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ConFoo - Exploring .NET’s memory management – a trip down memory lane

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Maarten Balliauw
Maarten Balliauw

The .NET Garbage Collector (GC) is really cool. It helps providing our applications with virtually unlimited memory, so we can focus on writing code instead of manually freeing up memory. But how does .NET manage that memory? What are hidden allocations? Are strings evil? It still matters to understand when and where memory is allocated. In this talk, we’ll go over the base concepts of .NET memory management and explore how .NET helps us and how we can help .NET – making our apps better. Expect profiling, Intermediate Language (IL), ClrMD and more!

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Exploring .NET memory management A trip down memory lane Maarten Balliauw @maartenballiauw
Agenda Garbage Collector Helping the GC Allocations & hidden allocations Strings Exploring the heap
Garbage Collector
.NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Objects allocated in “managed heap” (big chunk of memory) Allocating memory is fast, it’s just adding a pointer Some unmanaged memory is also consumed (not GC-ed) .NET CLR, Dynamic libraries, Graphics buffer, … Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap
.NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) GC releases objects no longer in use by examining application roots GC builds a graph of all the objects that are reachable from these roots Object unreachable? Remove object, release memory, compact heap Takes time to scan all objects! Generations Large Object Heap
.NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap Generation 0 Generation 1 Generation 2 Short-lived objects (e.g. Local variables) In-between objects Long-lived objects (e.g. App’s main form)
.NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap (LOH) Special segment for large objects (>85KB) Collected only during full garbage collection Not compacted (by default) -> fragmentation! Fragmentation can cause OutOfMemoryException
The .NET garbage collector When does it run? Vague… But usually: Out of memory condition – when the system fails to allocate or re-allocate memory After some significant allocation – if X memory is allocated since previous GC Failure of allocating some native resources – internal to .NET Profiler – when triggered from profiler API Forced – when calling methods on System.GC Application moves to background GC is not guaranteed to run http://blogs.msdn.com/b/oldnewthing/archive/2010/08/09/10047586.aspx http://blogs.msdn.com/b/abhinaba/archive/2008/04/29/when-does-the-net-compact-framework-garbage-collector-run.aspx
The .NET garbage collector Runs very often for gen0 Short-lived objects, few references, fast to clean Local variable Web request/response Higher generation Usually more references, slower to clean GC pauses the running application to do its thing Usually short, except when not… Background GC (enabled by default) Concurrent with application threads May still introduce short locks/pauses, usually just for one thread
Helping the GC, avoid pauses Optimize allocations (e.g. use struct when it makes sense, object pooling) Don’t allocate at all Make use of IDisposable / using statement Clean up references, giving the GC an easy job Weak references Allow the GC to collect these objects, no need for checks Finalizers Beware! Moved to finalizer queue -> always gen++
Helping the GC DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos
Allocations
When is memory allocated? Not for value types (int, bool, struct, decimal, enum, float, byte, long, …) Allocated on stack, not on heap Not managed by garbage collector For reference types When you new
Hidden allocations! Boxing! Put and int in a box Take an int out of a box Lambda’s/closures Allocate compiler-generated DisplayClass to capture state Params arrays And more! int i = 42; // boxing - wraps the value type in an "object box" // (allocating a System.Object) object o = i; // unboxing - unpacking the "object box" into an int again // (CPU effort to unwrap) int j = (int)o;
How to find them? Experience Intermediate Language (IL) Profiler “Heap allocations viewer” ReSharper Heap Allocations Viewer plugin Roslyn’s Heap Allocation Analyzer Don’t do premature optimization – measure!
Hidden allocations DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos ReSharper Heap Allocations Viewer plugin Roslyn’s Heap Allocation Analyzer
Don’t optimize what should not be optimized.
