Windows Tray Memory

A tray RAM monitor and cleaner for Windows. Tracks heavy processes in real time and frees memory through native WinAPI.

Architecture & design patterns

The project is designed using MVVM

• UI: WPF views, each screen has its own View and ViewModel;
• Memory: WinAPI wrapper (EmptyWorkingSet, NtSetSystemInformation) and live memory stats;
• Processes: heaviest processes list, Safe / Warning / System classification;
• Data: SQLite via EF Core — settings and custom process rules;
• Hosting: Generic Host for DI (Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting);

Core Features

• Heavy process monitor: only the processes that actually eat RAM, not the full Task Manager list;
• Smart Clean: documented Windows APIs, no registry tweaks;
• Kill protection: Warning asks for confirm, System is locked until you allow it in settings;
• Auto clean: runs when usage hits the threshold you set;
• Custom processes: add your own rules (Safe / Warning / System);
• Portable: unzip, run, done. Optional autostart and update check;

Tech Stack

• Framework : .NET 8 / WPF
• Language : C# 12
• MVVM : CommunityToolkit.Mvvm
• Database : SQLite
• ORM : Entity Framework Core
• Charts : LiveCharts 2
• Tray : H.NotifyIcon.Wpf

Main window

RAM, CPU, uptime

Three cards at the top of the window.

Memory usage

Used vs available RAM, with a bar that changes color as usage grows.

Smart Clean & heaviest processes

One button to free RAM. List of the heaviest processes with type (Safe / Warning / System) and a kill action.

Memory detailing

Pie chart: Applications (Private), Resources (Shared), System.

Hover a slice to see the exact value.

Memory timeline

RAM usage over the last 60 seconds.

Hover a point on the line for the value at that second.

Memory pressure

Commit percent, hard faults per second, status: Good / Warning / Critical.

Settings

Settings window. Sections on the left, options on the right.

General

Autostart, update check, and whether System processes can be killed.

Process monitoring

How often the list refreshes, RAM threshold for "heavy", and max items in the list.

Process categories

Built-in Safe / Warning / System lists, plus your own rules.

Smart cleaning options

What Smart Clean actually touches: working sets, standby list, etc.

Auto clean

Turn on automatic cleanup when RAM usage crosses the limit.

Tray icon

Windows hides new tray icons by default. To keep WinTrayMemory on the taskbar:

1. Settings → Personalization → Taskbar

2. Other system tray icons

3. Enable WinTrayMemory

Install

Latest build is in Releases. Unzip and run WinTrayMemory.exe. Admin rights are needed for Smart Clean.

License

MIT