Speed up your Ubuntu!

Back to the home page This website is being sponsored by Google

Ads.

Are you using an ad blocker? Then you're also

blocking my earnings from advertisements....

If you wish to support my website, you can

configure your ad blocker to make an exceptio
for this website.

Speeding up your Ubuntu is fun! That way, you'll get Thanks in advance....
more performance out of your computer for free.

Note: are you using Linux Mint? There's a separate page

for speed tips for Linux Mint. Remove the indexing application apt-xapian-
index
There are several tweaks to make Ubuntu run faster on a 4. The indexing application apt-xapian-index
slow computer. Some are quite safe, some are risky. Here speeds up certain search operations, but it can slo
you'll find only the safe ones. down older and weaker computers a lot. You can
freely remove this package, because it's not
I don't like risky tweaks, because I think that stability andessential. In real life you'll hardly miss it. In
reliability are much more important than a little speed lightweight Lubuntu it's not even there by default.
gain. That's why I've collected a couple of speed tips,
that you can apply safely and with which you can make If you have installed Synaptic Package Manager:
your Ubuntu run considerably faster in many cases. side effect of the removal is, that the "Quick searc
box disappears from the panel of Synaptic. This
Those tips are mainly how-to's that can be found means that you have to use the search button (the
elsewhere on this website as well, but scattered all over one with the magnifying glass icon) in the panel o
the site. I've bundled them on this page, that only deals Synaptic now.
with speed gain.
This search button is superior to the Quick search
Note: even though you can apply those tips safely, anyway (it produces more search results), so this
nothing in life is really for free.... You always pay some disappearance is actually an extra advantage.
"price". You disable a particular system service, a couple
of nice visual effects or some feature. Removing is easy:

Each tweak therefore has its own "price tag". So you Launch a terminal window.
should consider before you apply a tip, whether you're (You can launch a terminal window like this: *Click
willing to pay the "price" for it.
Type (use copy/paste to prevent errors):
Contents sudo apt-get purge apt-xapian-index
1. 1 Improve usage of the system memory (RAM)
1. 1.1 The absolute number one: decrease swap use Press Enter. When prompted, type your password
Your password will remain entirely invisible, not
2. 1.2 For 1 GB RAM or more: tame the inode cache
even dots will show, this is normal.
3. 1.3 For 768 MB RAM or less: enable zRam Press Enter again.
1. 1.3.1 How to disable zRam again
2. 2 Disable the visual effects: switch to a 2D desktop environment Reboot your computer.
3. 3 Make your Solid State Drive (SSD) run faster
4. 4 Remove the indexing application apt-xapian-index Disable Java in Libre Office
5. 5 Disable Java in Libre Office
5. The performance of Libre Office can be
6. 6 Turn off some startup applications enhanced greatly, when you disable Java in it. Thi
7. 7 Add-ons and extensions: don't turn your web browser into a Christmas will disable a few features, but usually you won't
tree even miss those.
8. 8 Speed up your wireless internet
Toolbar Libre Office Writer - Tools - Options...
9. 9 Clean up your Ubuntu
10.10 Want more tips? LibreOffice - Advanced - Java options:
remove the tick for: Use a Java runtime
environment

Improve usage of the system memory (RAM)

Turn off some startup applications
1. You can improve the usage of the system memory with
the following tweaks: 6. You can speed up Ubuntu somewhat, by
disabling a couple of system services, that may be
superfluous for you. This tweak can be compared
The absolute number one: decrease swap use tweaking msconfig in Windows.
1.1. This is especially noticeable on computers with
relatively low RAM memory (1 GB or less): they tend to First make all startup applications visible, because
be far too slow in Ubuntu, and Ubuntu accesses the hard in Ubuntu most of them are hidden by default (not
disk too much. Luckily, this can be helped. so in Xubuntu and Lubuntu):

On the hard disk there's a separate partition for virtual Launch a terminal window.
memory, called the swap. When Ubuntu uses the swap (You can launch a terminal window like this: *Click
too much, the computer slows down a lot.
Type (use copy/paste):
Ubuntu's inclination to use the swap, is determined by a cd /etc/xdg/autostart/
value. The lower the value, the longer it takes before
Ubuntu starts using the swap. On a scale of 0-100, the Press Enter.
default value is 60. Which is much too high for normal
desktop use, and only fit for servers. Decreasing this Then copy/paste this in the terminal:
value on a desktop computer has no negative side effects sudo sed --in-place
whatsoever. 's/NoDisplay=true/NoDisplay=false/g' *.desktop

A detailed explanation can be found here (link dead? Press Enter. When prompted, type your password
Then download this pdf file with the same content). Your password will remain entirely invisible, not
even dots will show, this is normal.
Now the how-to: Press Enter again.

