src/config.cpp

@@ -39,6 +39,25 @@ double parse_double(const char* name, const std::string& v) {
   }
 }
 
+/// A count with an optional decimal suffix: `250000`, `64k`, `100M`, `1.5G`. k, M and G are 10^3, 10^6
+/// and 10^9 -- a *sample* count, not a byte size -- and either case is accepted.
+std::uint64_t parse_count(const char* name, const std::string& v) {
+  std::string digits = v;
+  double scale = 1.0;
+  if (!digits.empty()) {
+    switch (digits.back()) {
+      case 'k': case 'K': scale = 1.0e3; break;
+      case 'm': case 'M': scale = 1.0e6; break;
+      case 'g': case 'G': scale = 1.0e9; break;
+      default: break;
+    }
+    if (scale != 1.0) digits.pop_back();
+  }
+  const double d = parse_double(name, digits) * scale;
+  if (!(d >= 1.0) || d > 1.0e12) fail(std::string(name) + " out of range: " + v);
+  return static_cast<std::uint64_t>(d + 0.5);
+}
+
 }  // namespace
 
 SourceConfig Config::source_config() const {
@@ -70,7 +89,11 @@ void print_usage(std::FILE* out, const char* argv0) {
                "  --source NAME        source kind (%s; default udps). --server/--port/\n"
                "                       --multicast/--interface configure udps\n"
                "  --source-opt K=V     a setting for the source kind; repeatable\n"
-               "  --buffer-mb MB       size of each of the two sample buffers (default 200)\n"
+               "  --buffer-samples N   samples kept per acquired signal, e.g. 100M or 250000 (k, M\n"
+               "                       and G are decimal; default 10M). Rounded down to a power\n"
+               "                       of two: 100M gives 67108864\n"
+               "  --memory-limit-mb MB hard ceiling on the sample rings, all signals together\n"
+               "                       (default 8192); the request is halved until it fits\n"
                "  --max-window SEC     largest time window the toolbar offers (default 600)\n"
                "  --holdoff SEC        default trigger hold-off (default 0.010)\n"
                "  --recv-buffer BYTES  SO_RCVBUF for the receiver socket (default 8388608)\n"
@@ -125,10 +148,16 @@ Config parse_args(int argc, char** argv) {
     } else if (a == "--source-opt" || a.rfind("--source-opt=", 0) == 0) {
       const std::string v = value_of(argc, argv, i, "--source-opt");
       if (!c.source_opts.parse_assignment(v)) fail("--source-opt must be key=value: " + v);
-    } else if (a == "--buffer-mb" || a.rfind("--buffer-mb=", 0) == 0) {
-      c.buffer_mb = parse_double("--buffer-mb", value_of(argc, argv, i, "--buffer-mb"));
-      c.buffer_mb_specified = true;
-      if (c.buffer_mb < 1.0) fail("--buffer-mb must be at least 1");
+    } else if (a == "--buffer-samples" || a.rfind("--buffer-samples=", 0) == 0) {
+      c.buffer_samples = parse_count("--buffer-samples", value_of(argc, argv, i, "--buffer-samples"));
+      c.buffer_samples_specified = true;
+      if (c.buffer_samples < 128) fail("--buffer-samples must be at least 128");
+    } else if (a == "--memory-limit-mb" || a.rfind("--memory-limit-mb=", 0) == 0) {
+      const double mb =
+          parse_double("--memory-limit-mb", value_of(argc, argv, i, "--memory-limit-mb"));
+      if (!(mb >= 1.0) || mb > 1.0e9) fail("--memory-limit-mb must be 1..1000000000 (MiB)");
+      c.memory_limit_mb = static_cast<std::uint64_t>(mb);
+      c.memory_limit_specified = true;
     } else if (a == "--max-window" || a.rfind("--max-window=", 0) == 0) {
       c.max_window_s = parse_double("--max-window", value_of(argc, argv, i, "--max-window"));
       if (c.max_window_s <= 0.0) fail("--max-window must be positive");

src/config.hpp

@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
 namespace udpscope {
 
 /// Everything the command line can say. Defaults are the ones the spec names
-/// (200 MB per buffer, 10 ms trigger hold-off) unless the user overrides them.
+/// (10 M samples per signal, 10 ms trigger hold-off) unless the user overrides them.
 struct Config {
   std::string server = "127.0.0.1";   ///< IPv4 dotted quad of the stream source.
   std::uint16_t port = 8000;          ///< UDP port (unicast) or TCP port (multicast).
@@ -40,13 +40,21 @@ struct Config {
   std::string session_host() const;
   std::uint16_t session_port() const;
 
-  /// Size of *each* of the two sample buffers, in megabytes. The application
-  /// always allocates two identical buffers (spec item 1).
-  double buffer_mb = 200.0;
-  /// Whether `--buffer-mb` was given. A stored configuration's buffer size fills in only when the
-  /// flag was *absent*: an explicit flag beats a saved setting, and "not asked" is not the same
-  /// question as "asked for 200".
-  bool buffer_mb_specified = false;
+  /// The sample budget: how many samples to keep for **every acquired signal**, and for the shared
+  /// time ring. The rings are powers of two, so the request is rounded *down* to one (`buffer_ticks()`
+  /// in model.hpp) -- "up to" this many -- and the UI shows both figures. 10 M asks for 8 388 608.
+  std::uint64_t buffer_samples = 10'000'000;
+  /// Whether `--buffer-samples` was given. A stored configuration's sample budget fills in only when
+  /// the flag was *absent*: an explicit flag beats a saved setting, and "not asked" is not the same
+  /// question as "asked for 10 M".
+  bool buffer_samples_specified = false;
+
+  /// The hard ceiling on the ring storage, in MiB, for the whole application rather than per source.
+  /// `plan_partition()` halves the rings until they fit under it, so it can clip `buffer_samples`.
+  /// Default 8 GiB; the preferences carry it between runs and `--memory-limit-mb` overrides it.
+  std::uint64_t memory_limit_mb = 8192;
+  /// Whether `--memory-limit-mb` was given, so the stored preference only fills the gap.
+  bool memory_limit_specified = false;
 
   /// Largest time window the toolbar offers, in seconds. The buffer partition is
   /// sized to hold at least this much time (spec: decimation).

src/layout_store.cpp

@@ -328,7 +328,7 @@ std::vector<KnownSource> known_sources() {
       s.port = port;
       s.config = name;
       s.comment = st.comment;
-      s.buffer_mb = st.buffer_mb;
+      s.buffer_samples = st.buffer_samples;
       s.relative_time = st.relative_time;
       s.capture_packets = st.capture_packets;
       s.multicast = st.multicast;
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ std::vector<KnownSource> known_sources() {
       // session file per probe run and every one holds `signals = ["", "", "", ""]`. One that
       // carries a *setting* is worth a row even before it has ever streamed -- that is how a host is
       // set up from the chooser's form, and the settings are the whole point of editing one.
-      const bool configured = s.signals > 0 || s.buffer_mb > 0.0 || !st.comment.empty() ||
+      const bool configured = s.signals > 0 || s.buffer_samples > 0 || !st.comment.empty() ||
                               st.relative_time || st.capture_packets > 0;
       if (!configured) continue;
       struct stat fb {};
@@ -583,9 +583,11 @@ bool load_layout(const std::string& path, LayoutState& out) {
         if (SourceConfig::valid_key(k)) st.source_opts.set(k, strip_quote(value));
       } else if (key == "comment") {
         st.comment = strip_quote(value);
-      } else if (key == "buffer_mb") {
+      } else if (key == "buffer_samples") {
         try {
-          st.buffer_mb = std::stod(value);
+          // A negative or absurd count is "not stored", not a request: `stoull` wraps a minus sign.
+          const unsigned long long n = value.find('-') == std::string::npos ? std::stoull(value) : 0;
+          st.buffer_samples = n >= 128 && n <= 1000000000000ull ? n : 0;
         } catch (...) {
         }
       } else if (key == "relative_time") {
@@ -768,7 +770,7 @@ bool save_layout(const std::string& path, const LayoutState& state) {
   o << "trigger_density_tau = " << state.trigger.density_tau_s << "\n";
   o << "trigger_density_factor = " << state.trigger.density_factor << "\n";
   if (!state.comment.empty()) o << "comment = " << toml_escape(state.comment) << "\n";
-  if (state.buffer_mb > 0.0) o << "buffer_mb = " << state.buffer_mb << "\n";
+  if (state.buffer_samples > 0) o << "buffer_samples = " << state.buffer_samples << "\n";
   o << "relative_time = " << (state.relative_time ? "true" : "false") << "\n";
   if (state.capture_packets > 0) o << "capture_packets = " << state.capture_packets << "\n";
   for (const auto& row : state.rows) {

