History of G1: Garbage Collector Evolution in JDK 17–25

This article presents a text version of a presentation from the JPoint 2026 conference, focusing on the evolution of the G1 (Garbage First) garbage collector in the Java Development Kit. The author details key changes and optimizations implemented in G1 from JDK 17 through the current JDK 25 releases. The material includes a brief introduction to the architectural principles of the garbage collector, providing context for the improvements discussed. This article is useful for Java developers and performance engineers looking to understand the nuances of memory management in modern Java versions. The author analyzes how the evolution of G1 has impacted application stability and efficiency in high-load environments, offering a deep technical overview of the changes that have occurred over the recent years of the ecosystem's development.