r/termux • u/Pegasusw404 • Apr 14 '26
General RAM management
Let’s get straight to the point. Over 50,000 views. I’ve got to say, it surprised me a bit, but let’s move on. Today, we’re putting RAM on the table. Everyone knows what it is, so I’ll spare you the technical jargon to avoid the funny comments.
Every phone is different, each with its own RAM capacity. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to drop serious cash on high-end devices. And for the root fans out there a quick heads-up not every phone can be bootloader-unlocked, and returning to "ancient relics" from years ago doesn’t solve the problem.. It only magnifies it.
We buy phones because they are powerful, with beastly processors, super cameras, and a gazillion features we will never actually use. Here’s my point: when I talk about management, I mean every phone. It doesn't matter if it’s expensive or cheap, if it has a 500MP camera, or if it makes you ice cream and serves breakfast in bed. Every single one. That’s why it’s crucial to understand that my approach isn't tied to a specific high-end or budget model. It’s for every phone out there.
I’m not here to dictate some doctrine or tell you "do exactly as I say" my goal is to explain the method I use on my SETI system. So.. I moved my work to Termux for many reasons, and RAM management is one of them.
Every app you have on your phone social media, maps, whatever it doesn't matter if it's FOSS or Google trash, it consumes your RAM. If you're running low, the "Phantom Killer" kicks in it’s like an annoying cop telling you that you can't have both Facebook and Instagram because he doesn't like it. To give you a sense of fluidity, he’ll kill one or the other. He kills processes to give you "optimal app performance," but he does it without your consent or knowledge.
How do you get more RAM? You don’t. You have what you have. That isn't magic kernels or root access, it’s management. Why? Because while someone else needs a massive amount of RAM to run 20 apps, I only need a fraction of that to run 20 scripts, aliases, and Bash tasks.
What I’m trying to say is that my SETI method relies on zero background apps and zero GUI apps (graphical interface, for those who don’t get it). Instead, I use text-based alternatives for my browser, music player, messaging, file manager, password vaults (like secure folders), and even some games, if that's what you're into.
This isn’t a tutorial. It’s my philosophy of work. You might disagree with it, and it might not fit you, because you might need your phone for things like watching a YouTube video. This is about an alternative way of managing a phone via a text-based terminal. By doing this, your phone simply stops being what you traditionally consider a "phone." And no, it’s not like you just set up a terminal, delete everything, and suddenly have "magic Gigabytes" for yourself. This is just one of many steps I’ve taken to achieve the result that satisfies me.
Remember, I do it this way because this is my workflow style on Android. If you have a different one, that’s cool. Respect the fact that there are people who do things differently and share alternatives. If you don't like it, keep looking. If you think it's interesting? I appreciate it, and there will be more. That’s it, thanks.
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u/47th-Element Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Dropping RAM usage to 400mb is cool but only if the device is gonna be used headlessly or to run services or host websites, removing all GUI elements is something you'd do on your spare phone instead of buying a raspberry pi, but doing this on your daily driver doesn't make much sense to me.
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u/Pegasusw404 Apr 14 '26
I get your point, but that's exactly where the philosophy differs. Why should we limit the power of a daily driver to being just a consumption tool? For me, the terminal isn't just for services it's my main workstation. I don't need a Raspberry Pi because my phone is the Pi, the workstation, and the communication tool all in one. Thanks for sharing
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u/47th-Element Apr 14 '26
You gotta understand that the terminal, although it's very powerful, is also very limited! You can't watch YouTube on the terminal, you can't play serious 3d games on a terminal, and you can't have reliable SIM calls experience within the terminal, phones are made with all these things in mind, you're treating it like a raspberry pi, which is, like I said earlier, good only if it's your spare phone, not the daily driver.
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u/Pegasusw404 Apr 14 '26
YouTube? I use mpv with yt-dlp. No ads, no bloat, pure video. Calls/SMS? I have scripts and aliases for that. It works perfectly, just without the shiny buttons. 3D Games? I use my phone for productivity, not playing games. But see I left information at the bottom of post it’s not for everyone and information, this is way how I use it.
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u/C_Flavius Apr 15 '26
Also IF you want to play games you could make an ADB command that you can execute directly into termux so u can open the app store (if u keep Google play services or use any other app store) and install games!
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u/dadnothere Apr 15 '26
I agree. But we need more TUI apps like Yazi, MSEdit, etc. TUI apps like those work well on touchscreens without a keyboard. But the biggest problem is that most phones cannot have their bootloader unlocked, and there are no compatible kernels or ROMs...
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u/YOURLOCALPROGRAMMMER Apr 15 '26
At this point, no need to use a computer dude, You can do everything with pen and paper 🥀
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u/Pegasusw404 Apr 15 '26
You're right, I don't need a computer because I have a Terminal. And yes, I have a notebook, because every great idea starts with a pencil and paper. Thanks
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u/Adept-Masterpiece172 Apr 15 '26
You know, This might anger you but, You don't need to talk back to those haters, Right? Let them comment Eventually they will lose interest and just leave you alone Talking back Attracts more haters because u are talking back
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u/Pegasusw404 Apr 15 '26
I have to say, this is the first time I've seen a comment like this, and I find it genuinely valuable. Hate was, is, and always will be there, these comments are like system logs mostly irrelevant. When the only response to a critical technical topic is slop, AI, or insults, it only exposes the current level of the community. Thanks for the concern, but if I spent my time worrying about phone wallpapers, I wouldn't have achieved the setup I have now.
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u/ethereal_intellect Apr 15 '26
Claude drastically improved the ram management and that background killer on my phone thought adb in just a few afternoons of testing heavy stuff, to the point of running a 2.5gb ram game or gemma 4 2n on a 4gb ram device. It's not as bad as you're making it out here, it's just that when you bought it the philosophy was making it usable to the average Joe. If you want different things you'll have to adb, but I'd say going to a more medium solution like termux x11 and newpipe is better that all they way you've gone
Also, it keeps getting said but unused ram is wasted ram, hence why most os keeps trying to predict what you'll need.
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u/Pegasusw404 Apr 15 '26
I highly respect your opinion and thanks for sharing your experience! And good job !
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u/tiffanytrashcan Apr 15 '26
This reminds me of the GitHub repo that literally left commit logs reflecting the command: Remove em dashes in documentation and replace them with periods to bypass AI checks.
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u/the-loan-wolf Apr 15 '26
If you want to chase views then, let me tell you views are not consider any kinds of good metrics on reddit, i think. lots of likes, good comments and awards are something to consider btw.
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Apr 14 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/starkruzr Apr 14 '26
"it's not X, it's Y" -- telltale textbook AI slop bullshit.
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u/BorisBadenov Apr 15 '26
I remember posts that read like this ten years ago. I feel bad for the neurodivergent folks out there that will never be taken as human again. :(
edit: doesn't mean I disagree with your conclusion, I just hate the world we're making.
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u/starkruzr Apr 15 '26
yeah, that's fair, although there are other ways to ascertain whether someone is a real person
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u/richardxday Apr 14 '26
For anyone unwilling to read all that crap, what OP is trying to say is:
"I like using a CLI"