Memory Management in python 2.5

[Fredrik Lundh]

cesar.ortiz at gmail.com wrote:

> Hi, I am starting to have a look to a python program that does not free
> memory (I am using python 2.4.3). As I have read about a new memory
> management in python 2.5 (http://evanjones.ca/python-memory.html) I
> decided to try the program with the new version.
> With the new version of python the memory consumption is the same. Now
> I am asking myself if  python 2.5 has any improving  in memory
> management or maybe not yet.

the new mechanism only helps if you temporarily create large structures and release
them quickly; it does not help if you're *fragmenting* the memory.  Python requests
memory from the underlying system in blocks (called "arenas"), and it can only re-
turn them if they're entirely empty.

(this is discussed on the page you link to, and the various posts it links to).

</F>