What can happen if the heap size is set too low in a Java application?

When the heap size in a Java application is set too low, it often leads to increased garbage collection activity. This is because the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) tries to manage memory efficiently, and with a smaller heap, it will fill up more quickly. As a result, the garbage collector will have to run more frequently to reclaim memory, leading to overhead and potentially impacting application performance negatively.

With an insufficient heap size, the JVM may struggle to accommodate objects created during the application's runtime, causing it to rapidly reach its memory limits. This results in garbage collection running more often in an attempt to free up space for new objects, which can lead to performance bottlenecks, as each garbage collection cycle consumes CPU resources and can momentarily pause application threads.

Contrastingly, a properly configured heap size allows the JVM to operate more efficiently, minimizing the frequency of garbage collections and allowing the application to run more smoothly. This highlights the importance of configuring the heap size appropriately to balance memory usage and application performance.