternative, but it would be great (and a lot easier to access) if Activity Monitor had settings for increasing or decreasing CPU priority for each individual process. Just a suggestion.If there are any other 1st party programs, 3rd party programs, or Terminal commands that can allow me to manually change the CPU priorities of individual processes, let me know!Thanks for you time.

Kappy · Answer

Memory is controlled and allocated by the OS X memory management algorithms. There used to be utilities long ago that let you change a program&#x27;s priority after it was launched. I haven&#x27;t seen them around in ages. Usually this is handled through the OS as part of the multi-tasking algorithms.In general there is no real need to change individual programs&#x27; priority. The software&#x27;s developer should handle that within the program. It should not be under user control.

The hatter · Answer

You should start with "Why" you think there is a problem or that it needs tweaking or not running up to spec.Would off the shelf 8-core with higher clocks be better? Noticed back when that these models scale depending on many or few cores are called on,, so Intel has done a lot. And beefing up processor L3 cache.You are sort of stuck with the D700 and how well they are used, generally FCP-X and nMP are made for each other.You could put 128GB RAM if it would benefit (generally not but huge graphics fies and running multiple large VMs can).IO bound has been helped with PCIe-SSD blades (new and faster plus 2TB units in the pipeline) but adding TB2 external storage that would be a must whether you need more storage AND PCIe controllers.Systems are complex. Even compilers have to do more to generate optimizations and time to learn how to get out of the way and even less hand tweaked optimizing in favor of learning what can and cannot be done.10.5.7-10.6.2 forgot that &#x27;asking&#x27; a core to see if it was busy or idle only served to ping and keep hyper-threading running constantly and got ikn the way with the cpu&#x27;s own ability to nap and go to sleep instead. As it was the processors were running constantly and as is the case iwth HT, temp can jump 10-20-40* C in half a second. Eventually the code was &#x27;fixed&#x27; and those elements stopped preventing cpu cores from doing what they do best.

Grant Bennet-Alder · Answer

If a running Application asks for more memory, it gets more memory. Unless and until you use up the entire physical memory available, and the graph in Activity Monitor goes yellow or red, all the running Applications are getting every bit of memory they are asking for. If you give an Application more, it will not use it for anything.Every Foreground process (of your Applications) is running as fast as it possibly can. It runs full tilt until it does I/O or makes a system call. Unless and until you are using up every stinking memory cycle and the numbers in Activity monitor indicate 100 percent times all your processors, allocating more processor priority to a particular process will not make it execute any faster than &#x27;as fast as it possibly can&#x27;. There is nothing you can do in that regard that will buy you any additional speed, unless all your CPU cycles are used up. (if you are not sure, post some screenshots and readers here will help you interpret them.)You may be able to do something about I/O speed by using faster drives, and making sure you have Source, Destination, and Scratch on different drives and different busses.

Eruk · Answer

Thanks for the reply. I was only wondering because I&#x27;m using iMovie 9.0.9 (from 2011) on new hardware. Old software and new hardware don&#x27;t seem to mix well. The old iMovie runs sluggishly and has to be restarted every time I want to render a video because of the infamous "sharing requires more memory" error. It&#x27;s very apparent that this old version of iMovie is not optimized for the latest and greatest hardware that&#x27;s out right now, and I wish I could alter the CPU priority or allocate more RAM to try and bring it back to life. I refuse to use iMovie 10.0.8 until they add parameters for title fades, and I have a lot to learn before I can fully switch over to FCP X. I recently switched from a Late 2012 iMac running Mountain Lion and a lot of outdated programs, and the transition has been a little shaky. I&#x27;ll have to keep searching and experimenting until I can fully resolve this.Thanks again!

lllaass · Answer

After iMove stalls out run this and post the results here. that will tell us information about your configuration. There might be a other apps that are causing the problemEtreCheck

