Difference between Internal and External Fragmentation

Internal Fragmentation

A partition of main memory is wasted within a partition is said to be Internal Fragmentation.

A partition of main memory is wasted of an entire partition is said to be External Fragmentation.

Internal Fragmentation	External Fragmentation
1. The difference between the required memory for a program and the memory assigned for it that is called internal fragmentation.	1.The unused space that arises among non-contagious storage or fragments is called external fragmentation.
2.Internal fragmentation occurs when a fixed size memory allocation technique is used.	2. External fragmentation occurs when a dynamic memory allocation technique is used.
3. It refers to the space that remains unused between the blocks in an allocated region.	3. It refers to the space that remains unused because it is too short to store a request.
4. Internal fragmentation can be prevented by having partitions of several sizes and assigning a program based on the best fit.	4. External fragmentation can be prevented by methods such as paging and segmentation.