Fixing khugepaged CPU usage VMware Workstation

vmware-workstation-khugepaged-fix.md

If you run VMware Workstation 11 or above you may encounter high CPU usage from process khugepaged on Ubuntu 15.04+

The fix is to disable transparent hugepages. It seems Ubuntu has it enabled by default.

You can check the current status on your system by running:

cat /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/enabled

cat /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/defrag

Fedora outputs: always [madvise] never but Ubuntu outputs: [always] madvise never

Fedora seems to not be effected but I havn't tested it myself.

So I suggest not using madvise and just disable it totally.

To disable it run the following commands as root:

echo never > /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/enabled

echo never > /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/defrag

That will only disable it for the current session.

To have it persistant across reboots I suggest adding this to your rc.local:

# Fix for VMware Workstation 11+ khugepaged.
echo never > /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/enabled
echo never > /sys/kernel/mm/transparent_hugepage/defrag

Ensure this goes above the line:

exit 0

More info and references:

• https://communities.vmware.com/thread/505923
• https://docs.mongodb.com/manual/tutorial/transparent-huge-pages/

VMware Workstation 17.6.2

Resolved Issues

• The kcompactd kernel process causes virtual machines on Linux hosts to become unresponsive
  Virtual machines on Linux hosts eventually become unresponsive because of the kcompactd kernel process. The issue is resolved in VMware Workstation 17.6.2.

AWESOME. Thank you.

Thanks for fixing this. For something like 4 years, I have been struggling with this problem. I found and applied a half-dozen fixes, some of which worked for a while, but then stopped working. It was a gigantic pain. At one time, no fix was available, and I was forced to switch to another VM manager. I have been purchased every version of VMWare Workstations since 1999, when I saw it at a trade show. Until about 2020, I was deleriously happy with the product. I hope to continue in that blissful state from now on. Thanks again, Gene Olson

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On Fri, Dec 20, 2024 at 5:52 AM Denis Denisov ***@***.***> wrote: ***@***.**** commented on this gist. ------------------------------ VMware Workstation 17.6.2Resolved Issues - The kcompactd kernel process causes virtual machines on Linux hosts to become unresponsive Virtual machines on Linux hosts eventually become unresponsive because of the kcompactd kernel process. The issue is resolved in VMware Workstation 17.6.2. https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1694305#c4 — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <https://gist.github.com/2E0PGS/2560d054819843d1e6da76ae57378989#gistcomment-5351608> or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AABJJPO3PTOQGTFUXJXEGX32GQAGFBFKMF2HI4TJMJ2XIZLTSKBKK5TBNR2WLJDUOJ2WLJDOMFWWLO3UNBZGKYLEL5YGC4TUNFRWS4DBNZ2F6YLDORUXM2LUPGBKK5TBNR2WLJDHNFZXJJDOMFWWLK3UNBZGKYLEL52HS4DFVRZXKYTKMVRXIX3UPFYGLK2HNFZXIQ3PNVWWK3TUUZ2G64DJMNZZDAVEOR4XAZNEM5UXG5FFOZQWY5LFVA4DKOJRGM2TQMNHORZGSZ3HMVZKMY3SMVQXIZI> . You are receiving this email because you commented on the thread. Triage notifications on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS <https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id1477376905?ct=notification-email&mt=8&pt=524675> or Android <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.github.android&referrer=utm_campaign%3Dnotification-email%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Dgithub> .