[R] Memory problem on a linux cluster using a large data set [Broadcast]

[Thomas Lumley]

On Thu, 21 Dec 2006, Iris Kolder wrote:

> Thank you all for your help!
>
> So with all your suggestions we will try to run it on a computer with a 
> 64 bits proccesor. But i've been told that the new R versions all work 
> on a 32bits processor. I read in other posts that only the old R 
> versions were capable of larger data sets and were running under 64 bit 
> proccesors. I also read that they are adapting the new R version for 64 
> bits proccesors again so does anyone now if there is a version available 
> that we could use?

Huh?  R 2.4.x runs perfectly happily accessing large memory under Linux on 
64bit processors (and Solaris, and probably others). I think it even works 
on Mac OS X now.

For example:
> x<-rnorm(1e9)
> gc()
              used   (Mb) gc trigger   (Mb)   max used   (Mb)
Ncells     222881   12.0     467875   25.0     350000   18.7
Vcells 1000115046 7630.3 1000475743 7633.1 1000115558 7630.3


         -thomas

Thomas Lumley			Assoc. Professor, Biostatistics
tlumley at u.washington.edu	University of Washington, Seattle