Where do all those messages at boot time get stored / logged?
like:
starting eth0 : OK
starting mysql : OK
etc...
/var/log/dmesg
In fact I've added the output of dmesg to my Sun boxes when they boot so they have the same info. I thought it's a pretty good idea.
Carl
Unless mysql became a kernel driver when I wasn't looking, it's not going to show up in dmesg.
I don't think these messages do get logged. There may be a way to enable it, it'd depend on your distro.
Arr, you got me 
I saw the eth drive and immediately thought of dmesg.
Carl