src/layout_store.hpp

@@ -139,9 +139,12 @@ struct LayoutState {
   /// The startup settings the configuration carries, applied when the chooser opens it -- which is
   /// why they live here and not only on the command line: two sources on one machine want different
   /// buffers and different clocks, and retyping the flags to look at the second one is how a
-  /// setting gets forgotten. A zero `buffer_mb` and an empty `capture_packets` mean "not stored":
-  /// the command line's value stands, so an old file cannot silently shrink a buffer.
-  double buffer_mb = 0.0;
+  /// setting gets forgotten. A zero `buffer_samples` and an empty `capture_packets` mean "not stored":
+  /// the command line's value stands, so an old file cannot silently shrink a buffer. The budget is
+  /// samples per acquired signal (the memory limit is the application's, not a source's). A file from
+  /// before that unit carries `buffer_mb`, which is not read: it reads as "not stored" and the
+  /// default stands, rather than a megabyte count being taken for a sample count.
+  std::uint64_t buffer_samples = 0;
   bool relative_time = false;
   std::uint32_t capture_packets = 0;
 };
@@ -162,7 +165,7 @@ struct KnownSource {
   std::string config;
   std::string comment;         ///< the configuration's note, shown beside its name
   /// The startup settings this configuration carries, so the chooser can apply them.
-  double buffer_mb = 0.0;
+  std::uint64_t buffer_samples = 0;
   bool relative_time = false;
   std::uint32_t capture_packets = 0;
 };

src/main.cpp

@@ -24,7 +24,11 @@ int main(int argc, char** argv) {
     // The preferences fill in what the command line did not decide. `--relative-time` is an explicit
     // instruction for this run, so a preference can only turn the mode on, never off -- which is also
     // why this is read here, before the buffers are planned: the mode changes how they are filled.
-    if (udpscope::load_settings().relative_time) cfg.relative_time = true;
+    const udpscope::Settings prefs = udpscope::load_settings();
+    if (prefs.relative_time) cfg.relative_time = true;
+    // The memory limit is the same kind of statement, the other way round: the flag is the explicit
+    // instruction for this run and the preference only fills in when it was absent.
+    if (!cfg.memory_limit_specified) cfg.memory_limit_mb = static_cast<std::uint64_t>(prefs.memory_limit_mb);
   } catch (const std::exception& e) {
     std::fprintf(stderr, "udpscope: %s\n", e.what());
     return 2;

src/model.cpp

@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@
 
 #include "model.hpp"
 
+#include "status_text.hpp"  // `format_samples()` / `format_bytes()`, for the one line a clipped plan prints
+
 #include <algorithm>
 #include <chrono>
 #include <cmath>
@@ -40,12 +42,24 @@ constexpr std::uint64_t kMathCostSample = 1024;
 
 }  // namespace
 
-Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, double buffer_bytes,
-                         double target_span_s, bool with_abs_time) {
+u64 buffer_ticks(u64 requested_samples) {
+  // 2^40 slots is already 8 TiB of clock alone: a request past it is nonsense and the cap keeps
+  // `bytes_for()` far from overflowing.
+  constexpr u64 kMaxTicks = u64(1) << 40;
+  return std::min(pow2_floor(std::max<u64>(requested_samples, 128)), kMaxTicks);
+}
+
+u64 planned_bytes(u64 ticks, std::size_t channels, bool with_abs_time) {
+  return ticks * sizeof(f64) * (with_abs_time ? 2u : 1u) + ticks * sizeof(f32) * channels;
+}
+
+Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, u64 samples_per_signal,
+                         u64 max_bytes, double target_span_s, bool with_abs_time) {
   Partition p;
   const std::size_t n = channel_dt.size();
   p.stride.assign(n, 1);
   p.value_capacity.assign(n, 0);
+  p.requested_samples = samples_per_signal;
   if (n == 0) return p;
 
   // The fastest channel drives the shared time base: every other channel is
@@ -69,25 +83,13 @@ Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, double buffer_by
 
   p.abs_time = with_abs_time;
 
-  const u64 budget_bytes = static_cast<u64>(std::max(1.0, buffer_bytes));
-  // Weighted in *bytes*, not in slots: the shared clock is f64 and the values are f32
-  // (see `BufferStore::time()`), so a time slot costs twice a value sample and the two
-  // slices are not interchangeable. Counting both as one f32 is what would make
-  // `--buffer-mb` quietly understate the time ring by its own size.
-  double weight = static_cast<double>(sizeof(f64)) * (with_abs_time ? 2.0 : 1.0);  // the time slice(s)
-  for (u64 s : p.stride) weight += static_cast<double>(sizeof(f32)) / static_cast<double>(s);
-
-  const u64 slots = static_cast<u64>(static_cast<double>(budget_bytes) / weight);
-  u64 time_capacity = pow2_floor(std::max<u64>(slots, 128));
-  if (time_capacity == 0) {
-    throw std::runtime_error("buffer too small for one time-base sample per channel");
-  }
-
-  // The target span sets a floor, not a ceiling: the rest of the budget buys a
-  // longer ring, which is strictly more history to scroll back through. Growth
-  // stops before the total would exceed the budget. A channel's slots are rounded
-  // *up* on the power of two `RingBuffer` will round them to anyway, so every
-  // channel covers at least the time ring's span.
+  // The ring is a power of two, so the user's count is a ceiling and the plan takes the largest
+  // power of two under it. The budget is in *samples* now: it is the memory limit, not the request,
+  // that is in bytes -- and a time slot (f64) and a value sample (f32) are not the same size, which
+  // is why the limit below is weighed with `bytes_for()` and not as a count of slots.
+  //
+  // A channel's slots are rounded *down* on the power of two `RingBuffer` will round them to
+  // anyway, so every channel covers at most the time ring's span.
   // Floor, not ceiling: a channel's window must not be *longer* than the time ring
   // it reads its stamps from. Rounding up (with a stride that is not a power of two)
   // gave a channel more samples than the shared timeline covers, and the oldest of
@@ -103,19 +105,24 @@ Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, double buffer_by
     for (u64 s : p.stride) total += capacity_for(ticks, s) * sizeof(f32);
     return total;
   };
-  // `bytes_for` bounds the doubling on its own: it is at least `2 * ticks * sizeof(f64)`,
-  // so a pass means `2 * ticks` is well inside the budget and cannot overflow.
-  while (bytes_for(time_capacity * 2) <= budget_bytes) {
-    time_capacity *= 2;
+  u64 time_capacity = buffer_ticks(samples_per_signal);
+  const u64 wanted_ticks = time_capacity;
+  // The memory limit halves the request until the rings fit, never the other way: a bigger plan than
+  // asked for is not "up to".
+  while (time_capacity > 128 && bytes_for(time_capacity) > max_bytes) time_capacity /= 2;
+  if (bytes_for(time_capacity) > max_bytes) {
+    throw std::runtime_error("memory limit too small for the sample rings of " +
+                             std::to_string(n) + " channels");
   }
+  p.memory_limited = time_capacity < wanted_ticks;
   p.time_capacity = time_capacity;
   for (std::size_t i = 0; i < n; ++i) {
     p.value_capacity[i] = capacity_for(p.time_capacity, p.stride[i]);
   }
 
-  // Only now, with the ring as long as the budget can buy, decimate the shared clock
+  // Only now, with the ring as long as the request and the memory limit allow, decimate the shared clock
   // enough for the requested window to fit in it: deciding this earlier would over-
-  // decimate by whatever factor the growth loop was about to add. A power of two keeps
+  // decimate by whatever the ring's final length would have made unnecessary. A power of two keeps
   // the ring capacities (themselves powers of two) in step and lets the producer's group
   // test be a mask (`Acquisition::acc_mask_`) rather than a modulo -- a modulo on a stride
   // this function chose at runtime is a real 64-bit division, which the test *was* paying
@@ -178,6 +185,7 @@ void BufferStore::acquire_all() {
 // --- ScopeModel -------------------------------------------------------------
 
 ScopeModel::ScopeModel(const Config& cfg) : cfg_(cfg) {
+  memory_limit_bytes_.store(cfg.memory_limit_mb * 1024u * 1024u, std::memory_order_relaxed);
   trigger_.holdoff_s = cfg.trigger_holdoff_s;
 }
 
@@ -567,22 +575,16 @@ void ScopeModel::rebuild_locked() {
   holes_.clear();
   ++plan_generation_;
 
-  std::vector<double> dts;
-  dts.reserve(channels_.size());
-  for (const ChannelInfo& c : channels_) dts.push_back(c.dt);
-
-  if (dts.empty()) {
+  if (channels_.empty()) {
     part_ = Partition{};
     store_.reset();
     return;
   }
 
-  const Partition want = plan_partition(dts, cfg_.buffer_mb * 1024.0 * 1024.0,
-                                        target_span_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed),
-                                        cfg_.relative_time);
+  const Partition want = plan_locked(target_span_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed));
   // A plan that describes the storage already allocated is cleared, not rebuilt. Allocating
-  // a store is what costs -- its rings are value-initialised, so it touches the whole
-  // `--buffer-mb` -- and most structural changes do not move the plan at all: a calibration
+  // a store is what costs -- its rings are value-initialised, so it touches all of the
+  // planned rings -- and most structural changes do not move the plan at all: a calibration
   // keeps the channel set, and so does leaving an event for the live view. Startup asked for
   // sixteen of these and eight of them planned the same buffer twice. Clearing has the same
   // meaning (`BufferStore::reset()`): the history is gone either way, which is why
@@ -601,6 +603,17 @@ void ScopeModel::rebuild_locked() {
     // the defect the line exists to name (it was fifteen of them at startup).
     std::fprintf(stderr, "[udpscope] buffer allocated: %zu channels, %.3g s span, %.0f ms\n",
                  channels_.size(), part_.span_s, double(now_ns() - t0) / 1.0e6);
+    if (part_.memory_limited) {
+      // The one line that says the request was not honoured, and why: a smaller ring than the source
+      // form promised is otherwise explained nowhere.
+      std::fprintf(stderr,
+                   "[udpscope] buffer limited to %s samples per signal (%s requested) by the %s "
+                   "memory limit; the rings take %s\n",
+                   format_samples(part_.time_capacity).c_str(),
+                   format_samples(part_.requested_samples).c_str(),
+                   format_bytes(memory_limit_bytes()).c_str(),
+                   format_bytes(part_.bytes()).c_str());
+    }
     std::fflush(stderr);
   }
 
