Bug 366342 - System Load Viewer Plasmoid shows only used memory including cache
Summary: System Load Viewer Plasmoid shows only used memory including cache
Status: RESOLVED UNMAINTAINED
Alias: None
Product: kdeplasma-addons
Classification: Plasma
Component: systemloadviewer (show other bugs)
Version: 5.7.2
Platform: Arch Linux Linux
: NOR normal
Target Milestone: ---
Assignee: Plasma Bugs List
URL:
Keywords:
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2016-08-02 07:07 UTC by Flupp
Modified: 2025-03-17 19:58 UTC (History)
3 users (show)

See Also:
Latest Commit:
Version Fixed In:
Sentry Crash Report:


Attachments
Memory looks nearly full (13.17 KB, image/png)
2016-08-02 07:08 UTC, Flupp
Details
Screenshot - load viewer plasmoid includes disk cache in used memory (128.40 KB, image/png)
2018-05-02 12:48 UTC, Pascal d'Hermilly
Details
Patch To Restore Cache Display and Allow Hover (10.00 KB, application/x-tar)
2019-08-11 16:00 UTC, Garry Williams
Details

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Description Flupp 2016-08-02 07:07:00 UTC
The System Load Viewer Plasmoid reports for memory only the used memory including buff/cache; an indication of the really used memory is missing. Therefore, most of the time memory looks full.

Reproducible: Always
Comment 1 Flupp 2016-08-02 07:08:59 UTC
Created attachment 100411 [details]
Memory looks nearly full

Added “Memory looks nearly full” attachment. Yet, there is plenty of available memory:

% free -h
              total        used        free      shared  buff/cache   available
Mem:           7,7G        1,8G        198M        380M        5,7G        5,2G
Swap:            0B          0B          0B
Comment 2 David Edmundson 2016-10-19 22:07:02 UTC
Git commit 346b492b362a1ee74ea809de80c0cdaa60ef1dda by David Edmundson, on behalf of Miklós Máté.
Committed on 19/10/2016 at 21:51.
Pushed by davidedmundson into branch 'Plasma/5.8'.

Count only applications in memory usage

This restores the behavior of the widget to match the original C++
version. Buffers and cached do not really contribute to memory usage,
because file system cache gets dropped, if applications need more
memory. See MemFree vs. MemAvailable in /proc/cpuinfo.
REVIEW: 129230

M  +1    -1    applets/systemloadviewer/package/contents/ui/SystemLoadViewer.qml

http://commits.kde.org/kdeplasma-addons/346b492b362a1ee74ea809de80c0cdaa60ef1dda
Comment 3 Pascal d'Hermilly 2018-05-02 12:48:32 UTC
Created attachment 112373 [details]
Screenshot - load viewer plasmoid includes disk cache in used memory

This is apparently an issue again. 
The disk cache is included in used memory.
See attached screenshot.
Please reopen.
Plasma version 5.12.4
Comment 4 Pascal d'Hermilly 2018-05-02 12:50:52 UTC
> The disk cache is included in used memory.
To clarify my point: misrepresented in the visualization of used memory.
Comment 5 Pascal d'Hermilly 2018-05-23 13:35:03 UTC
Any chance to get this fixed before Plasma 5.13?
Comment 6 Garry Williams 2018-08-16 17:38:51 UTC
What's wrong with visually displaying cache (as green custom color like before), but reporting without adding in cache (like before)?

It was not "wrong" and matched (visually) what top and others would report.

In other words, why hide the used cache?
Comment 7 g507839 2019-08-11 13:42:11 UTC
I was frustrated to find, after updating KDE the other day, that it no longer shows cache in the memory usage bar. There is another entire bar available for displaying cache, that seems to show something completely different, but there is no way to see the thing I want to see: the portion of memory being used by the file system cache. It used to display cache in a different color to used memory, which was perfect, but now it's gone.

If showing cache is potentially confusing, a quick checkbox could be added to make it an off-by-default preference.
Comment 8 Garry Williams 2019-08-11 16:00:12 UTC
Created attachment 122065 [details]
Patch To Restore Cache Display and Allow Hover

I also submitted a patch to allow hovering on the load viewer so that
it wouldn't disappear until moving the mouse off of it.  That was
rejected on some consistency grounds -- not on its merit.

I, too didn't like the change here.  But it seems that no one agrees.
That being the case, I have been carrying my own patches to restore
the cache display and to allow hover to prevent the display from
closing.

Here are my patches, if you are interested.  I apply them (after
updates regress them) with the following commands (Fedora):

sudo patch /usr/share/plasma/plasmoids/org.kde.plasma.systemloadviewer/contents/ui/SystemLoadViewer.qml ui/SystemLoadViewer.qml.patch
sudo patch /usr/share/plasma/plasmoids/org.kde.plasma.systemloadviewer/contents/ui/ColorSettings.qml ui/ColorSettings.qml.patch
sudo patch /usr/share/plasma/plasmoids/org.kde.plasma.systemloadviewer/contents/config/main.xml config/main.xml.patch
Comment 9 Nate Graham 2020-10-16 02:16:22 UTC
Is this still an issue or relevant with the new System Monitor applet in Plasma 5.19 and beyond?
Comment 10 Garry Williams 2020-10-16 15:18:32 UTC
(In reply to Nate Graham from comment #9)
> Is this still an issue or relevant with the new System Monitor applet in
> Plasma 5.19 and beyond?

See bug #397840.  This bug report is about an existing applet being changed for no apparent reason.  Yes this report is relevant because comment #6 was was never addressed before.  Bug #397840 contains a patch that fixes the problem in this report, comment #6.
Comment 11 Bug Janitor Service 2020-10-31 04:33:29 UTC
Dear Bug Submitter,

This bug has been in NEEDSINFO status with no change for at least
15 days. Please provide the requested information as soon as
possible and set the bug status as REPORTED. Due to regular bug
tracker maintenance, if the bug is still in NEEDSINFO status with
no change in 30 days the bug will be closed as RESOLVED > WORKSFORME
due to lack of needed information.

For more information about our bug triaging procedures please read the
wiki located here:
https://community.kde.org/Guidelines_and_HOWTOs/Bug_triaging

If you have already provided the requested information, please
mark the bug as REPORTED so that the KDE team knows that the bug is
ready to be confirmed.

Thank you for helping us make KDE software even better for everyone!
Comment 12 Garry Williams 2020-10-31 15:10:22 UTC
Forgot to change status after last comments added in response to NEEDSINFO.
Comment 13 TraceyC 2025-03-17 19:58:40 UTC
I'm closing this report, since the System Load Viewer is no longer a part of KDE Plasma. My apologies that we weren't able to fix this.

For any bugs that are still being encountered, please open a new report. Thanks.