How to Tweak Linux
The majority of popular operating systems lack out-of-the-box efficiency and strain the resources of bare-bone systems; however, many Linux distributions hold a reputation as being efficient on older, less powerful, bare-bones machines. Even with its out-of-the-box efficiency, there are a variety of ways to tweak Linux and increase its overall performance and speed. Typically, a user must be comfortable issuing commands within the core of the Linux operating system.
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Instructions
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BIOS Tweaks
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Turn on, or restart your computer. During the boot sequence, press the key indicated to enter the system BIOS. Usually, this key is defined as F2, ESC or DELETE. This will vary depending on the BIOS developer.
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Disable all unused devices in the BIOS. If you do not use your 3.5-inch floppy drive or CD/DVD drives, disable them. If you have an on-board network, video or sound card device, as well as, a third-party network, video or sound card installed, then disable the on-board card. Depending on the age of the computer and the various components, most users can also disable all serial ports.
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Decrease the allocated video memory. If you do not have a need for a graphically intense system, then limit the amount of system memory to a lesser amount. System standards range from as a little as 8MB to 128MB. Unless you are using your Linux build for gaming, video or photo-editing, lower amounts are efficient for the standard user.
Kernel and Distribution Tweaks
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Install the correct Linux kernel for your hardware. In other words, a 32-bit 686 processor requires the i686 kernel; whereas a 64-bit processor requires an x86-64 kernel. If you have dual or quad core 64-bit processors, then you will want your system tweaked to the full power of a 64-bit kernel.
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Use the most efficient file system for your Linux build. For example, Ext2/Ext3 or Ext4 are stable file systems for a desktop-based Linux install; however XFS and Btrfs are faster.
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Unused services should always be disabled. Depending on the distribution you are using you can access the graphical "Services Settings" or you can open a Terminal window and type "ps -Al" at the shell prompt and press "Enter." A list of all running services will appear. No matter the method used, disable all unused system services to tweak the speed of your Linux environment.
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Install less resource-intensive applications. For example, Open Office is a resource-intensive application designed to compete with Microsoft's Office Suite. Instead, look for programs that are less memory-intensive, but have similar features designed for Linux, such as KOffice or Gnumeric. The same goes for browsing the Web; install less intensive browsers, such as Opera or Konquerer.
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Reduce the amount of "swap space," which is the portion of the hard drive reserved for temporary memory. Open a terminal window and at the shell prompt type "sudo sysctl -w vm.swappiness=10" and press "Enter".
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Tips & Warnings
Never make more than one tweak or change at a time. If you make a change to your kernel that causes it to cease proper functionality, then reboot with your configuration via your boot loader.
Depending on your distribution package, there are numerous software applications with graphical user interface. Ubuntu Tweak is available for Ubuntu, one of the more popular distribution of Linux as of 2011.
Always back up your existing Linux build and configuration before tweaking anything in the operating system. Don't change anything you're not comfortable with.
