memtester (memory test utility) memtester is a userspace utility for testing the memory subsystem for faults. Unlike memtest86, it runs as a process on a running Linux system, meaning it can't test all of memory the way memtest86 is able to... but you don't have to reboot to use it. Note that, by definition, memtester counts as a denial-of-service (resource exhaustion) attack against the local machine. Be cautious about using it, and definitely *read its man page* before use. memtester has traditionally been run as root, so that it can lock the memory it's testing to prevent swapping and remapping. However, it's possible to use capabilities to allow it to run correctly as a normal user. Use something like: # chown root:console /usr/bin/memtester # chmod 0750 /usr/bin/memtester # setcap cap_ipc_lock=ep /usr/bin/memtester This allows anyone in the "console" group to run memtester. You could also create a memtester group and use it in the chown command above, if you'd rather have more fine-grained control.