VMware Fusion takes up more RAM than allowed to

[ohla313]

I am currently running VMware Fusion 5 to use a Windows 7 VM. I have had this problem since Lion and Fusion 4, but whenever I run my VM it uses more than the 2GB RAM I allowed it to use. How do I control the VM's memory usage to stay at 2GB? It always uses up all my RAM and I only have 26MB left when I have 8GB RAM total and gave VMware 2GB for Windows.

 

[Intell]

VMWare gives 2GB to Windows and it still needs some for itself. You can't control what it needs for itself. Your Mac does not have only 26MB left. If it did, it'd crash. Inactive RAM also counts as usable RAM and becomes free whenever something needs it.

 

[ohla313]

VMWare give 2GB to Windows and it still needs some for itself. You can't control what it needs for itself. Your Mac does not have only 26MB left. If it did, it'd crash. Inactive RAM also counts as usable RAM and becomes free whenever something needs it.

So there is nothing I can do and this is normal? It makes my MBA or MBP sluggish and I checked Activity Monitor and it does show very little free RAM.

 

[Intell]

Of course running two operating systems at once is going to cause the system to feel sluggish. Read up what inactive RAM is, you aren't in Windows world anymore. And remember, in most UNIX based operating systems like Mac OS X, free RAM is wasted RAM.

 

[madsilencerr]

Just fire up terminal, write purge and then hit enter.

 

[Intell]

Just fire up terminal, write purge and then hit enter.

That won't do much in ohla313's case and that can actually cause problems and slow do a computer if used incorrectly as most people do.

 

[gumblecosby]

This is one example where the famous "free ram is wasted ram" is shown to be fallible. In theory, that inactive ram generated by vmware should be released for other programs but it wont be until you quit vmware. The theory of inactive ram is sound but the implementation is inefficient in Mac OS X.

When you see how Microsoft has decreased ram usage from Vista - Windows 7 - Windows 8 compared to the mac os x it becomes more frustrating. Windows also uses inactive ram but is a lot more stringent.

Edit:
i should add that Ive only seen this happening with Vmware so maybe the blame belongs there