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| 1 | +# Performance Impact of Memory Layout |
| 2 | + |
| 3 | +Understanding how memory layout affects performance in Go applications. |
| 4 | + |
| 5 | +## Cache Lines and Performance |
| 6 | + |
| 7 | +Modern CPUs fetch memory in 64-byte cache lines. When a struct spans multiple cache lines, accessing it requires multiple memory fetches, reducing performance. |
| 8 | + |
| 9 | +### Example: Cache-Inefficient Struct |
| 10 | + |
| 11 | +```go |
| 12 | +type BadLayout struct { |
| 13 | + Field1 [60]byte // Uses most of first cache line |
| 14 | + Flag bool // Forces second cache line |
| 15 | + Field2 int64 // Also in second cache line |
| 16 | +} |
| 17 | +``` |
| 18 | + |
| 19 | +### Optimized Layout |
| 20 | + |
| 21 | +```go |
| 22 | +type GoodLayout struct { |
| 23 | + Field1 [60]byte |
| 24 | + Field2 int64 |
| 25 | + Flag bool |
| 26 | +} |
| 27 | +``` |
| 28 | + |
| 29 | +## Memory Alignment Rules |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +Go follows specific alignment rules for different architectures: |
| 32 | + |
| 33 | +### AMD64/ARM64 (64-bit) |
| 34 | +- `bool`, `int8`, `uint8`: 1-byte alignment |
| 35 | +- `int16`, `uint16`: 2-byte alignment |
| 36 | +- `int32`, `uint32`, `float32`: 4-byte alignment |
| 37 | +- `int64`, `uint64`, `float64`, `complex64`: 8-byte alignment |
| 38 | +- Pointers, `string`, `slice`, `map`, `chan`, `interface`: 8-byte alignment |
| 39 | + |
| 40 | +### 386 (32-bit) |
| 41 | +- Same rules except pointers and reference types use 4-byte alignment |
| 42 | + |
| 43 | +## Best Practices |
| 44 | + |
| 45 | +1. **Order by alignment requirements** (descending) |
| 46 | +2. **Group similar types together** |
| 47 | +3. **Consider cache line boundaries** for hot paths |
| 48 | +4. **Use the extension's optimization** for automatic reordering |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +## Real-World Performance Gains |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +- **API Servers**: 5-15% throughput improvement from better cache locality |
| 53 | +- **Data Processing**: 10-20% faster iteration over large slices of structs |
| 54 | +- **Memory Usage**: 10-30% reduction in heap allocations |
| 55 | + |
| 56 | +## Benchmarking |
| 57 | + |
| 58 | +Always benchmark your specific use case: |
| 59 | + |
| 60 | +```go |
| 61 | +func BenchmarkBadLayout(b *testing.B) { |
| 62 | + var s BadLayout |
| 63 | + for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ { |
| 64 | + _ = s.Flag |
| 65 | + } |
| 66 | +} |
| 67 | + |
| 68 | +func BenchmarkGoodLayout(b *testing.B) { |
| 69 | + var s GoodLayout |
| 70 | + for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ { |
| 71 | + _ = s.Flag |
| 72 | + } |
| 73 | +} |
| 74 | +``` |
| 75 | + |
| 76 | +## Tools |
| 77 | + |
| 78 | +- **Go Memory Visualizer**: Real-time visualization and optimization |
| 79 | +- **go tool compile -m**: Escape analysis |
| 80 | +- **go build -gcflags=-m**: Additional compiler insights |
| 81 | +- **pprof**: Memory profiling |
| 82 | + |
| 83 | +## Further Reading |
| 84 | + |
| 85 | +- [Go Memory Model](https://go.dev/ref/mem) |
| 86 | +- [Mechanical Sympathy](https://mechanical-sympathy.blogspot.com/) |
| 87 | +- [CPU Cache Effects](https://igoro.com/archive/gallery-of-processor-cache-effects/) |
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