JavaScript Heap Out of Memory

Common Causes

• Processing very large datasets in memory
• Memory leaks (unclosed connections, growing caches)
• Recursive functions with deep call stacks
• Loading huge JSON/files without streaming

Fixes

1. 1. Increase heap size temporarily

   NODE_OPTIONS=--max-old-space-size=4096 node your-app.js

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2. 2. Use streaming for large files

   const stream = fs.createReadStream('large.json');
   stream.pipe(JSONStream.parse());

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3. 3. Process data in chunks

   for (const chunk of chunks) {
     processChunk(chunk);
     global.gc?.(); // if --expose-gc
   }

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4. 4. Profile with --inspect

   node --inspect --max-old-space-size=4096 app.js

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Still not fixed?

• • Search the exact error message on Stack Overflow or GitHub Issues
• • Check the official docs for the language or tool
• • Ensure your versions (Node, Python, npm, Docker) are up to date
• • Try in a minimal reproduction (new project, single file)

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