Ubuntu 22.04.5 Memory Test

Run a memory test on Ubuntu 22.04

Use either the built-in Memtest86+ via the GRUB menu or, install and run the memtester command-line utility from within the an operating system login session.

The GRUB method tests all RAM without the OS, while memtester tests a specified portion of memory while the OS is still active. 

Method 1: Use the built-in Memtest86+ utility via the GRUB boot menu

Restart the system.

As the system boots, press and hold the < Shift > or < Esc > key to access the GRUB boot menu.

Select the ' memory test ' option from the menu, which will run Memtest86+ .

The test will start automatically and run through multiple passes until you manually exit it by pressing the < Esc > key .

Method 2: Use the memtester command-line utility from within the operating system login

Open a terminal in Ubuntu 22.04 .

If not already installed, install the memtester package …

$>sudo apt install memtester

To test a portion of available memory, use the command …

$>sudo memtester < size > < iterations >

Where < size > is the number of bytes per block of memory and < iterations > is the number of test passes to run.

For example, to test 200MB of memory for one pass, run …

$>sudo memtester 200M 1

The results will display directly in the terminal.

Which method to choose?

Choose the built-in GRUB utility for the most comprehensive test, as it will check all available RAM without the operating system running.

Choose the memtester utility for a quick test of a specific amount of memory while the operating system is running, which will avoid the need to reboot.