DayZ running low on memory (Ram) Error

[stangster 22]

Hi Guys, 

 

I have been having a problem lately with Dayz running low on memory. I am running 8 GB of ram. I can play for about an hour and then I get an error message from windows telling me I am low on memory and should save and shut down. I opened task manager and watched the performance tab while playing. It reached about 85% usage when I finally received the error message, and the game shut down at about 90%. I haven't played a lot lately, but never had this issue last summer when I was playing almost everyday. Any ideas what might be wrong ? Any and all suggestions are welcomed. Thanks.

[franzuu 211]

Is DayZ using the ram?

 

Something probably has a memory leak.

 

if its DayZ then report it to http://feedback.dayzgame.com/view_all_bug_page.php

[Warhoax 63]

It's funny how a few topics about the same thing pop up right now, they have something in common or something :p

But anyway, if you get a warning it must mean you haven't got the pagefile enabled or it's to small. To do so - or to check if it's on - :

 

1. Click the start Orb
2. Right click Computer -> Select properties
3. Click advanced system settings at the left
4. Advanced tab -> Performance box -> Settings
5. Advanced tab -> Virtual memory box -> Change
6. Check "Size is controlled by system" or let windows control everything automatically.
7. Press okay a trizillion times and you should be fine.

PS: If you don't want to enable it on an SSD due to the durability loss, my answer to that is that the durability loss is minimal compared to the use you have from it. You can also put the pagefile on an HDD if you have one. (But again, that's also slower)

[stangster 22]

Yes, it only happens when I play DayZ and I am running it from an SSD. The pic shows what I have page filing set at now. I assume I should check the top box ?

 

[freethink 984]

I got this for the first time the other night and I too have recently switched to sdd. The sdd cp recommended I lower the pagefile size to min 200mb max 2gb and I believe this is what caused the error message. I have since set it back to windows managing the pagefile and haven't had the error since.

 

I'd recommend you allow windows manage the pagefile (e.g. click system managed size.) The pros are you won't get error messages re memory, the cons are that you will write more to your sdd and therefore lower it's life expectancy.

Edited February 14, 2015 by freethink

[Warhoax 63]

Yes, it only happens when I play DayZ and I am running it from an SSD. The pic shows what I have page filing set at now. I assume I should check the top box ?

 

Memory.PNG

Exactly what I expected! There is no pagefile (File on the HDD that acts like virtual RAM when the hardware RAM is full.)

Either select the top box or select system managed size, that should do the trick as far as I know.

As you have an SSD, I suppose you may have followed an online guide to tweak your windows a little bit to ensure a long lifespan.

This may have covered disabling the pagefile, as this generates some writes to the SSD, when the RAM is full. There is a limit to the amount of write to each memory cell on the SSD. So lowering the amount of write that happen to the SSD will let it last longer... But these guides often want to max out this idea, even when the result is minimal and the impact on user experience is big.

Today's SSD drives are already optimized well enough and can handle these writes. Trim support and other tweaks from the manufacturers make sure that the drive lifespan is as optimized as it can be. So enabling the pagefile isn't a problem.

There are enough topic on the internet about it, I myself asked my Computer architecture teacher about this, so credits to him :o

[stangster 22]

Thanks Guys !. I will try it and see what happens. I will report back with the results.

[ErichZann 28]

I am having exactly the same problem, also 8 gb of ram. For me it started happening one or two patches ago. The pagefile thing might be a workaround, but Dayz really shouldnt need to use the pagefile if 8 gb of ram are available. I suspect there is a serious memory leak somewhere in the code...

Edited February 18, 2015 by ErichZann

[franzuu 211]

I am having exactly the same problem, also 8 gb of ram. For me it started happening one or two patches ago. The pagefile thing might be a workaround, but Dayz really shouldnt need to use the pagefile if 8 gb of ram are available. I suspect there is a serious memory leak somewhere in the code...

 

check what is using up all of the ram.

[stangster 22]

Update: The pagefile fix has helped, but my ram usage does still creep as high as 75% or so. Is this normal ? for 8GB of ram ? I doubt it. It worked fine last summer, and I have had my SSD set up as it was for over a year. Something in an update has caused this "memory leak". Is it worth it to make a bug report ?