[ale] how do I increase Linux swap file size?

[Lightner, Jeff]

Swap along with real memory is "virtual memory".   Many programs
preallocate virtual memory at start up so even if you're not doing
paging (nothing really swaps any more) it is often a good idea to have
swap to allow more programs to do this preallocation.

 

There's a good write up here:

http://www.linux.com/news/software/applications/8208-all-about-linux-swa
p-space

 

 

________________________________

From: ale-bounces at ale.org [mailto:ale-bounces at ale.org] On Behalf Of
Michael Trausch
Sent: Tuesday, January 18, 2011 10:04 AM
To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts
Subject: Re: [ale] how do I increase Linux swap file size?

 

Even using my desktop system for heavy tasks, I rarely dip into swap
usage. I have 6 GB RAM, and unless I am being pretty wasteful everything
fits in that.  Even multilayer GIMP images while compiling the kernel
and GCC seems to not fill up memory (but I can say bye bye to I/O
bandwidth...)

--
Sent from my HTC Vision (G2), running Gingerbread.
That is, a phone-like mobile device. :)

On Jan 18, 2011 9:56 AM, "Jim Kinney" <jim.kinney at gmail.com> wrote:
> Swap space _really_ depends on how the system is used. A single user
desktop
> running web browsing and email can have swap turned of if the system
has 4GB
> RAM. Using a heavy memory application like extensive gimp on HUGE
files with
> loads of undo levels, leave the swap at 2:1 swap:RAM
> 
> For a multi-user server, swap use will be determined by the type of
> application and the loading of it. A multi-purpose system running
mail, web,
> file servics, etc, will benefit from the swap space at around 2:1. But
a
> high performance solo-service web server running tomcat with multiple
> multi-core cpu's will not benefit unless the web application has
long-lived
> caching of user state.
> 
> High performance file servers (NFS or CIFS) should have swap nearly
turned
> off or at the most 1:1 for caching of system . If a fileserver starts
> hitting swap, the pager is about to start beeping.
> 
> -- 
> -- 
> James P. Kinney III
> I would rather stumble along in freedom than walk effortlessly in
chains.
 
Proud partner. Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
 
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