Taming Dynamic Memory - An Introduction to Custom Allocators in C++

This talk explains how custom C++ allocators can address performance, safety, and hardware constraints. It covers allocation techniques, alignment, standard library allocator behavior, and integration into modern C++ codebases.

Syllabus

Introduction
The Simpsons
Agenda
What is dynamic memory
Coalescing
Shared Global State
Simpler locator
Memory leak
Runtime properties
Real world examples
STD vector
Nodebased containers
Hashmap
Hashmap extremes
Rehash operation
Why is it hard to guarantee
What happens on the DLL
Padding
Alignment
Natural alignment
Default allocator
Single allocator
Memory reclamation
Auxiliary data structure
Where to store auxiliary notes
Reasons to store auxiliary notes
The bottom line
The pool locator
Chunks
Overwrite
Put something back
Diffusion
Runtime cost
Memory consumption
Multipool
Custom allocators in C
Historical quirk
PMR memory resources
Chaining
Fixed vs Dynamic
Parameters
Global Locator
Wrapup