I’ve been dealing with a really frustrating issue since I did a fresh install of Ubuntu 24.04 a little while ago. At first, everything seemed to be running smoothly – the interface is sleek, and I love the new features. But here’s the kicker: over time, my RAM usage keeps creeping up until my system basically grinds to a halt and becomes almost unresponsive. It’s like I’m back on an old computer trying to run games from a decade ago!
At first, I thought it might just be the usual initial adjustments of a new operating system, but after a few weeks of usage, it’s becoming a real headache. I’m talking about starting with around 30% RAM usage while just browsing the web or working on some documents, then gradually noticing it climbing to over 90% just a couple of hours later. I’ve checked the system monitor, and it seems like it’s not just one application causing the hogging – there are multiple processes that seem to be at fault, but I can’t figure out which ones.
I’ve tried the usual suspects, like cleaning up unnecessary startup applications and disabling any visual effects, and I’ve even uninstalled some software that I thought might be causing memory issues. But it still keeps going up! I’ve also looked into updates, thinking maybe a patch or fix was released, but so far, nothing seems to make a difference.
Is this something anyone else has experienced? I’ve seen some chatter online, but solutions seem to vary. Some suggest increasing swap space, while others talk about tweaking certain settings. I really want to avoid having to fully reinstall again, especially since I’ve spent quite a bit of time setting things up just how I like them. If anyone’s found a reliable solution to this growing RAM usage problem, I’d really appreciate your advice! Would love to hear your experiences or any tips you might have to keep my system running smoothly. Thanks!
Sounds super frustrating! It’s like your computer is playing tricks on you. I’ve dabbled a bit with Ubuntu, so I’ll share what little I know. First off, when RAM goes up like that, it could be a memory leak in one of the apps. You might wanna check if there’s a specific process that’s always using a ton of RAM in the System Monitor. Sometimes a simple restart of that app can help, but that’s not a fix!
You mentioned you tried cleaning up startup applications; that’s a great start! Have you thought about using
htop
? It’s a nifty little tool you can install (just runsudo apt install htop
in the terminal). It gives you a real-time view of what’s using the most resources. You might spot the troublemaker there.Also, regarding swap space, if your system is using a lot of RAM, increasing the swap might help it breathe a bit. It won’t fix the apps that are crapping out, but it could give you some temporary relief. You can check how much swap you currently have with
free -h
in the terminal.Lastly, if you’ve got some third-party software installed, try to disable or uninstall anything that isn’t essential, just to see if that makes a difference. Sometimes, the newer stuff can be a bit unstable, or they haven’t optimized it for the newer Ubuntu versions yet.
Hopefully, one of these tips helps! If not, maybe consider reaching out in forums where other Ubuntu users hang out. Someone might have experienced the same thing and found a magical fix!
RAM usage creeping up in Ubuntu 24.04 can be frustrating, especially when it begins to hinder your workflow. A common reason for increased RAM usage over time is memory leaks in applications or services that may not efficiently handle resources. To identify which processes are consuming the most memory, consider using the command-line tool
top
orhtop
for a more user-friendly interface. These tools will allow you to sort processes by their memory usage. Additionally, you might want to check if there are any background services or processes associated with applications that you don’t use frequently but might be consuming significant resources.In terms of potential fixes, increasing your swap space may help manage high RAM usage, particularly if you’re running many applications simultaneously. This gives your system more breathing space to manage tasks. Moreover, consider checking for any available updates or patches from Ubuntu, as newer releases often contain performance and memory management improvements. Disabling or uninstalling memory-intensive applications is another viable option. If you’re comfortable tweaking system settings, look into adjusting the
swappiness
value to control the balance between RAM and swap usage more effectively. These steps should help you maintain a smoother experience on your system.