Five Fab Ways to Make Linux run at LightSpeed

Let’s face it…  Linux is fast.  Better memory management, more efficient file systems, better pre-packaged installations, etc. all conspire to make Linux safe, efficient, and fast.  But there’s more to it than that.  Linux is also B – I – G BIG.  There’s a lot to it.  I mean, come on… from a single install CD you can build a major web server, database machine, load up your notebook, etc.

But no matter what Linux your running (you know what I mean..  Ubuntu, BSD, Fedora, Slackware, etc.) there are five things you can do right now that will turn your fast, efficient, and safe Linux machine into a warp-speed cruiser.  And the best part is, I’m going to show you how you can do it on any Linux version, any end purpose, any hardware.  And no, this isn’t going to be the size of “War and Peace” either.  It’s easy.

Now, let’s get down to making your Linux run faster than a microwave.  First things first..  Let’s talk Management.  In order to keep your life simple you need an application to help you manage your Linux box.  Oh, the native tools are terrific.  And hand editing config files is perfectly acceptable (I should know, I do it every day).  But if you can install a simple, small program that understands ANY Linux, has a single user interface, and manages by dealing with the native configurations (so you can even hand edit if you want) wouldn’t that be terrific.  You Betcha Red Ryder it would.  And luckily for you there is a management package that does just this very thing.  Preserves your native install and let’s you manage your system.  We’re going to install it, and do five “speed tweaks” that’ll blow you away.

Webmin http://www.webmin.com Just get it, install it, use it.  Jamie Cameron created Webmin WAY back in the 90′s (I should know, I still have an original copy).  And it’s matured over the years into a full fledged Linux management application that doesn’t screw your system and is easy enough for a caveman to use it.  If your on Fedora/Red Hat/Centos just get to a command line (as the root user) and type “yum install webmin”, If your an apt kinda person just do “apt-get webmin”.  Or you can do it old school by downloading the tar.gz file from http://www.webmin.com and installing it.

And I’m “old school”..  So I downloaded it, gave it the good old gunzip and tar xvf’d it.  Changed directories (cd webmin*) and ran the install package.  It asks questions..  Answer them.  You know the answers.  It’s easy.  The install will put the package in place, start a process so you can use your web browser to use the application, and tell you what’s up.  It’s the easiest install of all times so no gory detail needed here.  (besides, the webmin install.txt and readme.txt are terrific).

So, your installed, it’s up and running..  Now what?  Well, surf http://localhost:10000 and you’ll see the following screen:

Just log in (you established the login/pass during install.. I just use root or admin for a username most of the time).

Then you’ll see webmin in all it’s nerdy wonder:

Now we’re talkin! Now it doesn’t matter if you’ve got Ubuntu, RedHat, Slackware, etc. All the same instructions apply and we’re gonna make your Linux box faster, better, stronger.. We have the technology (why do I keep referencing TV catch phrases.. nevermind).

FAB ONE – Don’t run processes you don’t need or use.

Click on the little green box next to “System” — Then click on “Bootup and Shutdown”. And a list of every system daemon /process available is listed for you. Along with if it’s running at startup, etc. Kinda like this:

This is the easy part… Click the little boxes on the left for everything you DON’T need or use. The most common are bluetooth, sendmail (if your not building a mailserver), openvpn, samba, etc. BE CAREFUL! If you don’t know what it is, don’t disable it. But if you know what it is, don’t use it, and it’s enabled at startup.. CLICK THE BOX ALREADY. And then at the bottom right of the page click “Disable Now and On Boot”. Voila! you’ve now cleared memory space, available processor cycles, etc. and made your machine faster.

But as my buddy @kingsully (on twitter) says.. “But Wait, there’s More”.

FAB TWO – Keep your system software current.

Click on System –> Software Packages. The last option should say something like “Upgrade All Install Packages from YUM” (or APT, etc. depending on your Linux). Click it… And upgrade all your software! Current software releases fix bugs, run faster, close security holes, etc. Doing this one thing monthly (I do it daily) makes sure that everything your doing is on the latest, greatest, and most stable release versions. You’d be amazed at how much faster your machine will run if your software is kept up to date.

FAB THREE – Keep your user count down.

Keeping old logins/accounts on a system that aren’t being used is wasteful. And it makes it harder for file access permissions, user permissions, etc. to be tracked efficiently by the system. Click on “Users and Groups”.. Then dump all user accounts you aren’t using. CAVEAT — Scroll down the list til you see the first login you recognize as a human.. i.e. YOUR LOGIN. Anything above that in the list is used by your Linux system and shouldn’t be touched. If you mess with those, don’t call me (unless you really enjoy spending money).

FAB FOUR – A Stitch in Time Saves Nine

Having your nice shiny Linux system sitting in the wrong timezone, more than 10-15 minutes off the real time, etc. isn’t a good idea in the Internet Age. Lots of system processes rely on having accurate time. And the easiest way to do this is to make your system pay attention to an Atomic Clock a couple times a day and just take care of itself. So lets, shall we?

Click on “Hardware” on the left, then System Time. It’ll look like this:

Then in the right hand pane, click “Time Server Sync”. Then in the first entry (titled timeserver hostnames or addresses) put in pool.ntp.org so your system will know there’s an atomic clock there to help it out. Click “Synchronize on Schedule” Then just below that click “Simple Schedule” and drop select “Daily at Midnight”. Then at the bottom of the page click “Sync and Apply”. Now your system will understand what time it REALLY is instead of whatever the cheap clock chip on your motherboard says it is (which are notoriously bad timekeepers).

FAB FIVE – KEEP YOUR SYSTEM CLEAN

No, we’re out of Webmin. This is the single most important tip we’re giving you in the FAB FIVE Ways here. Let’s change your perception of your computer for a moment, shall we? It’s a box, with fans, that draw in ambient air from one side and blows it out the back. Kind’ve like your Oreck Vacuum Cleaner.. More like that Oreck than you know too. Airborne dust is constantly being drawn in and you’d be surprised just how fast it mucks up the innards of your system.

Which clogs up your CPU fans, cooling fins, etc. In other words, your system is filthy and that keeps it from cooling properly. And since electronic devices run better when they’re cooler the fact that your machine is dirty is making it run slower. So get your Oreck out, shut your system off, and vacuum the face, the back, wherever fans and openings are to get the dirt out. Then open the case (if it’s a desktop or server, notebooks I would leave alone at this point) and with that big fuzzy hair brush thing GENTLY touch up any remaining dirt and goo on the inside. You can wipe it down with a dry cloth too. Personally, I use a baby alcohol wipe. It get’s it all nice and clean.

That’s it.. The FAB Five Ways to make that Linux box run faster. No matter which Linux, no matter what kind of machine. And the cool part is that you only have to do it once unless your a real geekhead like me.

What, your still here reading? Stop it already! Go make your Linux Faster.. Now I tell you..

Author:

Scott Medlock is the Chief Technical Officer of OPENRSM, LLC.

He is responsible for http://cloudbackup.openrsm.com OPENRSM CloudBackup and

AffSpot – Affiliate Marketing Forum http://www.affspot.com

He can usually be found on AffSpot banning spammers while he makes his Linux systems run fast (without scissors). Or on Twitter @openrsm and/or @affspot