//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
// Copyright (c) 2010, 2026 Contributors to the Eclipse Foundation
//
// See the NOTICE file(s) distributed with this work for additional
// information regarding copyright ownership.
//
// This program and the accompanying materials are made available
// under the terms of the MIT License which is available at
// https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT
//
// SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

include::_part_attributes.asciidoc[]

indexterm:[Eclipse,console]
indexterm:[console,clear]
indexterm:[memory,console]

:leveloffset: -2

[[performance-clear-console]]
== Clearing the console

In the Eclipse ESCET IDE, the _Console_ <<use-terminology-view,view>> displays the console output generated by the applications that you run.
This console keeps all the output in memory.
If the application that you run creates a lot of output, this can quickly fill the available memory, and lead to <<performance-tweak-perf-settings-practical,out of memory>> errors.

By clearing the console, the output is removed and the associated memory becomes free for other uses.
To clear the console, right click the console (the part of the view that contains the actual console text) and choose menu:Clear[] from the popup menu.
Alternatively, click the _Clear Console_ button (image:{performance-imgsdir}/clear_console.png[]) of the _Console_ view's toolbar.

The Eclipse _Console_ view does not just keep the console output of the currently running application or applications in memory, it also keeps the output of all terminated applications in memory.
To look at the applications that you executed, click the small arrow next to the _Display Selected Console_ icon (image:{performance-imgsdir}/console_pages.png[]) of the _Console_ view's toolbar.
A list of executed applications will appear, that looks something like this:

image::{performance-imgsdir}/console_pages_list.png[]

In this case, four applications have been launched.
The console output for the fourth application is currently displayed on the console, as indicated by the selection indicator on the left.
Clicking on any of the other applications will activate the console for that application, and show its console output in the _Console_ view.
Clearing the console of applications that have terminated can free a lot of memory for other uses, if the applications produced a lot of console output.

indexterm:[memory,console output]
Note that instead of clearing the console after a lot of output has been generated, it is often better to <<performance-reduce-console-output,prevent>> that much output from being created in the first place.
