In Java 1.8, how do I choose a garbage collector？

Question

Suppose my environment is Java 1.8, my application is a batch application and there is no requirement for latency, I don't know whether I should choose Parallel GC or G1 GC?

I understand that Parallel GC is optimized for throughput and is more suitable for batch applications like mine, but I find that all Java applications around me are using G1 garbage collector, so I am not sure if I don't need Parallel GC if I have G1, or if I am looking for throughput, Parallel GC is the best choice. better choice?

Answer 1

I went through the first chapter of the Java® Performance Companion book and there is a passage in it that describes this:

As of this writing, G1 primarily targets the use case of large Java heaps with reasonably low pauses, and also those applications that are using CMS GC. There are plans to use G1 to also target the throughput use case, but for applications looking for high throughput that can tolerate longer GC pauses, Parallel GC is currently the better choice.

This exactly answers my question, if 1 project is purely for completing timed tasks, or consuming MQ, it usually has no requirement for pause time, which would be more appropriate with Parallel GC.