linux-kernel - Re: Linux machines dieing in swap storms

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Date:	Thu, 25 Oct 2007 20:55:53 +0100
From:	Simon Arlott <simon@...e.lp0.eu>
To:	Richard Purdie <rpurdie@...ys.net>
CC:	LKML <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: Re: Linux machines dieing in swap storms

On 25/10/07 16:20, Richard Purdie wrote:
> This isn't a new problem. My mail server used to be running an ancient
> 2.6.12 kernel and I upgraded it to 2.6.22.X in an effort to solve this
> problem which no change. My desktop shows exactly the same kind of OOM
> swap storm behaviour (2.6.20 based).
> 
> I realise that tuning the OOM killer is a really tricky problem but
> something needs improving as the current user experience is broken.
> 
> I'm seriously tempted to add a "kill the process using the most memory"
> key combination into SysRq which might let me save the desktop but won't
> help with my remote server. I could also just disable swap I guess.

I have no swap. If I accidentally start The GIMP and load a very large 
image, everything just freezes and I have to reboot - the OOM killer 
doesn't appear to care.

-- 
Simon Arlott
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