

                         SMALL MEMORY MINI-HOWTO V0.1

                               BY: TODD BURGESS

                             TBURGESS@UOGUELPH.CA

Introduction

   The purpose of this mini HOWTO is to describe how to run Linux on a
   system with a small amount of memory. Assuming buying more memory is
   out of the question there are many things you can do to tighten up
   memory usage in Linux.

   Many Linux distributions out of the box are quite bloated from a
   memory perspective. They run more services and offer more features
   then most of us will ever need. By removing many of these services you
   can free up several megabytes of real memory.

   My own system is a 486DX2-66 with 12MB of physical memory and 12MB of
   swap space. It has run Linux for the last 3 years quite happily and
   hopefully it will run Linux for several more years. :)

Linux Kernel

   All the Linux kernels which come with distributions are quite bloated
   and contain more features then any of us will ever need or use. If you
   have not re-compiled your own kernel it is highly recommended that you
   do so. How to re-compile a kernel is beyond the scope of this document
   but many excellent Linux books and guides cover this subject in
   intimate detail.

   If you do re-compile your kernel remember to put in no more features
   then you need. For instance: how many of you include PLIP support in
   your kernel? How many of you who include it actually use it? Smaller
   kernels require less time to load, use less memory and use less CPU
   cycles.

   Another thing is modules. I personally do not use them because I found
   them to be a cumbersome. If you use them and like them then they can
   help to relieve "kernel bloat."

Virtual Consoles

   VCs are a great way to free up memory. Most Linux distributions run
   about 6 of them out of the box. On average running 6 VCs requires
   about 4MB of memory. Removing a couple of them can free up a couple
   MBs of memory.

   Most of users can get away running only 3 or 4 VCs. How many you
   choose to remove is a matter personal preference. Just remember that
   the fewer you run the more memory your applications will have to run.

   The file which outlines how many VCs get loaded is in the file
   /etc/inittab . In order to remove VCs:

    1. Load /etc/inittab in a text editor
    2. Look for a line which looks like (the key feature being a line
       which starts with c1):
       c1:12345:respawn:/sbin/getty tty1 38400 linux
       Start at the highest number (ie c6) and comment it out by
       inserting a '#' in the first row. Repeat this step as many times
       as needed. Remember every line you comment out is one less VC
       running.
    3. Re-boot the system for your changes to take effect.

Daemons

   Many Linux distributions run many daemons most of us will never use.
   Most of these daemons are loaded by scripts. Where these scripts are
   and what they are called depends on your Linux distribution. Slackware
   set-up scripts are buried in /etc/rc.d/rc.* .

   Before you proceed a knowledge of Unix shell script programming would
   be a definite asset. If however you have no experience writing Unix
   shell scripts what follows is probably the quickest introduction to
   shell script programming ever written.

   Take the following shell script


#!/bin/sh
echo "hello world"
#echo "good bye cruel world"



   The following will echo the string "hello world". Shell scripts must
   contain the the line "#!/bin/sh" at the very top line. After that
   every line is executed as if you had typed it at the keyboard (think
   of shell scripts as nothing more then glorified keyboard macros).

   Lines which begin with a '#' are said to be commented out because they
   do not get executed by the shell. Most start up scripts when they load
   daemons look like:


if somecondition
  do something
fi

   What you want to do is comment out every line starting with the if
   statement and ending with the fi statement.

   If you want to find where a daemon is loaded what you want to do is
   search the start up scripts for the name of the daemon. If I wanted to
   find where inetd is loaded in Slackware I would do the following:


     1  cd /etc/rc.d
     2  grep -n inetd rc.*

  inetd

   inetd allows people to do things like telnet, ftp and send talk
   requests to your machine. If you never use your system as a server or
   need to access any of its services remotely you can remove inetd.

  lpd

   lpd is used to print files on your printer using the lpr command. If
   you never print on your Linux box you can remove lpd. If however you
   own a HP Deskjet printer and would like to print I highly recommend
   the package I put together called dj-printcap which is available at:
   ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/Printing/dj-printcap.tar.gz

  nfsd and mountd

   These two daemons are used to run a NFS server. If you never use your
   Linux system as a NFS server you can safely remove these two daemons.

  portmap

   The portmap daemon is used to handle RPC services. If you do not run a
   NFS server or any other RPC programs you can remove portmap.

  sendmail

   sendmail is another daemon which requires a fair bit of memory. If you
   never use your Linux box as a relay for sending e-mail or you never
   receive mail on your Linux box you can probably remove sendmail. If
   you do send e-mail from your Linux box most e-mail clients can be
   set-up to send e-mail from another mail server.

  others

   There may be other daemons your system starts up which you do not
   need. Remove what you feel you have to. Two daemons which you must run
   are syslogd and klogd.

Conclusions

   The following illustrates the steps I took to tighten up my memory
   usage on my Linux box. Hopefully I have provided you with some insight
   into what you can do with your Linux box to conserve memory.

   Good luck and happy hacking!
   Todd Burgess
   tburgess@uoguelph.ca
   http://eddie.cis.uoguelph.ca/~tburgess

