6 Best Free Linux Boot Utilities
The Linux startup process (or boot process) is the manner in
which the Linux operating system is started. The process begins with
the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) which undertakes hardware-platform
specific startup tasks, and starts the partition boot code. The latter
contains the first part of a Linux boot loader. The boot loader will
typically give the user a choice of possible boot options. After one of
these options is selected, the boot loader then loads the operating
system. The most popular boot loader package for Linux is the GRand
Unified Bootloader, commonly known as GRUB.
Boot time has a real impact on the first impression of the
speed of a system. The time taken for the computer to be ready for use
is
also important in realising a positive experience for the user. One of
the most dramatic ways to improve boot times is to install a solid
state drive. However, if you are not looking to replace your
mechanical disk drive, there are a number of tools available for Linux
that can also help to significantly improve boot times. A word of
caution. Before using this type of software, we would strongly
recommend that you backup your system as there is always a slight risk
of
data corruption. In this article, we also identify software to help you
customise the boot loader, and to create bootable live USB drives
without burning optical media.
To provide an insight into the quality of software that is
available, we have compiled a list of 6 useful boot utilities.
Hopefully, there will be something here to improve the boot time of
your machine, and to make the configuration of the boot process
easier.
Now, let's explore the 6 boot utilities. For each title we
have compiled its own portal page, a full description with an in-depth
analysis of its features, a screenshot, together with
links to relevant resources and reviews.
| Boot Utilities |
| Bootchart |
Tool for performance analysis and visualization of
the boot process |
| Boot-Up
Manager |
Graphical
sysv-rc runlevel editor for Debian or Debian-based systems |
| e4rat |
Ext4 - Reducing Access Times |
| OProfile |
Low-overhead,
transparent system-wide profiler |
| Grub
Customizer |
Graphical interface to configure the grub2/burg settings |
| UNetbootin |
Universal
Netbook installer |
If you are looking for software to help you deal with a system
that will not boot, you may need assistance in finding a dependable
recovery tool. We will be publishing an article on
such tools shortly, but in the meantime we would
suggest downloading Trinity Rescue Kit, GParted Live, or
SystemRescueCd.
Return to our complete
collection of Group
Tests, highlighting the finest Linux software.
Last Updated Sunday, March 24 2013 @ 06:25 PM EST
| 