@@ -608,6 +621,47 @@ void ScopeModel::rebuild_locked() {
   prepare_math_locked();
 }
 
+Partition ScopeModel::plan_locked(double seconds) const {
+  std::vector<double> dts;
+  dts.reserve(channels_.size());
+  for (const ChannelInfo& c : channels_) dts.push_back(c.dt);
+  return plan_partition(dts, cfg_.buffer_samples, memory_limit_bytes(), seconds, cfg_.relative_time);
+}
+
+bool ScopeModel::set_memory_limit_bytes(std::uint64_t bytes, bool replan) {
+  std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lock(mutex_);
+  const std::uint64_t previous = memory_limit_bytes_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
+  if (bytes == previous) return false;
+  if (channels_.empty() || !replan) {
+    memory_limit_bytes_.store(bytes, std::memory_order_relaxed);
+    return false;
+  }
+  memory_limit_bytes_.store(bytes, std::memory_order_relaxed);
+  Partition want;
+  try {
+    want = plan_locked(target_span_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed));
+  } catch (const std::exception& e) {
+    memory_limit_bytes_.store(previous, std::memory_order_relaxed);
+    std::fprintf(stderr, "[udpscope] memory limit %s refused: %s\n", format_bytes(bytes).c_str(),
+                 e.what());
+    std::fflush(stderr);
+    return false;
+  }
+  if (store_ && part_.same_storage_as(want)) {
+    // The same rings: only what the plan *says* about itself moved. Written in place, because the
+    // producer reads `part_` under the lock we hold and nothing here reallocates it.
+    part_.requested_samples = want.requested_samples;
+    part_.memory_limited = want.memory_limited;
+    return false;
+  }
+  std::fprintf(stderr, "[udpscope] memory limit %s -> %s: buffer re-planned\n",
+               format_bytes(previous).c_str(), format_bytes(bytes).c_str());
+  std::fflush(stderr);
+  rebuild_locked();
+  generation_.fetch_add(1, std::memory_order_release);
+  return true;
+}
+
 bool ScopeModel::set_target_span(double seconds) {
   if (!(seconds > 0.0)) return false;
   std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lock(mutex_);
@@ -616,10 +670,7 @@ bool ScopeModel::set_target_span(double seconds) {
   // Re-plan only if the factor moves. The planner is cheap, so ask it rather than
   // reimplementing its arithmetic here -- two expressions for the same decision is how
   // the buffer and the view end up disagreeing about the stored rate.
-  std::vector<double> dts;
-  dts.reserve(channels_.size());
-  for (const ChannelInfo& c : channels_) dts.push_back(c.dt);
-  const Partition want = plan_partition(dts, cfg_.buffer_mb * 1024.0 * 1024.0, seconds, cfg_.relative_time);
+  const Partition want = plan_locked(seconds);
   if (want.time_stride == part_.time_stride) return false;
   std::fprintf(stderr,
                "[udpscope] window %.4f s -> %.4f s: decimation %llu -> %llu, stored rate "

src/model.hpp

@@ -104,9 +104,27 @@ struct Partition {
 
   /// True when a second f64 ring parallel to the clock was planned and paid for in the
   /// byte budget. Relative mode only -- in stream mode `time()` already *is* the absolute
-  /// clock and a copy would cost ~22% of the user's `--buffer-mb` for nothing.
+  /// clock and a copy would cost ~22% of the user's sample budget for nothing.
   bool abs_time = false;
 
+  /// The samples-per-signal the user asked for, as given (not rounded). `time_capacity` is what
+  /// the plan actually holds: the request rounded down to a power of two, then halved further
+  /// while the rings did not fit the memory limit. These two are readings, not storage -- they are
+  /// not in `same_storage_as()` -- so a re-plan that only moves them does not drop history.
+  u64 requested_samples = 0;
+  /// True when the memory limit, and not the power-of-two rounding, made `time_capacity` smaller than
+  /// the request: the one case the UI has to explain.
+  bool memory_limited = false;
+
+  /// The bytes the rings of this plan occupy: the time ring (twice in relative mode) plus every
+  /// value ring. This is the figure to quote and to budget against; a count of the user's
+  /// request is not, because the rings round and the limit can clip.
+  u64 bytes() const noexcept {
+    u64 total = time_capacity * sizeof(f64) * (abs_time ? 2u : 1u);
+    for (u64 c : value_capacity) total += c * sizeof(f32);
+    return total;
+  }
+
   /// Seconds between two time-base slots (the sample interval of every channel).
   double slot_dt() const noexcept { return base_dt * static_cast<double>(time_stride); }
   /// The rate samples are actually stored at, in samples per second.
@@ -137,13 +155,24 @@ struct Partition {
   }
 };
 
-/// Plans a partition for `channel_dt` cadences within `buffer_bytes`, covering at least
-/// `target_span_s` seconds of stream -- decimating (with the ingest filter) by whatever
-/// power of two that takes. Throws std::runtime_error when the budget cannot hold even
-/// one sample per channel. `with_abs_time` adds a second f64 per time slot to the budget
-/// and sets `Partition::abs_time`.
-Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, double buffer_bytes,
-                         double target_span_s, bool with_abs_time = false);
+/// The ring length a request of `requested_samples` per signal buys: the largest power of two not
+/// above it (at least 128). The rings are powers of two, so the user's number is a ceiling.
+u64 buffer_ticks(u64 requested_samples);
+
+/// What `ticks` slots cost for `channels` unit-stride channels: the f64 time ring (twice with the
+/// absolute clock) plus one f32 ring per channel. The planner's own byte formula, for a caller
+/// that has no `Partition` yet (the source form, the probes).
+u64 planned_bytes(u64 ticks, std::size_t channels, bool with_abs_time);
+
+/// Plans a partition for `channel_dt` cadences: `samples_per_signal` slots for the time ring and for
+/// every channel, rounded down to a power of two, then halved while the rings (`planned_bytes()`)
+/// exceed `max_bytes` -- the memory limit. Covers at least `target_span_s` seconds of stream,
+/// decimating (with the ingest filter) by whatever power of two that takes. Throws
+/// std::runtime_error when even 128 slots do not fit `max_bytes`. `with_abs_time` adds a second f64
+/// per time slot to the budget and sets `Partition::abs_time`. `Partition::memory_limited` says
+/// whether the limit clipped the request.
+Partition plan_partition(const std::vector<double>& channel_dt, u64 samples_per_signal,
+                         u64 max_bytes, double target_span_s, bool with_abs_time = false);
 
 /// One of the two identical sample buffers: a shared time-base ring plus one
 /// value ring and one `ChannelBuffer` per channel.
@@ -187,7 +216,7 @@ class BufferStore {
   ///
   /// Why it exists: constructing a store *is* its cost. A ring is a
   /// `vector<std::atomic<T>>`, which is value-initialised, so building one touches every
-  /// byte of the user's `--buffer-mb` -- about 300 ms per GB, nearly all of it first-touch
+  /// byte of the planned buffer (`--buffer-samples`) -- about 300 ms per GB, nearly all of it first-touch
   /// page faults. Clearing is a count store per ring. Most structural changes (a
   /// calibration, a re-enable of what was just disabled, going back to live) re-plan to the
   /// *same* partition, and paying a second full allocation for them is what made a large
@@ -546,13 +575,13 @@ class ScopeModel {
   std::uint64_t persist_dropped() const noexcept {
     return persist_dropped_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
   }
-  /// The bytes persistence may retain, which is the ring's own byte budget (`--buffer-mb`): the
-  /// snapshots are copies *of* what the rings hold, so holding as much again as the buffer does is
-  /// the honest ceiling for a display of it -- and it is the bound that cannot be driven into an
-  /// OOM by a long window on a fast stream, whatever depth the panel asks for.
+  /// The bytes persistence may retain, which is the rings' own planned byte total
+  /// (`Partition::bytes()`): the snapshots are copies *of* what the rings hold, so holding as much
+  /// again as the buffer does is the honest ceiling for a display of it -- and it is the bound that
+  /// cannot be driven into an OOM by a long window on a fast stream, whatever depth the panel asks
+  /// for. Zero until a stream has planned a buffer. Read under `mutex()`, like `partition()`.
   std::size_t persist_budget_bytes() const noexcept {
-    const int mb = cfg_.buffer_mb > 0 ? cfg_.buffer_mb : 0;
-    return static_cast<std::size_t>(mb) * 1024u * 1024u;
+    return static_cast<std::size_t>(part_.bytes());
   }
 
