Skip compactors for garbage collection based on space utilization

The mark-compact garbage collection algorithm shifts live objects so that they are next to each other to maximize space utilization efficiency and enable rapid object allocation. However, the algorithm requires multiple passes over a heap of objects, extending the time required for reclaiming unused memory. To shorten the collection time, we propose a skip compactor for garbage collection algorithm that avoids accessing dead objects by merging contiguous dead objects and reduces the number of object relocations. In this paper, we have implemented the proposed algorithm in the Jikes RVM, and measured the performance with the SPECjvm98 and DaCapo2006 benchmark suites. The proposed algorithm reduces the pause time of programs by 25% on average.