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OSSEC / HIDS Rule 5108

OSSEC / HIDS rule catalog

  • Rule family: OSSEC / HIDS
  • Rule ID: 5108
  • Definition status: Present in current source
  • Alert message / subject: System running out of memory. Availability of the system is in risk.
  • Rule level: 12
  • Definition checked: 2026-10-21

Interpretation and response

This event is recorded as “System running out of memory. Availability of the system is in risk.” Review the originating log and the affected host or service to determine whether the activity was expected.

An OSSEC/HIDS event records or correlates activity. Blocking depends on the originating application and any separately configured Active Response policy; an alert alone does not prove that an attack was blocked.

Documentation

The following guidance was migrated from the historical wiki and reviewed against the rule definition. Legacy ASL product names and interface instructions refer to the versions documented then. Use the current metadata above and your installed configuration when interpreting thresholds, notification settings and response behavior.

Description

The Linux kernel has indicated that the system is running out of memory, and has terminated a process.

What you should do

This means something is wrong with the platform. It does not have enough memory, or it could indicate a memory leak. Availability is at risk

Troubleshooting

False Positives

A legitimate event may still trigger this rule. Review the surrounding activity before deciding whether it is malicious.

Tuning Guidance

There is no guidance for tuning this rule, this is a generic error and the rule should not be disabled.

Additional Information

Support

If you are unsure about how to respond to this alert, please contact Atomicorp support. We’re here to help you!

Source and revision

Migrated from HIDS_5108, wiki page 763, revision 6123 (20201021). Documentation review: 2026-10-21. An archived wiki status of Active is not a current deployment status.

For assistance, provide the rule ID, installed product and rule version, and a sanitized event to Atomicorp support .