   /// Sets how many acquisitions the persistence display keeps, clamped to `kMaxPersistDepth`, and
@@ -671,6 +700,22 @@ class ScopeModel {
   /// `mutex()` itself; do not call it holding the lock.
   /// Returns true when the buffer was rebuilt.
   bool set_target_span(double seconds);
+
+  /// The memory limit the planner honours, in bytes. Starts as `Config::memory_limit_mb` and is the
+  /// one planner input that changes while the application runs (the preferences). Atomic so the
+  /// status and the probes can read it without the lock.
+  std::uint64_t memory_limit_bytes() const noexcept {
+    return memory_limit_bytes_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed);
+  }
+  /// Changes the memory limit and re-plans. The buffer is rebuilt -- and the history dropped -- only
+  /// when the new limit changes the *storage* (`Partition::same_storage_as()`): a limit that still
+  /// leaves room for the plan updates `Partition::memory_limited` in place and costs nothing.
+  /// Returns true when the buffer was rebuilt. Takes `mutex()` itself; do not call it holding the
+  /// lock. A limit too small for even 128 slots per channel is refused (returns false, keeps the old
+  /// limit) and said on stderr.
+  /// With `replan` false the limit is only stored, for the next plan: a file or a replayed event
+  /// lives in the buffer, and re-planning it would clear what the user is looking at.
+  bool set_memory_limit_bytes(std::uint64_t bytes, bool replan = true);
   double target_span() const noexcept { return target_span_.load(std::memory_order_relaxed); }
 
   /// Trigger state for the UI, published by the acquisition thread. Atomics
@@ -734,7 +779,14 @@ class ScopeModel {
   /// so a window change that moves the decimation re-prepares the filters exactly as an edit does.
   void prepare_math_locked();
 
+  /// Plans the partition for the current channels at `seconds` of window with the current sample
+  /// budget and memory limit. The one place the planner's inputs are assembled, so the re-plan on a
+  /// window change, a structural change and a memory-limit change cannot disagree. Throws what
+  /// `plan_partition()` throws. Caller holds `mutex()`.
+  Partition plan_locked(double seconds) const;
+
   Config cfg_;
+  std::atomic<std::uint64_t> memory_limit_bytes_{0};
   std::vector<SignalInfo> signals_;
   std::vector<ChannelInfo> channels_;
   // --- math channels --------------------------------------------------------

src/settings.cpp

@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 
 #include "settings.hpp"
 
+#include <algorithm>
 #include <cstdlib>
 #include <cstring>
 #include <fstream>
@@ -64,6 +65,9 @@ Settings load_settings() {
       s.event_cache_max = std::max(0, std::atoi(value.c_str()));
     } else if (key == "relative_time") {
       s.relative_time = parse_bool(value, s.relative_time);
+    } else if (key == "memory_limit_mb") {
+      const long mb = std::strtol(value.c_str(), nullptr, 10);
+      if (mb >= 16) s.memory_limit_mb = static_cast<int>(std::min<long>(mb, 1000000000L));
     } else if (key == "theme") {
       if (value == "auto" || value == "light" || value == "dark") s.theme = value;
     } else if (key == "contextual_help") {
@@ -83,6 +87,7 @@ bool save_settings(const Settings& settings) {
   out << "event_cache_dir = \"" << settings.event_cache_dir << "\"\n";
   out << "event_cache_max = " << settings.event_cache_max << "\n";
   out << "relative_time = " << (settings.relative_time ? "true" : "false") << "\n";
+  out << "memory_limit_mb = " << settings.memory_limit_mb << "\n";
   out << "theme = \"" << settings.theme << "\"\n";
   // The two help keys are the *app's* memory rather than the dialog's: the contextual-help rows --
   // the Help menu's and the source chooser's own -- write the first, and the first-run tour writes the

src/settings.hpp

@@ -30,6 +30,12 @@ struct Settings {
   /// buffers are planned before any stream is known, so it takes effect on the next start (the
   /// preferences dialog says so, like the configurations dialog does).
   bool relative_time = false;
+  /// The hard ceiling on the sample rings' memory, in MiB, for the whole application rather than per
+  /// source (`--memory-limit-mb` overrides it for one run). The planner halves a source's sample
+  /// budget until the rings fit under it. Unlike the cache directory and relative time it applies as
+  /// it is changed: a running scope re-plans its buffer (and so drops its history) when the new limit
+  /// changes the rings.
+  int memory_limit_mb = 8192;
   /// "auto", "light" or "dark": what the interface should look like. Kept as the three names libadwaita
   /// uses, so the file says what the setting is rather than what an enum happens to be numbered.
   std::string theme = "auto";

src/source_dialog.cpp

@@ -7,7 +7,9 @@
 
 #include "help_window.hpp"
 #include "layout_store.hpp"
+#include "model.hpp"  // `buffer_ticks()` / `planned_bytes()`: what a request becomes
 #include "settings.hpp"
+#include "status_text.hpp"  // `format_samples()` and friends
 #include "source/registry.hpp"
 // The app's shared chrome -- `ui_impl::menu_button()`/`menu_toggle()` and `install_css()` -- so the
 // chooser's help menu is the *same* menu the window's Help view is, not a second one that merely
@@ -21,6 +23,7 @@
 #include <unistd.h>
 
 #include <algorithm>
+#include <cmath>
 #include <cstdio>
 #include <cstdlib>
 #include <cstring>
@@ -47,7 +50,7 @@ void apply_source(Config& cfg, const KnownSource& src) {
   // The configuration's own startup settings. They are read *before* the model exists, which is the
   // only moment a buffer size can be applied at all -- and the reason they are stored per
   // configuration rather than only passed on the command line.
-  if (src.buffer_mb > 0.0) cfg.buffer_mb = src.buffer_mb;
+  if (src.buffer_samples > 0) cfg.buffer_samples = src.buffer_samples;
   // The list's own copy of the clock, but only where nothing newer has said: with the preferences
   // open from this dialog a user can state relative time a minute before clicking the row, and that
   // statement must survive the click that follows it.
@@ -59,8 +62,9 @@ void apply_source(Config& cfg, const KnownSource& src) {
 void report_sources(const std::vector<KnownSource>& known) {
   std::fprintf(stderr, "[sources] %zu known:", known.size());
   for (const KnownSource& s : known) {
-    std::fprintf(stderr, " %s:%u/%s plots=%d signals=%d buffer=%.6g relative=%d capture=%u",
-                 s.host.c_str(), s.port, s.config.c_str(), s.rows, s.signals, s.buffer_mb,
+    std::fprintf(stderr, " %s:%u/%s plots=%d signals=%d samples=%llu relative=%d capture=%u",
+                 s.host.c_str(), s.port, s.config.c_str(), s.rows, s.signals,
+                 static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.buffer_samples),
                  s.relative_time ? 1 : 0, s.capture_packets);
     if (!s.comment.empty()) std::fprintf(stderr, " note='%s'", s.comment.c_str());
     if (!s.multicast.empty()) std::fprintf(stderr, " multicast=%s", s.multicast.c_str());
@@ -405,9 +409,7 @@ void chooser_populate(Chooser& c) {
 
     std::string sub = std::to_string(s.rows) + (s.rows == 1 ? " plot, " : " plots, ") +
                       std::to_string(s.signals) + (s.signals == 1 ? " signal" : " signals");
-    if (s.buffer_mb > 0.0) {
-      sub += ", buffer " + std::to_string(static_cast<int>(s.buffer_mb)) + " MB";
-    }
+    if (s.buffer_samples > 0) sub += ", buffer " + format_samples(s.buffer_samples) + " samples";
     if (s.relative_time) sub += ", relative time";
     if (s.capture_packets > 0) {
       sub += ", capture " + std::to_string(s.capture_packets) + " packets";
@@ -442,6 +444,32 @@ void chooser_populate(Chooser& c) {
   }
 }
 
+/// The form's sample budget as a count: the spin is in millions, and a count is what is stored.
+std::uint64_t form_buffer_samples(const Chooser& c) {
+  const double m = adw_spin_row_get_value(c.form_buffer);
+  return static_cast<std::uint64_t>(std::max(128.0, std::round(m * 1.0e6)));
+}
+
+/// Says under the "Samples per signal" row what the number will become: the rings are powers of two,
+/// so the request is a ceiling, and the memory limit can lower it further. The limit is judged for
+/// *one* signal here -- the channel count is not known until a stream declares it -- so a clip shown
+/// is certain, and the status line says what a real stream got. The cost line gives the two figures
+/// the user can multiply by their own signal count.
+void update_buffer_note(Chooser& c) {
+  if (c.form_buffer == nullptr) return;
+  const std::uint64_t requested = form_buffer_samples(c);
+  const bool relative = adw_switch_row_get_active(c.form_relative) != FALSE;
+  const std::uint64_t limit = c.cfg->memory_limit_mb * 1024u * 1024u;
+  const std::uint64_t wanted = buffer_ticks(requested);
+  std::uint64_t used = wanted;
+  while (used > 128 && planned_bytes(used, 1, relative) > limit) used /= 2;
+  const std::string note =
+      describe_buffer(requested, used, used < wanted, limit) + ". The rings take " +
+      format_bytes(used * sizeof(double) * (relative ? 2 : 1)) + " for the clock and " +
+      format_bytes(used * sizeof(float)) + " per signal.";
+  adw_action_row_set_subtitle(ADW_ACTION_ROW(c.form_buffer), note.c_str());
+}
+
 void form_close(Chooser& c) {
   // The form's own `closed` handler clears the pointer, so this is the only place that has to know how
   // an `AdwDialog` closes.
@@ -497,7 +525,7 @@ void on_form_connect(GtkButton*, gpointer user) {
   const std::string iface = udps ? scfg.get("interface") : std::string();
   std::string name = gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_name));
   const std::string note = gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note));
-  const double buffer_mb = adw_spin_row_get_value(c.form_buffer);
+  const std::uint64_t buffer_samples = form_buffer_samples(c);
   const bool relative = adw_switch_row_get_active(c.form_relative) != FALSE;
   if (name.empty()) name = "default";
 
