MariaDB won't start: Cannot map innodb_buffer_pool_size_max

Symptoms

MariaDB won't start, and the following error is logged:

CONFIG_TEXT: 2025-12-31 20:08:07 0 [ERROR] mariadbd: Out of memory (Needed 3824839000 bytes)
2025-12-31 20:08:07 0 [ERROR] InnoDB: Cannot map innodb_buffer_pool_size_max=107520m

Cause

A customization was made to /etc/my.cnf, raising the innodb_buffer_pool_size_max value too high, resulting in memory problems for the service.

Resolution

Reduce innodb_buffer_pool_size in the /etc/my.cnf.

MariaDB offers more details on this value in their documentation:

MariaDB Documentation: InnoDB Buffer Pool