Measure! We know when allocations are done... ...but perhaps these don’t matter. Measure! How frequently are we allocating? How frequently are we collecting? What generation do we end up on? Are our allocations introducing pauses? www.jetbrains.com/dotmemory (and www.jetbrains.com/dottrace)
Garbage Collector & Allocations GC is optimized for high memory traffic in short-lived objects Use that knowledge! Don’t fear allocations! Don’t optimize what should not be optimized… GC is the concept that makes .NET / C# tick – use it! Know when allocations happen GC is awesome Gen2 collection that stop the world not so much… Measure!
Strings
Strings are objects .NET tries to make them look like a value type, but they are a reference type Read-only collection of char Length property A bunch of operator overloading Allocated on the managed heap var a = new string('-', 25); var b = "Hello, World!"; var c = httpClient.GetStringAsync("http://blog.maartenballiauw.be");
String duplicates Any .NET application has them (System.Globalization duplicates quite a few) Are they bad? .NET GC is fast for short-lived objects, so meh. Don’t waste memory with string duplicates on gen2 (but: it’s okay to have strings there)
Duplicate strings DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos
String literals Are all strings on the heap? Are all strings duplicated? var a = "Hello, World!"; var b = "Hello, World!"; Console.WriteLine(a == b); Console.WriteLine(Object.ReferenceEquals(a, b)); Prints true twice. So “Hello World” only in memory once?
Portable Executable (PE) #UserStrings DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos
String literals in #US Compile-time optimization Store literals only once in PE header metadata stream ECMA-335 standard, section II.24.2.4 Reference literals (IL: ldstr) var a = Console.ReadLine(); var b = Console.ReadLine(); Console.WriteLine(a == b); Console.WriteLine(Object.ReferenceEquals(a, b)); String interning to the rescue!
String interning Store (and read) strings from the intern pool Simply call String.Intern when “allocating” or reading the string Scans intern pool and returns reference var url = "http://blog.maartenballiauw.be"; var stringList = new List<string>(); for (int i = 0; i < 1000000; i++) { stringList.Add(string.Intern(url + "/")); }
String interning caveats Why are not all strings interned by default? CPU vs. memory Not on the heap but on intern pool No GC on intern pool – all strings in memory for AppDomain lifetime! Rule of thumb Lot of long-lived, few unique -> interning good Lot of long-lived, many unique -> no benefit, memory growth Lot of short-lived -> trust the GC Measure!
Exploring the heap for fun and profit
How would you do it... // TODO: Build managed type system, stored in memory, CPU/memory friendly Probably: Store type info (what’s in there, what’s the offset of fieldN, …) Store field data (just data) Store method pointers (“who you gonna call?”) Inheritance information
Stuff on the Managed Heap (scroll down for more...)
IT is just mapping mappings. Pointer to an “instance” Instance Pointer to Runtime Type Information (RTTI) Field values (which can be pointers in turn) RunTime Type Information Interface addresses Instance method addresses Static method addresses …
Theory is nice... Microsoft.Diagnostics.Runtime (ClrMD) “ClrMD is a set of advanced APIs for programmatically inspecting a crash dump of a .NET program much in the same way that the SOS Debugging Extensions (SOS) do. This allows you to write automated crash analysis for your applications as well as automate many common debugger tasks. In addition to reading crash dumps ClrMD also allows supports attaching to live processes.” Maarten’s definition: “LINQ-to-heap”
ClrMD DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos
Conclusion
Conclusion Garbage Collector (GC) optimized for high memory traffic + short-lived objects Don’t fear allocations! But beware of gen2 “stop the world” String interning when lots of long-lived, few unique Don’t optimize what should not be optimized… Measure! Using a profiler/memory analysis tool ClrMD to automate inspections dotMemory Unit, Benchmark.NET, … to profile unit tests Blog series: https://blog.maartenballiauw.be
Thank you! http://blog.maartenballiauw.be @maartenballiauw

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ConFoo - Exploring .NET’s memory management – a trip down memory lane

