Top Ten Tips Linux Fast Starts as Fast as Possible

1. Undo unnecessary services

Depending on the purpose of the machine, many services are not required. If Linux is only used as a desktop, there is no need for sendmail, httpd, and many other services. If your server is just a web server, you can also turn off many services. To do this, go to the Administration menu and check the service project. Just undo all the service options you don't want to start.

2. Undo redundant kernel modules

If your desktop is connected to Ethernet, you do not need to load the wireless kernel module. This is a more difficult task and may require recompiling the kernel, and compiling the kernel is not an easy task. To do this, you probably need kernel source code. Next, follow the standard steps for compiling the kernel. The difference is that you have to search the system and remove all unnecessary modules.

The best way to find out which kernel modules are currently installed and running on your system is to install Bootchart. It will not only give you a list of suitable modules, but also what happens during system startup. You can also issue the command chkconfig –list grep 3:on to figure out what service is running. Once you know what modules are not needed, you can remove them during kernel recompilation. As long as this is done, the compiled kernel is perfectly suited to your architecture.

3. Using Lightweight Window Manager instead of GNOME or KDE

The reason I inserted the small footprint window manager is that they greatly reduce the graphics (interface) startup time. Instead of having to wait an additional 30 to 60 seconds to start GNOME or KDE, why not wait for 2 to 10 seconds to start Enlightenment or XFCE? Not only do they save startup time, they also save memory and save the headaches of dealing with bloatware.

4. Use text-based login instead of graphical login

Most of my Linux machines start run level 3 instead of run level 5. This runlevel will stop in text login mode, I Just log in at this place and issue the startx command to start selecting the desktop. The graphical login mode does two things: the problem of increasing load time and causing headaches is trying to break free from the ugly X windows.

5. Use Lightweight Distribution

Don't load heavyweight Fedora, why not try Gentoo, Arch or Puppy Linux? This is also the way to get Linux to start quickly. These smaller distributions start much faster than the more bloated Fedora (or even Ubuntu). In larger distributions, OpenSuSE claims to allow Linux to start up quickly, but I haven't experimented with it myself. Between the latest Fedora and Ubuntu, Ubuntu beats Fedora's startup time (and is out of the box).

6. Using Open BIOS

If you are quite smart and ready to upgrade your PC firmware, consider migrating to an open source BIOS. An additional note, using open firmware allows Linux to actually initialize the hardware when booting ( Without relying on the BIOS). Most importantly, many open BIOSes can be set to meet the specific needs of the machine. If you do not take the path of open BIOS, you can at least set the BIOS to not look for a floppy disk drive that does not exist, that is, directly boot the first hard disk drive (not the CD drive first).

7. Avoiding DHCP

If you work on a home network (or small business network) where the address lease is not an issue, then the machine uses a static IP address. This will allow the machine to access the DHCP server without having to go out to get the IP address. If you do this, make sure the configuration file /etc/resolve.conf also expresses your DNS server address.

8. Hot swapping can be avoided

Hot plugging is a system that allows new devices to be plugged in and used immediately. If you know that your server does not need such a system, delete it. This will reduce startup time. Hot swapping consumes a lot of boot time on many systems. The changes that will occur when hot plugging is removed depend on the distribution you are using. Note: For the most part, udev has replaced hot swap. But if you are still running an older distribution, this is still appropriate.

9. If you are really bold, try initng

The initng system acts as a replacement for the sysvinit system and promises to completely reduce the startup time of UNIX-like operating systems. If you are willing to learn about the running initng system, try the Pingwinek LiveCD.

10. Using Debian's Code

If you are using Debian, there is a line that can be used to convert your startup script into simple code that runs in parallel. If you check the /etc/init.d/rc script, you'll see that there are CONCURRENCY=none on about 24 lines. Change this line to CONCURRENCY=shell, and you may see a reduction in startup time.