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Select Tools»Profile»Show Buffer Allocations to display this window.

Use this window to identify specific areas on the block diagram where LabVIEW allocates memory. Place a checkmark next to the data type(s) you want to see buffers for and click the Refresh button. Notice that black squares appear on the block diagram to indicate where LabVIEW creates buffers to hold the data on the block diagram. Once you know where LabVIEW creates buffers, you might be able to optimize the performance of the VI by editing it to reduce the amount of memory LabVIEW requires to run the VI.

This window includes the following components:

• Arrays—Displays buffers for arrays on the block diagram. If you want to reduce the amount of memory LabVIEW requires to run the VI, avoid displaying large arrays on open front panels if possible. Indicators on open front panels retain a copy of the data they display. Also, avoid overusing global and local variables when working with arrays. Reading a global or local variable causes LabVIEW to generate a copy of the data.
• Clusters—Displays buffers for clusters on the block diagram. If you want to reduce the amount of memory LabVIEW requires to run the VI, avoid using hierarchical data structures, such as clusters or arrays of clusters that contain large arrays or strings because LabVIEW cannot manipulate these structures efficiently and might cause a VI to use more memory.
• Strings—Displays buffers for strings on the block diagram. If you want to reduce the amount of memory required to run the VI, avoid displaying large strings on open front panels when possible. Indicators on open front panels retain a copy of the data they display. Also, avoid overusing global and local variables when working with large strings. Reading a global or local variable causes LabVIEW to generate a copy of the data.
• Paths—Displays buffers for paths on the block diagram.
• Scalars—Displays buffers for scalar values on the block diagram.
• Variants—Displays buffers for variant values on the block diagram.
• All other types—Displays buffers for all data types not listed above.
• Refresh—Displays black squares on the block diagram to show the buffers for the data type(s) you select. If you make a change to a VI that requires LabVIEW to recompile the VI, the black squares disappear because the buffer information might no longer be correct. Click the Refresh button to recompile the VI and display the black squares.