  • 1. Exploring .NET memory management A trip down memory lane Maarten Balliauw @maartenballiauw
  • 2. Agenda Garbage Collector Helping the GC Allocations & hidden allocations Strings Exploring the heap
  • 4. .NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Objects allocated in “managed heap” (big chunk of memory) Allocating memory is fast, it’s just adding a pointer Some unmanaged memory is also consumed (not GC-ed) .NET CLR, Dynamic libraries, Graphics buffer, … Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap
  • 5. .NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) GC releases objects no longer in use by examining application roots GC builds a graph of all the objects that are reachable from these roots Object unreachable? Remove object, release memory, compact heap Takes time to scan all objects! Generations Large Object Heap
  • 6. .NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap Generation 0 Generation 1 Generation 2 Short-lived objects (e.g. Local variables) In-between objects Long-lived objects (e.g. App’s main form)
  • 7. .NET memory management 101 Memory allocation Memory release or “Garbage Collection” (GC) Generations Large Object Heap (LOH) Special segment for large objects (>85KB) Collected only during full garbage collection Not compacted (by default) -> fragmentation! Fragmentation can cause OutOfMemoryException
  • 8. The .NET garbage collector When does it run? Vague… But usually: Out of memory condition – when the system fails to allocate or re-allocate memory After some significant allocation – if X memory is allocated since previous GC Failure of allocating some native resources – internal to .NET Profiler – when triggered from profiler API Forced – when calling methods on System.GC Application moves to background GC is not guaranteed to run http://blogs.msdn.com/b/oldnewthing/archive/2010/08/09/10047586.aspx http://blogs.msdn.com/b/abhinaba/archive/2008/04/29/when-does-the-net-compact-framework-garbage-collector-run.aspx
  • 9. The .NET garbage collector Runs very often for gen0 Short-lived objects, few references, fast to clean Local variable Web request/response Higher generation Usually more references, slower to clean GC pauses the running application to do its thing Usually short, except when not… Background GC (enabled by default) Concurrent with application threads May still introduce short locks/pauses, usually just for one thread
  • 10. Helping the GC, avoid pauses Optimize allocations (e.g. use struct when it makes sense, object pooling) Don’t allocate at all Make use of IDisposable / using statement Clean up references, giving the GC an easy job Weak references Allow the GC to collect these objects, no need for checks Finalizers Beware! Moved to finalizer queue -> always gen++
  • 13. When is memory allocated? Not for value types (int, bool, struct, decimal, enum, float, byte, long, …) Allocated on stack, not on heap Not managed by garbage collector For reference types When you new
  • 14. Hidden allocations! Boxing! Put and int in a box Take an int out of a box Lambda’s/closures Allocate compiler-generated DisplayClass to capture state Params arrays And more! int i = 42; // boxing - wraps the value type in an "object box" // (allocating a System.Object) object o = i; // unboxing - unpacking the "object box" into an int again // (CPU effort to unwrap) int j = (int)o;
  • 15. How to find them? Experience Intermediate Language (IL) Profiler “Heap allocations viewer” ReSharper Heap Allocations Viewer plugin Roslyn’s Heap Allocation Analyzer Don’t do premature optimization – measure!
  • 16. Hidden allocations DEMO https://github.com/maartenba/memory-demos ReSharper Heap Allocations Viewer plugin Roslyn’s Heap Allocation Analyzer
  • 17. Don’t optimize what should not be optimized.
  • 18. Measure! We know when allocations are done... ...but perhaps these don’t matter. Measure! How frequently are we allocating? How frequently are we collecting? What generation do we end up on? Are our allocations introducing pauses? www.jetbrains.com/dotmemory (and www.jetbrains.com/dottrace)
  • 19. Garbage Collector & Allocations GC is optimized for high memory traffic in short-lived objects Use that knowledge! Don’t fear allocations! Don’t optimize what should not be optimized… GC is the concept that makes .NET / C# tick – use it! Know when allocations happen GC is awesome Gen2 collection that stop the world not so much… Measure!