@@ -513,7 +541,7 @@ void on_form_connect(GtkButton*, gpointer user) {
   }
   // The startup settings. Applied here because this runs *before* `ScopeModel` exists, which is the
   // only moment a buffer size can be applied at all -- and stored, so the next run gets them back.
-  c.cfg->buffer_mb = buffer_mb;
+  c.cfg->buffer_samples = buffer_samples;
   c.cfg->relative_time = relative;
 
   LayoutState st;
@@ -523,7 +551,7 @@ void on_form_connect(GtkButton*, gpointer user) {
     load_layout(configuration_path(c.edit_host, c.edit_port, c.edit_config), st);
   }
   st.comment = note;
-  st.buffer_mb = buffer_mb;
+  st.buffer_samples = buffer_samples;
   st.relative_time = relative;
   st.multicast = group;
   st.interface_addr = iface;
@@ -541,9 +569,9 @@ void on_form_connect(GtkButton*, gpointer user) {
     c.saved_config = name;
     c.saved_note = note;
     std::fprintf(stderr,
-                 "[sources] configuration %s: %s:%u/%s note='%s' buffer=%.6g relative=%d\n",
+                 "[sources] configuration %s: %s:%u/%s note='%s' samples=%llu relative=%d\n",
                  editing ? "saved" : "created", host.c_str(), port, name.c_str(), note.c_str(),
-                 buffer_mb, relative ? 1 : 0);
+                 static_cast<unsigned long long>(buffer_samples), relative ? 1 : 0);
     std::fflush(stderr);
   } else {
     std::fprintf(stderr, "[sources] configuration write failed: %s:%u/%s\n", host.c_str(), port,
@@ -624,12 +652,24 @@ void open_form(Chooser& c, int edit_index = -1) {
   // the rows' subtitles, so an empty field still says what empty means.
   gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_name), src != nullptr ? src->config.c_str() : "default");
   gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note), src != nullptr ? src->comment.c_str() : "");
-  adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, src != nullptr && src->buffer_mb > 0.0
-                                            ? src->buffer_mb
-                                            : std::max(1.0, c.cfg->buffer_mb));
+  adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, double(src != nullptr && src->buffer_samples > 0
+                                                   ? src->buffer_samples
+                                                   : c.cfg->buffer_samples) /
+                                            1.0e6);
+  update_buffer_note(c);
+  g_signal_connect(c.form_buffer, "notify::value", G_CALLBACK(+[](GObject*, GParamSpec*, gpointer user) {
+                     update_buffer_note(*static_cast<Chooser*>(user));
+                   }),
+                   &c);
   adw_switch_row_set_active(c.form_relative,
                             (src != nullptr ? src->relative_time : c.cfg->relative_time) ? TRUE
                                                                                          : FALSE);
+  // The relative clock doubles the time ring, so the note under the sample budget follows it.
+  g_signal_connect(c.form_relative, "notify::active", G_CALLBACK(+[](GObject*, GParamSpec*, gpointer user) {
+                     update_buffer_note(*static_cast<Chooser*>(user));
+                   }),
+                   &c);
+  update_buffer_note(c);
 
   // The dropdown lists the registered kinds. A new host starts on the kind the command line named
   // (UDPS by default); an edit starts on the configuration's own kind and cannot change it --
@@ -701,10 +741,11 @@ void report_pick(const Chooser& c) {
   // size would look identical here otherwise, and the buffer is the one of them a user notices
   // only after a long capture has been sized wrong.
   std::fprintf(stderr,
-               "[sources] picked %s:%u multicast=%s interface=%s buffer=%.6g relative=%d "
+               "[sources] picked %s:%u multicast=%s interface=%s samples=%llu relative=%d "
                "capture=%u config=%s note='%s'\n",
                c.cfg->server.c_str(), c.cfg->port, c.cfg->multicast.c_str(),
-               c.cfg->interface_addr.c_str(), c.cfg->buffer_mb, c.cfg->relative_time ? 1 : 0,
+               c.cfg->interface_addr.c_str(),
+               static_cast<unsigned long long>(c.cfg->buffer_samples), c.cfg->relative_time ? 1 : 0,
                c.cfg->capture_packets,
                (c.saved_config.empty() ? (c.known.empty() ? "-" : c.known.front().config)
                                        : c.saved_config)
@@ -748,6 +789,10 @@ void open_chooser_preferences(Chooser& c) {
     // stored configuration, and it works in both directions -- turning it on *and* off.
     c.cfg->relative_time = s.relative_time;
     c.cfg->relative_time_specified = true;
+    // The memory limit is read by the model when it is built, which is after this returns, so the
+    // chooser's own change is the newest word on it for the run about to start.
+    c.cfg->memory_limit_mb = static_cast<std::uint64_t>(s.memory_limit_mb);
+    c.cfg->memory_limit_specified = true;
     if (!written) {
       std::fprintf(stderr, "[sources] prefs: could not write %s\n", settings_path().c_str());
       std::fflush(stderr);
@@ -1171,7 +1216,7 @@ gboolean pick_probe(gpointer user) {
     c.form_cfg.write(sc);
     gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_name), "probe-host");
     gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note), "made by the new-host probe");
-    adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, 32);
+    adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, 0.5);
     adw_switch_row_set_active(c.form_relative, TRUE);
     // 9/9 for UDPS: the form's row titles are mnemonics (`Source _type`, `_Server`, `_Port`, ...). The
     // total follows the kind's row count: five rows are the chooser's, the rest the kind's own.
@@ -1183,7 +1228,7 @@ gboolean pick_probe(gpointer user) {
     std::fprintf(stderr, "[sources] form mnemonics=%d/%zu\n", underlines,
                  5 + c.form_cfg.rows.size());
     std::fprintf(stderr,
-                 "[sources] form: name='%s' note='%s' buffer=%.6g relative=%d "
+                 "[sources] form: name='%s' note='%s' samples_m=%.6g relative=%d "
                  "connect_sensitive=%d\n",
                  gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_name)),
                  gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note)),
@@ -1216,14 +1261,14 @@ gboolean pick_probe(gpointer user) {
     // The reading is the *pre-fill*: an edit form that opens empty is the defect this asserts
     // against, and the button's label says which mode it is in.
     std::fprintf(stderr,
-                 "[sources] edit form: name='%s' note='%s' buffer=%.6g relative=%d button='%s'\n",
+                 "[sources] edit form: name='%s' note='%s' samples_m=%.6g relative=%d button='%s'\n",
                  gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_name)),
                  gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note)),
                  adw_spin_row_get_value(c.form_buffer),
                  adw_switch_row_get_active(c.form_relative) ? 1 : 0,
                  gtk_button_get_label(GTK_BUTTON(c.form_connect)));
     gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(c.form_note), "edited by the probe");
-    adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, 16);
+    adw_spin_row_set_value(c.form_buffer, 0.25);
     adw_switch_row_set_active(c.form_relative, FALSE);
     // `UDPSCOPE_PROBE_EDITNAME=new-name` also renames it, which is a *move*: the old file must not
     // survive, or the chooser lists the same session twice.
@@ -1263,16 +1308,17 @@ void apply_stored_settings(Config& cfg) {
   // Only where nothing newer was said: a flag the user typed, or the preferences they just applied,
   // wins -- because it is the more recent statement of intent, and the file is not a place to hide a
   // surprise from whoever just made it.
-  if (!cfg.buffer_mb_specified && st.buffer_mb > 0.0) cfg.buffer_mb = st.buffer_mb;
+  if (!cfg.buffer_samples_specified && st.buffer_samples > 0) cfg.buffer_samples = st.buffer_samples;
   const bool relative = !cfg.relative_time_specified && st.relative_time;
   if (relative) cfg.relative_time = true;
   if (cfg.capture_packets == 0 && st.capture_packets > 0) cfg.capture_packets = st.capture_packets;
-  const bool applied = (!cfg.buffer_mb_specified && st.buffer_mb > 0.0) || relative ||
+  const bool applied = (!cfg.buffer_samples_specified && st.buffer_samples > 0) || relative ||
                        st.capture_packets > 0;
   if (applied) {
     std::fprintf(stderr,
-                 "[sources] settings from configuration '%s': buffer=%.6g relative=%d capture=%u\n",
-                 want.c_str(), cfg.buffer_mb, cfg.relative_time ? 1 : 0, cfg.capture_packets);
+                 "[sources] settings from configuration '%s': samples=%llu relative=%d capture=%u\n",
+                 want.c_str(), static_cast<unsigned long long>(cfg.buffer_samples),
+                 cfg.relative_time ? 1 : 0, cfg.capture_packets);
     std::fflush(stderr);
   }
 }
@@ -1330,9 +1376,9 @@ void loading_show(const Config& cfg) {
       head = "Connecting to " + cfg.server + ":" + std::to_string(cfg.port);
       if (!cfg.multicast.empty()) head += " (" + cfg.multicast + ")";
     }
-    char buf[128];
-    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "planning the %.0f MB sample buffer", cfg.buffer_mb);
-    sub = buf;
+    sub = "planning the buffer: " + format_samples(buffer_ticks(cfg.buffer_samples)) +
+          " samples per signal, " + format_bytes(cfg.memory_limit_mb * 1024u * 1024u) +
+          " memory limit";
   } else {
     const std::size_t slash = cfg.open_waveform.rfind('/');
     head = "Opening " + (slash == std::string::npos ? cfg.open_waveform

