wtf is memalloctest?

Memalloctest is a benchmark project that shows how different versions of Java handle memory and performance under load. Specifically, it compares Java 8, 11, and 14, and also tests a memory management feature called Shenandoah. The goal is to give developers concrete data on whether upgrading their Java version or switching garbage collectors will actually improve their application's performance. In Java programs, the runtime automatically cleans up memory that's no longer being used through a process called garbage collection. Different Java versions and different garbage collection strategies handle this cleanup differently, which can affect how fast your application runs and how smoothly it performs under heavy traffic. This project runs load tests (using a tool called Gatling) against each configuration and records detailed logs about how memory was allocated and cleaned up. Those results are then analyzed through online tools that visualize the performance data. The primary audience is engineering teams deciding whether to upgrade their Java version or evaluating which garbage collector to use in production. For example, a team running an older Java 8 setup might want to know if the effort of upgrading to Java 11 or 14 would deliver meaningful performance gains. Someone considering Shenandoah as an alternative to the default G1GC collector could look at these benchmarks to see how it compares in practice. The project grew out of a blog series exploring how logging affects memory usage, so it may be particularly relevant to teams whose applications do heavy logging. The project doesn't offer much in the way of setup instructions or reusable code. It's essentially a results repository, with the value living in the recorded benchmark data and the linked analysis reports rather than in a tool you'd run yourself. The README doesn't go into detail about the test application itself or the exact methodology used, so it's best treated as a reference point rather than a definitive guide.