  • 21. Strings are objects .NET tries to make them look like a value type, but they are a reference type Read-only collection of char Length property A bunch of operator overloading Allocated on the managed heap var a = new string('-', 25); var b = "Hello, World!"; var c = httpClient.GetStringAsync("http://blog.maartenballiauw.be");
  • 22. String duplicates Any .NET application has them (System.Globalization duplicates quite a few) Are they bad? .NET GC is fast for short-lived objects, so meh. Don’t waste memory with string duplicates on gen2 (but: it’s okay to have strings there)
  • 24. String literals Are all strings on the heap? Are all strings duplicated? var a = "Hello, World!"; var b = "Hello, World!"; Console.WriteLine(a == b); Console.WriteLine(Object.ReferenceEquals(a, b)); Prints true twice. So “Hello World” only in memory once?
  • 26. String literals in #US Compile-time optimization Store literals only once in PE header metadata stream ECMA-335 standard, section II.24.2.4 Reference literals (IL: ldstr) var a = Console.ReadLine(); var b = Console.ReadLine(); Console.WriteLine(a == b); Console.WriteLine(Object.ReferenceEquals(a, b)); String interning to the rescue!
  • 27. String interning Store (and read) strings from the intern pool Simply call String.Intern when “allocating” or reading the string Scans intern pool and returns reference var url = "http://blog.maartenballiauw.be"; var stringList = new List<string>(); for (int i = 0; i < 1000000; i++) { stringList.Add(string.Intern(url + "/")); }
  • 28. String interning caveats Why are not all strings interned by default? CPU vs. memory Not on the heap but on intern pool No GC on intern pool – all strings in memory for AppDomain lifetime! Rule of thumb Lot of long-lived, few unique -> interning good Lot of long-lived, many unique -> no benefit, memory growth Lot of short-lived -> trust the GC Measure!
  • 29. Exploring the heap for fun and profit
  • 30. How would you do it... // TODO: Build managed type system, stored in memory, CPU/memory friendly Probably: Store type info (what’s in there, what’s the offset of fieldN, …) Store field data (just data) Store method pointers (“who you gonna call?”) Inheritance information
  • 31. Stuff on the Managed Heap (scroll down for more...)
  • 32. IT is just mapping mappings. Pointer to an “instance” Instance Pointer to Runtime Type Information (RTTI) Field values (which can be pointers in turn) RunTime Type Information Interface addresses Instance method addresses Static method addresses …
  • 33. Theory is nice... Microsoft.Diagnostics.Runtime (ClrMD) “ClrMD is a set of advanced APIs for programmatically inspecting a crash dump of a .NET program much in the same way that the SOS Debugging Extensions (SOS) do. This allows you to write automated crash analysis for your applications as well as automate many common debugger tasks. In addition to reading crash dumps ClrMD also allows supports attaching to live processes.” Maarten’s definition: “LINQ-to-heap”
  • 36. Conclusion Garbage Collector (GC) optimized for high memory traffic + short-lived objects Don’t fear allocations! But beware of gen2 “stop the world” String interning when lots of long-lived, few unique Don’t optimize what should not be optimized… Measure! Using a profiler/memory analysis tool ClrMD to automate inspections dotMemory Unit, Benchmark.NET, … to profile unit tests Blog series: https://blog.maartenballiauw.be

Editor's Notes

