ulimit

User limits - limit the use of system-wide resources.

Syntax
      ulimit [-acdefHilmnpqrsStuvx [limit]]
Key -S Set a soft limit for the given resource -H Set a hard limit for the given resource -a All current limits are reported -c The maximum size of core files created -d The maximum size of a process's data segment -e The maximum scheduling priority ("nice") -f The maximum size of files written by the shell and its children -i The maximum number of pending signals -l The maximum size that may be locked into memory -m The maximum resident set size -n The maximum number of open file descriptors (most systems do not allow this value to be set) -p The pipe size in 512-byte blocks (this may not be set) -q The maximum number of bytes in POSIX message queues -r The maximum real-time scheduling priority -s The maximum stack size -t The maximum amount of cpu time in seconds -u The maximum number of processes available to a single user -v The maximum amount of virtual memory available to the shell -x The maximum number of file locks limit The new value of the specified resource (use -a to display only)

ulimit provides control over the resources available to the shell and to processes started by it, on systems that allow such control.

The soft limit is the value that the kernel enforces for the corresponding resource. The hard limit acts as a ceiling for the soft limit.

An unprivileged process may only set its soft limit to a value in the range from 0 up to the hard limit, and (irreversibly) lower its hard limit. A privileged process may make arbitrary changes to either limit value.

A hard limit cannot be increased once it is set; a soft limit may be increased up to the value of the hard limit.
If neither -H nor -S is specified, both the soft and hard limits are set.

The value of limit can be a number in the unit specified for the resource or one of the special values hard, soft, or unlimited, which stand for the current hard limit, the current soft limit, and no limit, respectively.

If limit is omitted, the current value of the soft limit of the resource is printed, unless the -H option is given.
When more than one resource is specified, the limit name and unit are printed before the value.

If no option is given, then -f is assumed. Values are in 1024-byte increments, except for -t, which is in seconds, -p, which is in units of 512-byte blocks, and -n and -u, which are unscaled values.

The return status is 0 unless an invalid option or argument is supplied, or an error occurs while setting a new limit.

This is a BASH shell builtin, to display your local syntax from the bash prompt type: help ulimit

Examples

$ ulimit -a
core file size          (blocks, -c) 0
data seg size           (kbytes, -d) unlimited
file size               (blocks, -f) unlimited
max locked memory       (kbytes, -l) unlimited
max memory size         (kbytes, -m) unlimited
open files                      (-n) 256
pipe size            (512 bytes, -p) 1
stack size              (kbytes, -s) 8192
cpu time               (seconds, -t) unlimited
max user processes              (-u) 709
virtual memory          (kbytes, -v) unlimited

Setting Max User Processes too low can cause problems, but setting it too high could potentially allow a bash forkbomb to crash the system. $ ulimit -u 300 $ ulimit -u 300

“Every man is a damn fool for at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists of not exceeding that limit” ~ Elbert Hubbard

Related macOS commands

quota - Display disk usage and limits.
tccutil - Manage the privacy database.


 
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