*BSD News Article 83732


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From: "Taco Scargo" <taco@webguide.net>
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc
Subject: Memory problems FreeBSD 2.1.6
Date: 28 Nov 1996 00:04:40 GMT
Organization: World Online
Lines: 37
Message-ID: <01bbdcbf$36ed3480$1782099a@taco>
NNTP-Posting-Host: ldn1-p23.worldonline.nl
X-Newsreader: Microsoft Internet News 4.70.1155

I would be very thankful if one of you could tell me how to fix this
problem.

I recently installed three Pentium 166 boxes with 256 Mb RAM and 2 Gb HDD
(SCSI via Adaptec 2940 PCI) and SMC EtherPower UTP card. Works fine and
dandy, compiled a new kernel to support all of it.

However: somehow this nice and dandy caching mechanism of FreeBSD gets me
out of memory fairly quickly. I am running a little BSDI application
(VideoOnDemand server), which loads files, sized about 5 Mb each, skips 4
frames after each stored (so the memory load should be 5 times as small as
the file sizes).

What I get is fairly simple to describe: first of all the program uses much
more than the file-sizes divided by 5. I am not too worried about this
problem.

The problem I am really worried about is the fact that the OS caches all
files that have been opened and does NOT release the memory when system
memory is getting low.

A solution would be turning the diskcaching off, but I wouldn't have a clue
how to do that (and I am quite 'into the kernel' already !) ...

Hopefully one of you experts have a solution.

Your answer or suggestion is highly appreciated ...

Regards,

Taco Scargo
WebGuide B.V.
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

e-mail: taco@webguide.net
tel: +31 20 3116464
fax: +31 20 3116444