src/status_text.cpp

@@ -41,6 +41,43 @@ std::string format_rate(double per_s) {
   return buf;
 }
 
+std::string format_samples(std::uint64_t n) {
+  char buf[32];
+  const double d = static_cast<double>(n);
+  if (n >= 1000000000ull) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g G", d / 1.0e9);
+  } else if (n >= 1000000ull) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g M", d / 1.0e6);
+  } else if (n >= 1000ull) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g k", d / 1.0e3);
+  } else {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%llu", static_cast<unsigned long long>(n));
+  }
+  return buf;
+}
+
+std::string format_bytes(std::uint64_t bytes) {
+  char buf[32];
+  const double d = static_cast<double>(bytes);
+  if (bytes >= (1ull << 30)) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g GiB", d / double(1ull << 30));
+  } else if (bytes >= (1ull << 20)) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g MiB", d / double(1ull << 20));
+  } else if (bytes >= (1ull << 10)) {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.3g KiB", d / double(1ull << 10));
+  } else {
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%llu B", static_cast<unsigned long long>(bytes));
+  }
+  return buf;
+}
+
+std::string describe_buffer(std::uint64_t requested, std::uint64_t used, bool memory_limited,
+                            std::uint64_t memory_limit_bytes) {
+  std::string out = format_samples(requested) + " requested, " + format_samples(used) + " used";
+  if (memory_limited) out += " (limited by the " + format_bytes(memory_limit_bytes) + " memory limit)";
+  return out;
+}
+
 std::string format_glance(const StatusSnapshot& s) {
   std::string out = s.state_word;
   out += " · ";
@@ -68,17 +105,25 @@ std::string format_detail(const StatusSnapshot& s) {
   char buf[1024];
   std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf),
                 "[%s] %s  %s | rate %s | packets %llu  frames %llu  gaps %llu | %zu signals, "
-                "%zu channels | plot 1: %d trace(s), %zu samples | buffer %.1f MB, %.2f s "
-                "span, time x%llu",
+                "%zu channels | plot 1: %d trace(s), %zu samples | buffer %s samples/signal "
+                "(%s), %.2f s span, time x%llu",
                 s.state_detail.c_str(), s.connected ? "connected" : "waiting",
                 s.have_config ? "configured" : "-",
                 s.rate_text.empty() ? "--" : s.rate_text.c_str(),
                 static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.packets),
                 static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.frames),
                 static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.gaps), s.signals, s.channels,
-                s.plot1_traces, s.plot1_samples, s.buffer_mb, s.span_s,
-                static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.time_stride));
+                s.plot1_traces, s.plot1_samples, format_samples(s.buffer_samples).c_str(),
+                s.buffer_bytes > 0 ? format_bytes(s.buffer_bytes).c_str() : "not planned",
+                s.span_s, static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.time_stride));
   std::string out = buf;
+  // The request is quoted only where it differs from what was planned, and the limit only where it
+  // is the reason: a clean run says the figure once, and a clipped one says why in the same breath.
+  if (s.memory_limited) {
+    out += " | limited to " + format_samples(s.buffer_samples) + " samples by the " +
+           format_bytes(s.memory_limit_bytes) + " memory limit (" +
+           format_samples(s.buffer_requested) + " requested)";
+  }
   // Nothing about resequencing is said at all while all six read zero, which is a stream that
   // never lost ordering: the field would otherwise be six zeros on every clean run, and this
   // string is read by eye out of the exit dump.

src/status_text.hpp

@@ -41,7 +41,15 @@ struct StatusSnapshot {
   std::size_t channels = 0;
   int plot1_traces = 0;
   std::size_t plot1_samples = 0;
-  double buffer_mb = 0.0;
+  /// The sample budget as planned: slots per signal the rings hold (the request rounded down to a
+  /// power of two and clipped by the memory limit), what was asked for, and the bytes those rings
+  /// occupy -- 0 until a stream has planned a buffer. `memory_limited` says the limit, and not the
+  /// rounding, made `buffer_samples` smaller than the request.
+  std::uint64_t buffer_samples = 0;
+  std::uint64_t buffer_requested = 0;
+  std::uint64_t buffer_bytes = 0;
+  std::uint64_t memory_limit_bytes = 0;
+  bool memory_limited = false;
   double span_s = 0.0;
   std::uint64_t time_stride = 1;
   bool have_event = false;
@@ -82,6 +90,19 @@ std::string format_detail(const StatusSnapshot& s);
 /// cannot track the stream. Moved here from ui.cpp, which still calls it.
 std::string format_rate(double hz);
 
+/// A sample count as "67.1 M": `%.3g` of the count in the unit it reads shortest in (k, M, G; decimal,
+/// like `--buffer-samples`). Under a thousand it is the bare number.
+std::string format_samples(std::uint64_t n);
+
+/// A byte count in binary units, "168 MiB" / "8 GiB", `%.3g` so the width does not track the figure.
+std::string format_bytes(std::uint64_t bytes);
+
+/// The sentence the source form, the status popover and the exit dump share for a sample budget:
+/// "100 M requested, 67.1 M used", and " (limited by the 1 GiB memory limit)" when the limit clipped it.
+/// `requested` is the user's number, `used` the planned slots per signal.
+std::string describe_buffer(std::uint64_t requested, std::uint64_t used, bool memory_limited,
+                            std::uint64_t memory_limit_bytes);
+
 /// An elapsed time, stepping to a coarser unit rather than growing digits, so its width
 /// cannot track the stream. Moved here from ui.cpp.
 std::string format_elapsed(double seconds);

