A Look at pSA: Android apps may soon shut down if they use too much RAM
Android users should get ready for a change in how they use their apps. Google will soon be ensuring that apps have fixed memory limits that they can’t exceed. If an app uses more than its allotted share, it’ll be throttled or even automatically closed.
Since March, Google has been issuing warnings about apps that use more battery power than expected. Now, the focus has also shifted to apps that place an excessive strain on RAM. Starting with Android 17, which is already available on Pixel smartphones, Android is putting a stop to such apps.
This decision is in response to the fact that “new devices are maintaining or even decreasing their physical memory capacity in response to memory price increases”, as Google explains in a blog post published on 19 August. In other words, RAMageddon strikes again. Developers must therefore ensure that their apps have been sufficiently optimised and tested so that they don’t exceed the limit.
Before the app is forcibly closed, Android 17 may first ensure that part of the data use is moved to zRAM. This is a separate, compressed memory area designed to prevent the device from slowing down. However, delays may still occur when the data is decompressed again.
In the second stage, the operating system’s only remaining option is to automatically close the app if the intermediate step via zRAM is unsuccessful. App developers have therefore been advised to monitor RAM usage closely to prevent this from happening in the first place.
For Android users, this decision has a number of advantages, as apps running in the background are no longer allowed to place such a heavy load on the RAM that the entire smartphone is affected. If you have an older device with limited RAM you should, in any case, take care not to overload it with too many apps.
What you need to know
Currently, these memory limits only apply to Pixel smartphones running Android 17. However, all other manufacturers will follow suit in the coming months. You can find out whether your smartphone will receive Android 17 here.
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