High memory usage of Intel RST processes

[MagneticDrift]

Hi All,

I've noticed on one of our computers that some Intel RST processes are using a lot of memory, and more worryingly, that the usage is increasing with time. Since this computer is started with only one program running, and none other after this, it feels like there is a memory leak. 

The main culprit I could found were IAStorDataSvc and iasm. They would start at around 30MB after a reboot and end up above 2GB after a week. Last time I've checked, IAStorDataSvc would actually plateau after ~5 days (I don't know how long for), but  iasm keeps crawling up. This has resulted in a crash already, and now I have to reboot the computer every week to avoid it.

I get my information from Windows' Task Manager and Task Monitor, which somehow do not seem to show every process (the total of  all the processes displayed does not amount to the Total  Memory Used as shown in the Summary Graph; there are a few GB missing). There are also a few svhost processes displaying high usage but I couldn't trace them.

• Has anyone seen this? 
• Is there a way to fix it?
• If not, is there a way to cap the amount of memory these processes are using, without crashing Win 10?

Any help appreciated.

=========================================================================

Perf Monitor graph (rebooted yesterday):

Perf Mon iRST Processes

In a day, IAStorDataSvc  has gone from 30MB to 600MB and  iasm from 20MB to 250MB.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Configuration:

Windows 10 Pro 21H2

HP Z4 G4 Xeon W-2233, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD system, 2TB HDD data

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift,  

Thank you for posting on the Intel® communities. I am sorry to know that you are having issues with the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST).

In order to better assist you, please provide the following:  

1. Did you update your BIOS?

2. Are you using the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) version from the Intel website or from the motherboard manufacturer's site?

3. What is your CPU brand and model name?

4. What is the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) version installed?

Regards,  

Deivid A. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

1. The BIOS is out of my scope, and I don't know which version it is on. The computer is from mid-2022. I'll see if I can find more information. Do you think there could be an isse with this?
2. How do I know which version of  Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) I am using?
3. The CPU is an Intel Xeon W-2233
4. The Intel RST version is 5.4.9, which I understand might not be the latest. However, when I tried to install a more recent one (  Intel® Rapid Storage Technology Driver Installation Software with Intel® Optane™ Memory (10th and 11th Gen Platforms) ver 16.8.5), the installer tells me that the Platform is not supported.

Any insight would be useful at this point.

Thanks.

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thank you for your response. I was checking the HP website and I did not find any Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) version offered by them. I recommend you confirm with HP if the Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) is supported by their system. 

Also, I would like to confirm the following information to investigate this behavior.

1. What is your RAID configuration (RAID 1, RAID 0, etc.)?

2. Did you run all the Windows optional updates?

Regards,  

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

I will check with HP, but since the computer came with RST installed, I would assume it is supported.

Otherwise:

1. I have conflicting information on this. The supplier says there is a RAID volume, but there is only one NVMe disk for the system and one disk for the data, so if it's a RAID set-up, it can only be two RAID 0 of one volume each.
2. All the Windows updates have been run on this machine. Although it seems that it is still running Windows 10 Pro for Workstation version 21H2; I thought a version 22H2 existed too, but it is not proposed. 

Best wishes,

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thank you for the information provided 

I will proceed to check the issue internally and post back soon with more details. 

Best regards, 

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thanks for your patience. I would like to confirm if you were able to check this issue with HP, this is because there are several reports about IAStorDataSvc CPU and Memory usage in HP systems.

Also, I will need the report from the Intel® System Support Utility (Intel® SSU):

• Download the Intel® SSU and save the application on your computer: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/18377/intel-system-support-utility-for-windows.html  
• Open the application, check the "Everything" checkbox, and click "Scan" to see the system and device information. The Intel® SSU defaults to the "Summary View" on the output screen following the scan. Click the menu where it says "Summary" to change to "Detailed View".  
• To save your scan, click Next and click Save.  

Regards,  

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

Thanks for not giving up!