src/ui.cpp

@@ -4397,7 +4397,16 @@ gboolean tick(gpointer user) {
   snap.channels = channel_count;
   snap.plot1_traces = bound;
   snap.plot1_samples = samples;
-  snap.buffer_mb = double(model.config().buffer_mb);
+  {
+    // The planned buffer when there is one; before the first CONFIG there is no plan, and the
+    // request (rounded as the ring will round it) is the honest figure, with no bytes to quote.
+    const Partition& part = model.partition();
+    snap.buffer_requested = model.config().buffer_samples;
+    snap.buffer_samples = part.time_capacity > 0 ? part.time_capacity : buffer_ticks(snap.buffer_requested);
+    snap.buffer_bytes = part.bytes();
+    snap.memory_limit_bytes = model.memory_limit_bytes();
+    snap.memory_limited = part.memory_limited;
+  }
   snap.span_s = span_s;
   snap.time_stride = time_stride;
   snap.have_event = app->last_latch_us != 0;
@@ -5281,8 +5290,9 @@ void on_activate(GtkApplication* application, gpointer user) {
   if (app->waveform_name.empty()) {
     const Config& cfg = app->model->config();
     char buf[192];
-    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "connecting to %s:%u -- planning the %.0f MB buffer",
-                  cfg.server.c_str(), unsigned(cfg.port), cfg.buffer_mb);
+    std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "connecting to %s:%u -- planning the buffer: %s samples per signal",
+                  cfg.server.c_str(), unsigned(cfg.port),
+                  format_samples(buffer_ticks(cfg.buffer_samples)).c_str());
     set_notice(*app, buf, 6);
   }
 }
@@ -6081,6 +6091,43 @@ int run_ui(int argc, char** argv, const Config& cfg, ScopeModel& model, Acquisit
                   static_cast<unsigned long long>(model.live().values(i).produced()),
                   static_cast<unsigned long long>(model.live().channel(i).size()));
     }
+    // The sample budget as this run planned it, and the planner on fixed inputs. The first line is
+    // the live buffer: `used` is the request rounded down to a power of two and clipped by the memory
+    // limit, `bytes` the rings' real size. The second feeds `plan_partition()` three channels and a
+    // 100 M request three ways -- room to spare, a 1 GiB limit that must clip, a limit too small for
+    // even 128 slots -- so a change to the rounding, the halving or the byte formula reads here even
+    // when the run's own plan happens not to be clipped.
+    std::printf("[udpscope]   buffer: requested=%llu used=%llu bytes=%llu limit=%llu limited=%d\n",
+                static_cast<unsigned long long>(model.config().buffer_samples),
+                static_cast<unsigned long long>(part.time_capacity),
+                static_cast<unsigned long long>(part.bytes()),
+                static_cast<unsigned long long>(model.memory_limit_bytes()),
+                part.memory_limited ? 1 : 0);
+    {
+      const std::vector<double> dts(3, 1.0e-4);
+      const auto pow2 = [](unsigned long long v) { return v != 0 && (v & (v - 1)) == 0; };
+      const Partition open = plan_partition(dts, 100000000ull, 16ull << 30, 0.0);
+      constexpr unsigned long long kGiB = 1ull << 30;
+      const Partition clip = plan_partition(dts, 100000000ull, kGiB, 0.0);
+      const Partition clip_rel = plan_partition(dts, 100000000ull, kGiB, 0.0, true);
+      bool thrown = false;
+      try {
+        (void)plan_partition(dts, 100000000ull, 1000, 0.0);
+      } catch (const std::exception&) {
+        thrown = true;
+      }
+      std::printf("[udpscope]   planner: unclipped got=%llu pow2=%d limited=%d | clipped(1GiB) "
+                  "got=%llu bytes=%llu fits=%d pow2=%d limited=%d | clipped_rel got=%llu "
+                  "bytes=%llu fits=%d | too_small_throws=%d\n",
+                  static_cast<unsigned long long>(open.time_capacity),
+                  pow2(open.time_capacity) ? 1 : 0, open.memory_limited ? 1 : 0,
+                  static_cast<unsigned long long>(clip.time_capacity),
+                  static_cast<unsigned long long>(clip.bytes()), clip.bytes() <= kGiB ? 1 : 0,
+                  pow2(clip.time_capacity) ? 1 : 0, clip.memory_limited ? 1 : 0,
+                  static_cast<unsigned long long>(clip_rel.time_capacity),
+                  static_cast<unsigned long long>(clip_rel.bytes()),
+                  clip_rel.bytes() <= kGiB ? 1 : 0, thrown ? 1 : 0);
+    }
     // `frames_painted` is the area's, read from the snapshot taken before the window was
     // destroyed (the PlotArea wrapper dies with its widget): one figure, one render per
     // frame, so it is the same count for every row.

src/ui/preferences.ui

@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@
   show-apply-button is off here: the write is a few bytes to one file, so a keystroke is not worth
   batching). The two settings that cannot take effect immediately — the cache directory and relative
   time, both of which are planned before any source is known — say so in their subtitles instead of
-  being held back by a button.
+  being held back by a button. The memory limit does take effect at once: a running buffer re-plans.
 
   Nothing here carries a value: `ui_prefs.cpp` fills the rows from `Settings` when the dialog opens,
   and writes it back on every change. This file is the shape, that is the state.
@@ -77,6 +77,27 @@
             </child>
           </object>
         </child>
+        <child>
+          <object class="AdwPreferencesGroup">
+            <property name="title" translatable="yes">Sample buffer</property>
+            <child>
+              <object class="AdwSpinRow" id="memory_row">
+                <property name="title" translatable="yes">_Memory limit (MB)</property>
+                <property name="use-underline">True</property>
+                <property name="subtitle" translatable="yes">Hard ceiling on the memory of the sample rings, all signals together. A source asks for a number of samples per signal; if that does not fit under this limit it is halved until it does, and the status line says so. Applies at once: a running buffer is re-planned, which clears its history.</property>
+                <property name="adjustment">
+                  <object class="GtkAdjustment">
+                    <property name="lower">16</property>
+                    <property name="upper">1048576</property>
+                    <property name="step-increment">256</property>
+                    <property name="page-increment">1024</property>
+                    <property name="value">8192</property>
+                  </object>
+                </property>
+              </object>
+            </child>
+          </object>
+        </child>
       </object>
     </child>
     <child>

src/ui/source-form.ui

@@ -85,15 +85,17 @@
                     </child>
                     <child>
                       <object class="AdwSpinRow" id="buffer_row">
-                        <property name="title" translatable="yes">_Buffer MB</property>
+                        <property name="title" translatable="yes">_Samples per signal (millions)</property>
                         <property name="use-underline">True</property>
-                        <property name="subtitle" translatable="yes">sample buffer per source, applied when this source is opened</property>
+                        <property name="subtitle" translatable="yes">samples kept for every signal, rounded down to a power of two; applied when this source is opened</property>
+                        <property name="digits">3</property>
                         <property name="adjustment">
                           <object class="GtkAdjustment">
-                            <property name="lower">1</property>
-                            <property name="upper">65536</property>
+                            <property name="lower">0.001</property>
+                            <property name="upper">4096</property>
                             <property name="step-increment">1</property>
-                            <property name="value">64</property>
+                            <property name="page-increment">10</property>
+                            <property name="value">10</property>
                           </object>
                         </property>
                       </object>

src/ui_layout.cpp

@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ LayoutState collect_layout(App& app) {
   // *startup* parameter -- the rings are allocated before any stream is known -- so a configuration
   // is the only place it can be remembered per source, and the chooser applies it on open.
   st.comment = app.config_comment;
-  st.buffer_mb = app.model->config().buffer_mb;
+  st.buffer_samples = app.model->config().buffer_samples;
   st.relative_time = app.model->config().relative_time;
   st.capture_packets = app.model->config().capture_packets;
   return st;
@@ -135,8 +135,8 @@ void on_config_row_activated(GtkListBox*, GtkListBoxRow* row, gpointer user) {
   // a configuration that appears to half-apply.
   const Config& cfg = app.model->config();
   std::string later;
-  if (st.buffer_mb > 0.0 && st.buffer_mb != cfg.buffer_mb) {
-    later += "buffer " + std::to_string(static_cast<int>(st.buffer_mb)) + " MB";
+  if (st.buffer_samples > 0 && st.buffer_samples != cfg.buffer_samples) {
+    later += "buffer " + format_samples(st.buffer_samples) + " samples";
   }
   if (st.relative_time != cfg.relative_time) {
     later += later.empty() ? "" : ", ";
@@ -237,9 +237,7 @@ void config_dialog_refresh(ConfigDialog& d) {
     }
     std::string sub = std::to_string(st.rows.size()) + " plots, " + std::to_string(signals) +
                       " signals";
-    if (st.buffer_mb > 0.0) {
-      sub += ", buffer " + std::to_string(static_cast<int>(st.buffer_mb)) + " MB";
-    }
+    if (st.buffer_samples > 0) sub += ", buffer " + format_samples(st.buffer_samples) + " samples";
     if (st.relative_time) sub += ", relative time";
     GtkWidget* counts = gtk_label_new(sub.c_str());
     gtk_widget_add_css_class(counts, "dim-label");
@@ -410,7 +408,7 @@ void apply_layout(App& app, const LayoutState& st) {
 
   // What the session had on, collected and enabled **once**, at the end of this function.
   // Each enable re-plans the partition, and a re-plan allocates -- and so touches -- the whole
-  // of `--buffer-mb`: seven signals one at a time is seven allocations before a single sample
+  // of the planned rings: seven signals one at a time is seven allocations before a single sample
   // is kept, which is the ten seconds of blank window a large buffer used to start with. The
   // math channels are not collected here: their enable state is the session's `math` and
   // `set_math_channels()` has already restored it, so listing them again could turn on one

src/ui_prefs.cpp

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 #include "ui_prefs.hpp"
 
 #include "event_store.hpp"  // `default_events_dir()`, so the row shows the path the cache uses
+#include "status_text.hpp"  // `format_bytes()`
 #include "ui_app.hpp"       // the application's half of the contract, at the bottom of this file
 
