The system bell is one of the most annoying features on many Linux installations. When an error occurs regarding keyboard input, the system will response with an annoying beep. If you use the tab function on the console this feature can drive you crazy….
There are 2 ways to shut up your box:
In order to change the setting system-wide, add following line to /etc/inputrc:
bell-style none
you can also receive a visible response (flashing screen) by setting the parameter to:
bell-style visible
If you want to change this setting for a specific user, go to a users home directory and create the file .inputrc and add one of the above options to the configuration file.