  1. https://pixabay.com/en/memory-computer-component-pcb-1761599/
  2. https://pixabay.com/en/tires-used-tires-pfu-garbage-1846674/
  3. Application roots: Typically, these are global and static object pointers, local variables, and CPU registers.
  4. Application roots: Typically, these are global and static object pointers, local variables, and CPU registers.
  5. Application roots: Typically, these are global and static object pointers, local variables, and CPU registers.
  6. Open TripDownMemoryLane.sln Show WeakReferenceDemo (demo “1-1”) Explain weak reference allows GC to collect reference Show Cache object – has weak references to data, we expect these to probably be cleaned up by GC Attach profiler, run demo “1-1”, snapshot, see 20 instances of WeakReference<Data> Snapshot again, compare – see WeakReference<Data> has been regenerated a couple of times Show DisposeObjectsDemo (demo “1-2”) Explain first demo does not dispose and relies on GC + finalizers. This will mean our object remains in memory for two GC cycles! Explain dispose does clean them up and requires only one cycle In SampleDisposable, explain GC.SuppressFinalize -> tell the GC no finalizer queue work is needed here!
  7. Open TripDownMemoryLane.sln Show Demo02_Random Open IL viewer tool window, show what happens in IL for each code sample Explain IL viewer + hovering statements to see what they do BoxingRing() – show boxing and unboxing statements in IL, explain they consume CPU and allocate an object ParamsArray() – the call to ParamsArrayImpl() actually allocates a new string array! CPU + memory AverageWithinBounds() – temporary class is created to capture state of all variables, then passed around IL_0000: newobj instance void TripDownMemoryLane.Demo02.Demo02_Random/'<>c__DisplayClass3_0'::.ctor() Lambdas() – same thing, temporary class to capture state in the loop IL_001f: newobj instance void Allocatey.Talk.Demo02_Random/'<>c__DisplayClass4_0'::.ctor() Show Demo02_ValidateArgumentsDemo – this one is fun! Explain what we want to do: build a guard function – check a condition, show error First one is the easy one, but it allocates a string and runs string.Format Second one is better – does not allocate the string! But does allocate a function and a state capture... Third one – allocates an array (params) Fourth one – no allocations, yay! Using overloads... Show heap allocations viewer!
  8. There is an old adage in IT that says “don’t do premature optimization”. In other words: maybe some allocations are okay to have, as the GC will take care of cleaning them up anyway. While some do not agree with this, I believe in the middle ground. The garbage collector is optimized for high memory traffic in short-lived objects, and I think it’s okay to make use of what the .NET runtime has to offer us here. If it’s in a critical path of a production application, fewer allocations are better, but we can’t write software with zero allocations - it’s what our high-level programming language uses to make our developer life easier. It’s not okay to have objects go to gen2 and stay there when in fact they should be gone from memory. Learn where allocations happen, using any of the above methods, and profile your production applications frequently to see if there are large objects in higher generations of the heap that don’t belong there.
  9. Open TripDownMemoryLane.sln Show StringAllocationsDemo (demo “4”) Show AllocateSomeStrings, mention a few strings will be allocated (a, b and c) AllocateSomeStringDuplicates – same thing, but a lot of strings! In loop, every string wil be added to memory, crazy! Run with dotMemory attached, capture snapshot See string duplicates! Just for fun, attach to devenv.exe 
  10. Will print “true” twice.
  11. Open our demo application in dotPeek Explain PE headers Show #US table Open StringAllocationDemo class. Jump to IL code, show ldstr statement for strings that are in #US table
  12. Code = trick question, what if we enter same value twice? String equals, reference not equals!
  13. How many strings are stored
  14. How many strings are stored
  15. Open ClrMD.sln Explain: two projects, one target application, one running ClrMD to analyze what we have Open ClrMD.Explorer.Program, show attaching ClrMD Get CLR version – gets info about the current CLR version Get runtime – gets info about the actual runtime hosting our app Show DumpClrInfo – get info, stress DAC data access components location – defines the runtime structures, used by ClrMD and VS Debugger etc to explore runtime while debugging/profiling/... Explore DumpHeapObjects, stress the heap structure Loop object addresses - foreach (var objectAddress in generation) Get type of object at address - var type = heap.GetObjectType(objectAddress.Ptr); Use type info to get value - type.GetValue(objectAddress.Ptr) Explore type autocomplete – structure to get enum, method addresses, ...