Free RAM For Headless Linux on Mini-PC

Last Modified: Fri, 09 Oct 2026 13:21:00 +0000 ; Created: Fri, 09 Oct 2026 13:21:00 +0000

If you are using a Mini-PC or other hardware with an iGPU for a headless Linux server there are a few optimizations you can make to free up another 1-2GB of memory. Some memory gets reserved for hardware usage that can be freed up in a server-only scenario.

AMD Chipsets

In the firmware BIOS/UEFI settings menus look for UDMA and reduce the reserve size to the smallest allowed (usually 32MB)

Intel CPUs

The BIOS/UEFI firmware typically does not give you an option to change the allocation setting. You'll have to do so from the OS instead

Disabling iGPU

Unless you have a dedicated GPU option you typically cannot fully disable the iGPU (firmware restriction). Reducing the memory usage or performing the following OS optimizations will still all the iGPU to be used if you end up needing it for troubleshooting or a reinstall though

OS (Linux) Optimizations


cat >> /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-intel-igpu.conf <<'EOF'
# Disable Intel iGPU
blacklist i915
blacklist xe
blacklist intel_agp
EOF


sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/disable-amd-igpu.conf >/dev/null <<'EOF'
blacklist amdgpu
blacklist radeon
install amdgpu /bin/false
install radeon /bin/false
EOF


sudo update-initramfs -u

# Eats 2-4GB of memory, so disable it or reduce if you need it
mv /etc/default/grub.d/kdump-tools.cfg /etc/default/grub.d/kdump-tools.cfg.DISABLED
sudo update-grub

Don't forget to /sudo/reboot