Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
kernel_task very high memory usage
- Thread starter kubad
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Kernel_task is a system process on your Mac that helps manage CPU temperature and performance. If it's using a lot of memory, it usually indicates that your Mac is overheating or that there are resource-intensive applications running.
The graph at the bottom of Activity Monitor shows green memory pressure and you're using zero swap. The machine is fine and not at all memory constrained. You don't have a memory problem.
Is your Mac running warm, or do you have a lot of peripherals attached? Does the CPU tab show an active process using a lot of CPU? Maybe high CPU demand is causing this. Perhaps try closing the Messenger tab in Safari. Facebook (Meta) has a reputation for writing resource intensive code.
Either way, I would not worry about it. Kernel task is an automatic function of the operating system. It's doing a job to protect your Mac.
The graph at the bottom of Activity Monitor shows green memory pressure and you're using zero swap. The machine is fine and not at all memory constrained. You don't have a memory problem.
Is your Mac running warm, or do you have a lot of peripherals attached? Does the CPU tab show an active process using a lot of CPU? Maybe high CPU demand is causing this. Perhaps try closing the Messenger tab in Safari. Facebook (Meta) has a reputation for writing resource intensive code.
Either way, I would not worry about it. Kernel task is an automatic function of the operating system. It's doing a job to protect your Mac.
No, it's the OS and is responsible for nearly everything, task scheduling, memory, hardware, etc. Its RAM use has no direct relationship with the heat of the computer.
It can appear to use a lot of CPU when your computer is hot and very slow. This is just a side-effect of the reporting when the computer is thermal throttling, however. It's not really using the CPU, it's just limiting how much other processes can use.