 #include <adwaita.h>
@@ -36,6 +37,7 @@ Settings read_rows(const PrefsForm& f) {
   s.event_cache_dir = gtk_editable_get_text(GTK_EDITABLE(f.dir_row));
   s.event_cache_max = static_cast<int>(adw_spin_row_get_value(f.keep_row));
   s.relative_time = adw_switch_row_get_active(f.relative_row) != FALSE;
+  s.memory_limit_mb = static_cast<int>(adw_spin_row_get_value(f.memory_row));
   s.theme = theme_name(adw_combo_row_get_selected(f.theme_row));
   // The row shows the *effective* directory, so the default is written out in full rather than
   // described. Leaving it at that default is not a choice to pin it: the file keeps "unset", and the
@@ -63,6 +65,7 @@ void fill_rows(PrefsForm& f, const Settings& s) {
       (s.event_cache_dir.empty() ? default_events_dir() : s.event_cache_dir).c_str());
   adw_spin_row_set_value(f.keep_row, s.event_cache_max < 0 ? 0.0 : s.event_cache_max);
   adw_switch_row_set_active(f.relative_row, s.relative_time ? TRUE : FALSE);
+  adw_spin_row_set_value(f.memory_row, s.memory_limit_mb);
   adw_combo_row_set_selected(f.theme_row, s.theme == "light" ? 1 : (s.theme == "dark" ? 2 : 0));
   f.filling = false;
 }
@@ -141,6 +144,7 @@ void on_closed(AdwDialog*, gpointer user) {
   f.dir_row = nullptr;
   f.keep_row = nullptr;
   f.relative_row = nullptr;
+  f.memory_row = nullptr;
   f.theme_row = nullptr;
   f.browse = nullptr;
   f.parent = nullptr;
@@ -155,12 +159,14 @@ void resolve_rows(PrefsForm& f) {
   f.keep_row = ADW_SPIN_ROW(gtk_builder_get_object(f.builder, "keep_row"));
   f.relative_row = ADW_SWITCH_ROW(gtk_builder_get_object(f.builder, "relative_row"));
   f.theme_row = ADW_COMBO_ROW(gtk_builder_get_object(f.builder, "theme_row"));
+  f.memory_row = ADW_SPIN_ROW(gtk_builder_get_object(f.builder, "memory_row"));
   if (f.dir_row == nullptr || f.keep_row == nullptr || f.relative_row == nullptr ||
-      f.theme_row == nullptr) {
+      f.theme_row == nullptr || f.memory_row == nullptr) {
     f.dir_row = nullptr;
     f.keep_row = nullptr;
     f.relative_row = nullptr;
     f.theme_row = nullptr;
+    f.memory_row = nullptr;
     g_clear_object(&f.builder);
   }
 }
@@ -214,6 +220,7 @@ void prefs_open(PrefsForm& form, GtkWidget* parent, const Settings& current,
   g_signal_connect(form.dir_row, "changed", G_CALLBACK(on_entry_changed), &form);
   g_signal_connect(form.keep_row, "notify::value", G_CALLBACK(on_row_notify), &form);
   g_signal_connect(form.relative_row, "notify::active", G_CALLBACK(on_row_notify), &form);
+  g_signal_connect(form.memory_row, "notify::value", G_CALLBACK(on_row_notify), &form);
   g_signal_connect(form.theme_row, "notify::selected", G_CALLBACK(on_row_notify), &form);
   if (GObject* reset = gtk_builder_get_object(form.builder, "reset_row"); reset != nullptr) {
     g_signal_connect(reset, "activated", G_CALLBACK(on_reset), &form);
@@ -239,9 +246,29 @@ void prefs_probe_change(PrefsForm& form) {
   gtk_editable_set_text(GTK_EDITABLE(form.dir_row), "/tmp/udpscope-prefs-events");
   adw_spin_row_set_value(form.keep_row, 7.0);
   adw_switch_row_set_active(form.relative_row, TRUE);
+  adw_spin_row_set_value(form.memory_row, 4096.0);
   adw_combo_row_set_selected(form.theme_row, 2);
 }
 
+/// A changed memory limit reaches the running model. Only when it differs from the model's own (every
+/// preference arrives through the same callback, and a theme change is not a re-plan), and without
+/// re-planning while a file or a replayed event is what the buffer holds -- clearing those would
+/// throw away what the user opened, so the limit is stored and the next plan honours it.
+static void apply_memory_limit(App& app, int mb) {
+  if (app.model == nullptr || mb <= 0) return;
+  const std::uint64_t bytes = static_cast<std::uint64_t>(mb) * 1024u * 1024u;
+  if (bytes == app.model->memory_limit_bytes()) return;
+  const bool holds_a_view = !app.waveform_name.empty() || app.replaying;
+  const bool rebuilt = app.model->set_memory_limit_bytes(bytes, !holds_a_view);
+  std::fprintf(stderr, "[udpscope] memory limit now %s (rebuilt=%d%s)\n",
+               format_bytes(bytes).c_str(), rebuilt ? 1 : 0,
+               holds_a_view ? ", applies to the next plan" : "");
+  std::fflush(stderr);
+  if (rebuilt) {
+    set_notice(app, "memory limit " + format_bytes(bytes) + ": buffer re-planned, history cleared", 5);
+  }
+}
+
 /// The application's entry point: **Preferences…** in the overflow menu. Kept here rather than in
 /// `ui.cpp` with the rest of the chrome, because it is the application's half of *this* form's
 /// contract -- what a preference changing means to a running scope -- and reading it beside the form is
@@ -249,6 +276,7 @@ void prefs_probe_change(PrefsForm& form) {
 void open_preferences(App& app) {
   prefs_open(app.prefs, app.window, app.settings, [&app](const Settings& s, bool written) {
     app.settings = s;
+    apply_memory_limit(app, s.memory_limit_mb);
     // Only a failure is announced. A change arrives once per keystroke in the directory row, and a
     // status line that flashed on each one would be the app shouting about its own bookkeeping.
     if (!written) set_notice(app, "could not write the preferences file", 4);

src/ui_prefs.hpp

@@ -62,6 +62,7 @@ struct PrefsForm {
   AdwEntryRow* dir_row = nullptr;
   AdwSpinRow* keep_row = nullptr;
   AdwSwitchRow* relative_row = nullptr;
+  AdwSpinRow* memory_row = nullptr;
   AdwComboRow* theme_row = nullptr;
   /// The folder chooser beside the directory row. A text field alone asks a user to know a path and
   /// type it correctly; the chooser is how they find one, and what it returns goes into that row -- so

src/ui_probe.cpp

@@ -1182,7 +1182,7 @@ gboolean math_probe(gpointer user) {
 // The one state `math_probe` structurally cannot reach: an edit of a graph whose ring has already
 // *wrapped*. Every edit that probe makes follows a structural change, which replans the buffer and
 // restarts every ring at absolute 0 -- and at `base == 0` the recompute's two renumbering bugs are
-// both identities. Run it with a small `--buffer-mb` and give it time to saturate; `base=0` in its
+// both identities. Run it with a small `--buffer-samples` and give it time to saturate; `base=0` in its
 // second line means the run was too short or the buffer too large to have read anything.
 int g_mathwrap_index = -1;
 double g_mathwrap_y_before = 0.0;
@@ -1231,7 +1231,7 @@ gboolean mathwrap_probe_wait(gpointer user) {
       g_mathwrap_y_before = a->model->live().channel(idx).y_bounds().max;
     }
   }
-  // Polled rather than timed: the wrap is a function of the rate and of `--buffer-mb`, and a fixed
+  // Polled rather than timed: the wrap is a function of the rate and of `--buffer-samples`, and a fixed
   // delay that fell short would print a passing line having tested nothing.
   if (base == 0 && ++g_mathwrap_polls < 200) return G_SOURCE_CONTINUE;
   std::fprintf(stderr, "[mathwrap-probe] wrapped: base=%llu slots=%llu (want base > 0)\n",
@@ -5384,9 +5384,10 @@ gboolean configs_probe(gpointer user) {
   const double noise_back = st.measures.empty() ? -1.0 : st.measures.front().options.noise_pct;
   const double hf_back = st.measures.empty() ? -1.0 : st.measures.front().options.hf_fc;
   std::fprintf(stderr,
-               "[configs] round trip read=%d comment='%s' buffer_mb=%.6g relative=%d "
+               "[configs] round trip read=%d comment='%s' buffer_samples=%llu relative=%d "
                "capture=%u plots=%zu signals=%d measures=%zu math=%zu noise=%.6g hf=%.6g\n",
-               read ? 1 : 0, st.comment.c_str(), st.buffer_mb, st.relative_time ? 1 : 0,
+               read ? 1 : 0, st.comment.c_str(),
+               static_cast<unsigned long long>(st.buffer_samples), st.relative_time ? 1 : 0,
                st.capture_packets, st.rows.size(), signals, st.measures.size(), st.math.size(),
                noise_back, hf_back);
 

src/ui_status.cpp

@@ -106,9 +106,21 @@ void update_status_popover(App& app, const udpscope::StatusSnapshot& s) {
   std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%zu signals · %zu channels", s.signals, s.channels);
   gtk_label_set_text(GTK_LABEL(app.popover_label[6]), buf);
 
-  std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%.1f MB · %.0f s span · time x%llu", s.buffer_mb, s.span_s,
-                static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.time_stride));
+  std::snprintf(buf, sizeof(buf), "%s samples/signal · %s · %.0f s span · time x%llu",
+                udpscope::format_samples(s.buffer_samples).c_str(),
+                s.buffer_bytes > 0 ? udpscope::format_bytes(s.buffer_bytes).c_str() : "not planned",
+                s.span_s, static_cast<unsigned long long>(s.time_stride));
   gtk_label_set_text(GTK_LABEL(app.popover_label[7]), buf);
+  // The reason the figure is not the one asked for, where there is one: a smaller ring than the
+  // source form promised, with the limit that did it, as the label's tooltip.
+  gtk_widget_set_tooltip_text(
+      app.popover_label[7],
+      s.memory_limited
+          ? ("limited to " + udpscope::format_samples(s.buffer_samples) + " samples by the " +
+             udpscope::format_bytes(s.memory_limit_bytes) + " memory limit (" +
+             udpscope::format_samples(s.buffer_requested) + " requested)")
+                .c_str()
+          : nullptr);
 
   const std::string stored = udpscope::format_rate(s.stored_rate_hz);
   const std::string wire = udpscope::format_rate(s.declared_rate_hz);