If memory consumption increases in production, where should the investigation start?

When memory consumption increases in production, you should start investigating with several steps:

1. Monitoring and metrics collection: check memory usage graphs, determine when the increase started and how stable it is.
2. Log and error analysis: look for exceptions related to OutOfMemoryError or leaks.
3. Memory profiling: use profiling tools (e.g., VisualVM, YourKit, JProfiler) to analyze heap dumps and identify objects that occupy a lot of memory.
4. Code leak checks: pay attention to collections, caching, listeners that may accumulate without clearing.
5. Change analysis: if the increase started after a release, check what changes could have affected memory consumption.

This systematic approach will help localize the problem and determine whether it is related to leaks, improper resource management, or load.