Eruk · Answer

This is what it looks like prior to rendering a video out of iMovie 9.0.9:Problem description:iMovie 9.0.9 has to be restarted in order to render a video. It says “sharing requires more memory”.EtreCheck version: 2.2 (132)Report generated 6/25/15, 2:00 PMDownload EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheckClick the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.Hardware Information: ℹ️    Mac Pro (Late 2013) (Technical Specifications)    Mac Pro - model: MacPro6,1    1 2.7 GHz 12-Core Intel Xeon E5 CPU: 12-core    64 GB RAM Upgradeable        DIMM1            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM2            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM3            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM4            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok    Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported    Wireless:  en2: 802.11 a/b/g/n/acVideo Information: ℹ️    AMD FirePro D700 - VRAM: 6144 MB    AMD FirePro D700 - VRAM: 6144 MB        Thunderbolt Display 2560 x 1440System Software: ℹ️    OS X 10.10.2 (14C109) - Time since boot: 8 days 2:9:49Disk Information: ℹ️    APPLE SSD SM1024F disk0 : (1 TB)        EFI (disk0s1) &lt;not mounted&gt; : 210 MB         Recovery HD (disk0s3) &lt;not mounted&gt;  [Recovery]: 650 MB         Macintosh HD (disk1) / : 999.38 GB (797.07 GB free)            Core Storage: disk0s2 999.70 GB Online    SAMSUNG MZ7TE512HMHP-00000 disk2 : (512.11 GB)        EFI (disk2s1) &lt;not mounted&gt; : 210 MB         LaCie (disk2s2) /Volumes/LaCie : 511.77 GB (415.85 GB free)USB Information: ℹ️    Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub         Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller     Blue Microphones Yeti Stereo Microphone     Elgato Systems Game Capture HD     Razer Razer DeathAdder Chroma     Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Display)     Apple Inc. Display Audio     Apple Inc. Apple Thunderbolt Display Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_2    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_1    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_0        Apple Inc. Thunderbolt Display        LaCie Rugged THB USB3Configuration files: ℹ️    /etc/hosts - Count: 15Gatekeeper: ℹ️    AnywhereKernel Extensions: ℹ️        /Library/Extensions    [loaded]    com.razer.common.razerhid (11.86 - SDK 10.9) [Click for support]        /System/Library/Extensions    [loaded]    net.telestream.driver.TelestreamAudio (1.1.0 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]    [loaded]    org.dungeon.driver.SATSMARTDriver (0.9 - SDK 10.7) [Click for support]Launch Agents: ℹ️    [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist [Click for support]    [not loaded]    com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.razer.rzupdater.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.razerzone.rzdeviceengine.plist [Click for support]Launch Daemons: ℹ️    [loaded]    com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist [Click for support]User Launch Agents: ℹ️    [loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.srib.pssddaemon.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist [Click for support]User Login Items: ℹ️    Steam    Application  (/Applications/Steam.app)    iTunesHelper    Application  (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)    Google Chrome    Application Hidden (/Applications/Google Chrome.app)Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️    Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10    QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3    JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 8 Update 45 Check version3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️    Growl  [Click for support]    Java  [Click for support]Time Machine: ℹ️    Auto backup: YES    Volumes being backed up:        Macintosh HD: Disk size: 999.38 GB Disk used: 202.30 GB    Destinations:        Samsung_T1 [Local]         Total size: 999.86 GB         Total number of backups: 3         Oldest backup: 2015-06-24 20:33:17 +0000         Last backup: 2015-06-25 16:16:48 +0000         Size of backup disk: Adequate            Backup size 999.86 GB &gt; (Disk used 202.30 GB X 3)Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️       249%    mdworker(15)        82%    mds         4%    Skype         4%    WindowServer         3%    fontdTop Processes by Memory: ℹ️    3.31 GB    kernel_task    1.15 GB    iMovie    590 MB    Google Chrome Helper(4)    524 MB    softwareupdated    459 MB    FinderVirtual Memory Information: ℹ️    49.00 GB    Free RAM     15.00 GB    Used RAM     44 MB    Swap Used Diagnostics Information: ℹ️    Jun 25, 2015, 01:26:06 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-25-132606_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 25, 2015, 11:27:40 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-25-112740_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 25, 2015, 09:14:19 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-25-091419_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 05:57:44 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-175744_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 12:58:30 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-125830_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 12:33:38 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-123338_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 09:11:37 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-091137_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 08:09:05 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Final Cut Pro_2015-06-23-200905_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 07:22:29 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-23-192229_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 05:58:36 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-23-175836_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 04:41:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ScreenFlow_2015-06-23-164104_[redacted].cpu_res ource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 04:34:09 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/VTDecoderXPCService_2015-06-23-163409_[redacted ].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 12:36:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-23-123604_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 12:47:35 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-23-004735_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]

lllaass · Answer

Try the following to fix your mdworker excessive CPU usagehttp://tumblr.amitgupta.com/post/262471673/stopping-runaway-cpu-usage-by-mds-mdw orker-andhttp://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mdworker-process-100-deleting-it-with-termin al.1718772/

