CODEWITHSUNDEEP
iosobjective-c
RodMatveev
RodMatveev

Reputation: 97

Memory usage increasing

I have a quick question- does it matter if the memory that is used by an app while it is running increases slightly (0.1mb) every single time a view controller is loaded? I have a game which has an infinite level, and if the player loses the view controller basically refreshes (e.g. all timers invalidated) and the main menu controller is loaded. Then every time the infinite level is restarted, the memory (shown in the debug navigator) goes up. So the first time the level is played it is 226 mb, the second it is 226.2 mb, third it is 226.4 mb etc. Is this a problem?

Upvotes: 1

Views: 119

Answers (1)

Tcharni
Tcharni

Reputation: 644

What is probably happening is that there are a few strong references to Views/iVars/Properties still left dangling when you release your infinite level view controller (by dismissing/removing from superview). Try to release all your properties and instance variables just before you release your view controller. You could also try to define all your IBOutlets (which don't get removed from the view) as Weak type, so they get released when the view controller is dismissed.

Some points you can remember as a checklist for memory management:

  1. Any property/variable with a strong/retain type should be released by the user. ARC does it automatically, but sometimes it does not release correctly (Don't ask why).
  2. Instance variables are by default a "Strong" reference type, which means you have to release them manually
  3. IBOutlets that remain in the view and you don't removeFromSuperview, can be of weak type, since the view holds a strong reference to it.
  4. (if you do not have ARC on) Make sure that you have an NSAutoReleasePool block so that it releases all local variables, thereby preventing memory leaks.

Your problem, while not serious at the moment, could become serious quite soon. The average iPad/iPhone starts giving memory warnings around 300 MB, so if you start adding any more features to your game, this could become a big problem.

Hope this answer helps.

Upvotes: 6

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