I am still waiting for HP to give me an answer. It probably takes a bit longer than it should because I have to go through the manufacturer, unfortunately.

I will try and get the SSU report, but I can only run the executable on Monday.

I'll keep you posted.

Best,

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thanks for the confirmation. I understand that you will need more time to gather the report and to get a response from HP. I will be waiting for your next response.

Regards,  

Deivid A. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

I've attached the report of the SSU. I hope this will shed some light on the problem. For information, "IAStorDataSvc" process is now at 1.4 GB, and so is "iasm"; the former has now plateau-ed for a couple of days, but the latter is still growing.

I don't know if it is relevant, but I've noticed a Windows process which has grown to 2.6 GB. I don't know what it does, but the command line seems to be:

 "svhost.exe -k netsvcs -p -s Winmgmt"

This wasn't so big last week after reboot, so it part of the problem, but it may be a separated one.

I haven't heard from HP yet.

Best wishes,

Alain.

[MagneticDrift · Accepted solution]

Hi DeividA,

To update you on the situation:

• No news from HP, but I've updated a few drivers with HP Driver management platform (Realtek Audio, NVidia GPU, Intel Network Ethernet i220; Intel Network i219 failed).
• I have the latest May Windows upate, but still on build 21H2.
• I have confirmation that somehow, the computer is set-up as RAID 0 between the system 256GB NVMe card and a 2TB HDD for data.
• The Intel RST version 5 installed was in fact Intel RST-Enterprise version 5.4.9. This is now updated to version 7.6.0.1016 (and is now called Intel Virtual RAID on CPU).

I have rebooted the computer and will see during this week if the Memory Leak is still there.

Best,

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

I thought I'd post the PerfMon graph from this morning, after a week of uptime. The X axis is the time (roughly 7 days of data) and the Y axis is the relative percentage of memory used. Let's recall that the processes "IAStorDataSvc" and  "iasm" were shown as using 1.4GB each by the end. Hopefully, next week will just be perfectly horizontal lines.

PerfMon graph of the last week.

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thanks for this information. Since you will check this week to confirm if the issue persists, I will wait for the outcome of your test.

This will also give HP more time to reply.

Regards,  

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

It seems that updating to the Intel Virtual RAID on CPU v7.6 made things better. "IAStorDataSvc" usage is barely visible and even if "iasm" memory usage seems to be slowly going up (see graph, red trace), it is just around 20 MB, so not a big problem.

There still seems to be a memory leak somewhere, as the graph shows, but it is vastly less important. To me, the main issue is solved.

I’ll keep monitoring this in case I can find the remaining problems, but it could just be a standard low-level Windows leak. I don’t know why HP supplied a computer with such an old Intel RST, but it seemed to suddenly conflict with either a 21H2 Windows update from the last 6 months or an update from a java program we are running (unlikely), or both. I have the feeling neither of these three processes would create a problem on its own, which is why it was so hard to fix. I would be interested to know how this leak came about, but I understand if Intel/Microsoft have other things to do; although, there is clearly a coding lesson to be learnt here.

Best,

[MagneticDrift]

The vertical red line shows the data beingoverwritten after 7 days.

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thanks for the confirmation. I am glad to know that you have noticed an improvement with the latest version. Before I continue further I would like to know if you agree to close this thread or if you need further assistance.

I will be waiting for your confirmation.

Regards,  

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician  

[MagneticDrift]

Hi DeividA,

I think the problems related to "IAStorDataSvc" and "iasm" are resolved, so you can close this thread and I’ll mark “updating the drivers” as a solution. Thanks for your help all along.

I can still see a memory leak but it is more manageable and I can investigate this at another time, if at all. Would I find that it is related to an Intel process, I’d open another thread.

Best,

[DeividA_Intel]

Hello MagneticDrift, 

Thanks for the confirmation. I will close this thread, however, you can always open a new one in case you need further assistance or as you mentioned if have any other issues related to our products.

Regards,   

Deivid A.  

Intel Customer Support Technician