446 CHAPTER 31 OPTIMIZING YOUR SYSTEM Figure
446 CHAPTER 31 OPTIMIZING YOUR SYSTEM Figure 31-2. You can stop the GRUB menu hanging around for so long by changing the timeout value in its configuration file. Optimizing Initialization and Run-Level Services Perhaps it goes without saying that the majority of bootup time is spent starting the run-level scripts. This is when the entire system comes to life hardware and essential software services are activated. But this isn t to say that all run-level scripts are essential. Note A service is a piece of background software that provides something that you, the user, need on a day-to-day basis. Some services manage hardware, such as the graphical interface, printing services, and networking. Some services provide software services, such as logging files or checking the system clock against a time server.