Summary

This chapter explored the fundamental concepts of memory management in computer systems. Memory management is critical for OSs efficiently utilizing a computer’s memory resources.

We discussed memory hierarchy, which consists of various levels of memory, from registers and cache to RAM and storage devices. Understanding this hierarchy is essential for optimizing memory usage. We then reviewed how memory is allocated to different processes or programs running on a computer, allocation strategies, and their implications on system performance.

We also reviewed a popular memory management technique in garbage collection and how it works in .NET. Garbage collection automatically identifies and frees up unused objects or data memory and excuses the developer from writing manual memory management logic. This behavior also reduces memory overhead and improves overall application performance.

This chapter provided a comprehensive overview of memory management in computer systems, emphasizing its importance in ensuring efficient resource utilization, process isolation, and system reliability. It sets the foundation for understanding the intricacies of memory management in modern OSs.

Next, we look at garbage collection in more depth and see how objects are handled.