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doc: add comment about highWaterMark limit #33432

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5 changes: 5 additions & 0 deletions doc/api/stream.md
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Expand Up @@ -93,6 +93,11 @@ A key goal of the `stream` API, particularly the [`stream.pipe()`][] method,
is to limit the buffering of data to acceptable levels such that sources and
destinations of differing speeds will not overwhelm the available memory.

The `highWaterMark` option is a threshold, not a limit: it dictates the amount
of data that a stream buffers before it stops asking for more data. It does not
enforce a strict memory limitation in general. Specific stream implementations
may choose to enforce stricter limits but doing so is optional.

Because [`Duplex`][] and [`Transform`][] streams are both `Readable` and
`Writable`, each maintains *two* separate internal buffers used for reading and
writing, allowing each side to operate independently of the other while
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