Do I need rc.inet[d,1,2], rc.pcmcia, & rc.wireless at boot if I use wicd w/wireless?
 

I'm trying to cut down on my Slackware system's boot time, so I've been looking at the scripts in /etc/rc.d/ to see if there's anything unnecessary running at boot. Now I'm looking at the internet-related scripts since it works just fine with wicd (rc.wicd starts at boot). I looked up what some of these scripts do, but I'm still not entirely clear on if I can disable some of them or not, and I'd rather be sure before I go on disabling boot scripts for fear of not being able to start up my system.Do I even need rc.inetd, rc.inet1, rc.inet2, and rc.wireless to start up at boot if I have rc.wicd starting up at boot and working with wireless? Mainly, I'm not really sure if wicd depends on these scripts at boot or if it can work independently of them. Also, is rc.pcmcia for my wireless card or just ethernet? I only use wireless internet on my laptop; I never connect it to an ethernet cable (and if I do I'll probably remember to start up rc.pcmcia). I checked out some stuff on the internet and I'm still not entirely clear on what a PCMCIA card is for, so I'd like to ask here.

So, can I remove the executable permissions on any or all of these scripts and still be able to connect automatically to wireless networks with wicd?

You don't rc.inetd, certainly. That's not related to the internet connection. rc.inet2 is related to automatic mounting of network file systems, so you don't need it. rc.inet1 connects to the internet, but since you use wicd, disable it. I think you can't even use wicd when you are using rc.inet1, because wicd starts after you are connected to a network. I mean, you can use it, but you won't connect with it, because rc.inet1 will connect you.

I don't know what rc.wireless does, when I check it, I'll tell you about it.

Edit: yes, rc.inet1 connects you to a pre-configured network, while rc.wireless will search for wireless connection. You want that done by wicd, so disable it if you want to connect to wifi with wicd.

I guess you need rc.pcmcia, because it loads essential kernel modules for pcmcia cards :)

Thank you so much! You've saved me some boot time (I don't know how much yet). I'm going to see if this all works just fine; I can't right now because I'm busy compiling my kernel, so I'll have to wait for that to finish.

Hooray!



I'll post back if I run into any issues.

If you don't have any interfaces configured, rc.inet1 "shouldn't" really take any extra time away from boot. rc.inet1 also configures the loopback network interface, and that's kind of important..

You'll get a much more significant boost in boot speed by switching your scripts to strict posix and using dash or ash.

Hmm... I was just checking out GrapefruiTgirl's thread about using dash and POSIX scripts. I wonder if this will ever become the Slackware default. I'm not so sure I want to mess with this now, though, because then I'll have to fix it all up when it comes time to upgrade.

Ohh.. if you want to save boot time, trash sysvinit all together.

DON'T DO IT IF YOU AREN'T CONFIDENT ABOUT KNOWING THE BOOT PROCESS 100%

I've compiled packages of initng for the distribution I maintain and they're compatible with Slackware, but you have to disable a few services/daemons like "daemon/pulseaudio" and "daemon/NetworkManager", and create your own entry for wicd.

check this: http://linvo.org/?page=news&id=9 I've described in the third paragraph how to install initng.

Hi,

Slackware® rc init tour through the Slackware® init process, guided by the scripts and man pages.

:hattip:
Just a few more links to aid you;

Slackware® Essentials
Slackware® Basics
Linux Documentation Project
Rute Tutorial & Exposition
Linux Command Guide
Utimate Linux Newbie Guide
LinuxSelfHelp
Getting Started with Linux
Advanced Bash-Scripting Guide
Virtualiation- Top 10

These links and others can be found at 'Slackware-Links'. More than just Slackware® links!