a. First make sure that you have installed the Now check the Startup Applications:
applications gksu and leafpad: Click on the grey Ubuntu logo (Dash home).
Query:startup.
Launch a terminal window.
(You can launch a terminal window like this: *Click*) Untick what you don't need and reboot your
computer (or log out and then log in again).
Type (or copy/paste):
sudo apt-get install gksu leafpad Note: only remove the ticks, do not remove the
application from the list! Keep the tweak easily
Press Enter and submit your password. Please note that reversible (you never know). When in doubt about
the password will remain invisible, not even asterisks particular application: don't do anything, just leave
will show, which is normal. the way it is.

b. Now check your current swappiness value. Type in the Examples of system services that many people
terminal (use copy/paste): don't need:
cat /proc/sys/vm/swappiness - Bluetooth Manager
- NVIDIA X Server Settings
Press Enter.
Note: unticking startup applications is a user
The result will probably be 60. preference, so repeat in each user account.

c. To change the swappiness into a more sensible setting,

type in the terminal (use copy/paste to avoid typo's): Add-ons and extensions: don't turn your web
gksudo leafpad /etc/sysctl.conf browser into a Christmas tree
7. You can install a lot of add-ons (extensions) in
Press Enter. the web browsers Firefox, Chrome and Chromium
Those add-ons can be very useful, but they have
Scroll to the bottom of the text file and add your couple of important disadvantages, because they
swappiness parameter to override the default. Copy/paste are "applications within an application":
the following lines:
# Decrease swap usage to a more reasonable level - they slow your browser down, especially if there
vm.swappiness=10 are a lot of them;
- they can cause malfunctions; both in each other
d. Save and close the text file. Then reboot your and in the browser itself;
computer. - it has occurred: add-ons with malicious content.
Don't trust them blindly.
e. After the reboot, check the new swappiness setting:
So don't turn your browser into a Christmas tree:
Type (use copy/paste): don't adorn it with lots of add-ons. Limit yourself to
cat /proc/sys/vm/swappiness only a few add-ons, that are really important for
you.
Press Enter.
Note: watch out for add-ons that claim that they
Now it should be 10. make your browser faster! Often they do more har
than good. Do not install them: even if one or two
Note: your machine might benefit from an even bigger them can really make your browser run noticeably
decrease in swappiness. A useful rule of thumb might be faster, they may damage the stability of your
this: browser.
1 GB RAM or more: swappiness at 10
Less than 1 GB RAM: swappiness at 5For 1 GB RAM
or more: tame the inode cache Speed up your wireless internet
8. For some wireless chipsets, a simple tweak is
1.2. Computers with 1 GB or more RAM memory, will sufficient for increasing the speed and the
probably benefit by shrinking the inode cache less connection quality of your wireless internet. Name
aggressively.This is how you do it: disabling the power management for the wireless
sudo apt-get install gksu leafpad chipset. The price you pay is obviously an increas
c. Then type in the terminal (use copy/paste): in power consumption, although this increase isn't
gksudo leafpad /etc/sysctl.conf much.
Press Enter.
defaults, so copy/paste the following blue lines: You can do that as follows:
# Improve cache management
vm.vfs_cache_pressure=50

d. Close the text file and reboot your computer.

For 768 MB RAM or less: enable zRam

1.3. When your computer has very little RAM (768 MB
or less), then of course your best choice is a lightweight
member of the Ubuntu family, like Lubuntu. But even
then the lack of memory will remain a problem, which
will cause your system to slow down from time to time.
Even when the swappiness has been decreased to 5.

In that case, you might achieve better results by enabling

the experimental kernel module zRam. zRam creates a
compressed swap file in your RAM. The compression
factor is the gain: with that, you "increase" your RAM.

Note: this hack might make your system unstable! So

do not apply it on important computers.

The price you pay for this, is threefold:

- Your processor (CPU) is being taxed more heavily,

because it'll have to compress and decompress all the
time;

- When the system has filled the RAM swap, it'll start
swapping on the hard drive as well. With a heavy burden:
the chunk of memory that has been sacrificed for the
RAM swap.

- For the time being it's still an experimental module, so

this extra layer of complexity might cause instability.

That's why, for the time being, I advise zRam only for a. First make sure that you have installed the
computers with very little RAM, and even then only in applicationsgksu and leafpad:
combination with a swappiness that has been
decreased to 5. Furthermore, zRam isn't suitable yet for Launch a terminal window.
production computers, but only for test machines and (You can launch a terminal window like this: *Click
other, non-essential computers.
Type (or copy/paste):
You can install it as follows: sudo apt-get install gksu leafpad

Launch a terminal window. Press Enter and submit your password. Please no
(You can launch a terminal window like this: *Click*) that the password will remain invisible, not even
asterisks will show, which is normal.
Type (use copy/paste):
sudo apt-get install zram-config b. Now find out how Ubuntu calls your wireless
chipset:
Press Enter. Type your password when prompted; your
password will remain entirely invisible, not even dots Click on the grey Ubuntu logo (Dash home).