Eruk · Answer

Thanks for the links! It seems as if mdworker isn&#x27;t hogging the CPU after entering that sudo command, but kernel_task is still taking up a lot of RAM. I&#x27;ve read online that the easiest way to take care of that is to simply restart your computer or to do an SMC reset. I generally shut down my computer(s) 2-3 times a week to avoid this. Here is what the log looks like as of now:EtreCheck version: 2.2 (132)Report generated 6/25/15, 7:59 PMDownload EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheckClick the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.Hardware Information: ℹ️    Mac Pro (Late 2013) (Technical Specifications)    Mac Pro - model: MacPro6,1    1 2.7 GHz 12-Core Intel Xeon E5 CPU: 12-core    64 GB RAM Upgradeable        DIMM1            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM2            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM3            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok        DIMM4            16 GB DDR3 ECC 1866 MHz ok    Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported    Wireless:  en2: 802.11 a/b/g/n/acVideo Information: ℹ️    AMD FirePro D700 - VRAM: 6144 MB    AMD FirePro D700 - VRAM: 6144 MB        Thunderbolt Display 2560 x 1440System Software: ℹ️    OS X 10.10.2 (14C109) - Time since boot: 0:55:1Disk Information: ℹ️    APPLE SSD SM1024F disk0 : (1 TB)        EFI (disk0s1) &lt;not mounted&gt; : 210 MB         Recovery HD (disk0s3) &lt;not mounted&gt;  [Recovery]: 650 MB         Macintosh HD (disk1) / : 999.38 GB (808.81 GB free)            Core Storage: disk0s2 999.70 GB Online    SAMSUNG MZ7TE512HMHP-00000 disk2 : (512.11 GB)        EFI (disk2s1) &lt;not mounted&gt; : 210 MB         LaCie (disk2s2) /Volumes/LaCie : 511.77 GB (415.85 GB free)USB Information: ℹ️    Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub         Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller     Razer Razer DeathAdder Chroma     Blue Microphones Yeti Stereo Microphone     Elgato Systems Game Capture HD     Apple Inc. Display Audio     Apple Inc. Apple Thunderbolt Display     Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Display) Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_2    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_1    Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus_0        Apple Inc. Thunderbolt Display        LaCie Rugged THB USB3Configuration files: ℹ️    /etc/hosts - Count: 15Gatekeeper: ℹ️    AnywhereKernel Extensions: ℹ️        /Library/Extensions    [loaded]    com.razer.common.razerhid (11.86 - SDK 10.9) [Click for support]        /System/Library/Extensions    [loaded]    net.telestream.driver.TelestreamAudio (1.1.0 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]    [not loaded]    org.dungeon.driver.SATSMARTDriver (0.9 - SDK 10.7) [Click for support]Launch Agents: ℹ️    [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.razer.rzupdater.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.razerzone.rzdeviceengine.plist [Click for support]Launch Daemons: ℹ️    [loaded]    com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist [Click for support]User Launch Agents: ℹ️    [loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Click for support]    [running]    com.srib.pssddaemon.plist [Click for support]    [loaded]    com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist [Click for support]User Login Items: ℹ️    iTunesHelper    Application  (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)    Google Chrome    Application Hidden (/Applications/Google Chrome.app)Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️    Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10    QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3    JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 8 Update 45 Check version3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️    Growl  [Click for support]    Java  [Click for support]Time Machine: ℹ️    Auto backup: YES    Volumes being backed up:        Macintosh HD: Disk size: 999.38 GB Disk used: 190.57 GB    Destinations:        Samsung_T1 [Local]         Total size: 999.86 GB         Total number of backups: 3         Oldest backup: 2015-06-24 20:33:17 +0000         Last backup: 2015-06-25 16:16:48 +0000         Size of backup disk: Adequate            Backup size 999.86 GB &gt; (Disk used 190.57 GB X 3)Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️         4%    fontd         3%    WindowServer         1%    fs_usage         1%    Activity Monitor         0%    Google Chrome Helper(4)Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️    2.72 GB    kernel_task    655 MB    Google Chrome Helper(4)    131 MB    iconservicesagent(2)    131 MB    Google Chrome    66 MB    softwareupdatedVirtual Memory Information: ℹ️    57.00 GB    Free RAM     7.29 GB    Used RAM     0 B    Swap Used Diagnostics Information: ℹ️    Jun 25, 2015, 07:04:40 PM    Self test - passed    Jun 25, 2015, 01:26:06 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-25-132606_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 25, 2015, 11:27:40 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-25-112740_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 25, 2015, 09:14:19 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-25-091419_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 05:57:44 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-175744_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 12:58:30 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-125830_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 12:33:38 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-123338_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 24, 2015, 09:11:37 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-24-091137_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 08:09:05 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Final Cut Pro_2015-06-23-200905_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 07:22:29 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-23-192229_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 05:58:36 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-23-175836_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 04:41:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ScreenFlow_2015-06-23-164104_[redacted].cpu_res ource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 04:34:09 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/VTDecoderXPCService_2015-06-23-163409_[redacted ].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 12:36:04 PM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/iMovie_2015-06-23-123604_[redacted].cpu_resourc e.diag [Click for details]    Jun 23, 2015, 12:47:35 AM    /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Call of Duty 4_2015-06-23-004735_[redacted].cpu_resource.diag [Click for details]

JOHN ALBERGO · Answer

Your analysis ignores an important aspect of mixed-workload scenarios, where the CPUs are indeed pegged.  Say I have a long-running process that is running "full tilt".  I don&#x27;t want to stop it however its completion-time is a low priority for *me* and meanwhile other cpu-intensive tasks have popped up that I would now like to complete in a timely manner.  Although they also are running "full tilt", they are competing for cycles with the original cpu hog and performing poorly.  By dramatically lowering the priority on the first process I can free up resources for more time-critical processing.  This flexibility is important.  That option should be an integral part of Activity Monitor.  Users shouldn&#x27;t have to dive into the Terminal for such basic features.

Grant Bennet-Alder · Answer

You could try lowering the priority of less important tasks by manipulating their windows. If you can actually close a background Application&#x27;s window (without it quitting), or make its window smaller and no portion visible (buried under other windows).