Speeding up Kali operations

Several tools can be used to optimize and speed up Kali operations:

• When using a virtual machine, install the VM's software drive package: Guest Additions (VirtualBox) or VMware Tools (VMware). We need to ensure that we run apt-get update before the installation.
• When creating a virtual machine, select a fixed disk size instead of the one that is dynamically allocated. It is faster to add files to a fixed disk, and there is less file fragmentation.
• The preload application (apt-get install preload) identifies a user's most commonly used programs and preloads binaries and dependencies into memory to provide faster access. It works automatically after the first restart following installation.

• BleachBit (apt-get install bleachbit) frees disk space and improves privacy by freeing the cache, deleting cookies, clearing internet history, shredding temporary files, deleting logs, and discarding other unnecessary files. The advanced features include shredding files to prevent recovery and wiping free disk space to hide traces of files that have not been fully deleted.
• By default, Kali does not show all applications that are present in the start-up menu. Each application that is installed during the boot-up process slows the system data and may impact memory use and system performance. Install Boot Up Manager (BUM) to disable unnecessary services and applications that are enabled during the boot-up process (apt-get install bum), as shown in the following screenshot:

• Add gnome-do (apt-get install gnome-do) to launch applications directly from the keyboard. To configure gnome-do, select it from Applications | Accessories. Once launched, select the Preferences menu, activate the Quiet Launch function, and select a launch command (for example, Ctrl + Shift). Clear any existing commands and then enter the command line to be executed when the launch keys are selected.
• Rather than launching directly from the keyboard, it is possible to write specific scripts that launch complex operations.