System Administration Commands virt-install(1M)
NAME
virt-install - install guest operating system on xVM system
SYNOPSIS
/usr/bin/virt-install [options]
DESCRIPTION
The virt-install program enables you to install a guest
operating system on a machine running Solaris xVM.
virt-install allows you to enter information about a guest
either as a set of command-line options or in response to a
series of prompts. When run without options, virt-install
takes you through a series of prompts, for which you need to
know the information listed below. This information maps to
the command options, described in their own section.
o Name of your guest domain. This name serves as the
label of the guest operating system and will be the
name of the file that stores the guest's configura-
tion. For network-based installs, the name of the
domain must match its real hostname.
o Amount of RAM to be allocated to the guest, in MB.
Solaris domains should use 512MB minimum.
o Path to the disk image of the guest. This path is
exported as an entire disk to your guest. It is on
the xVM control domain and can be to a physical
disk, a flat file, or any device that provides a
block device interface; for example, a ZFS volume
or a Solaris Volume Manager volume.
o If the path specified in the preceding bullet does
not already exist, the size, in GB, of the virtual
disk for your guest.
o You must choose whether to enable graphics support
for the domain. Note that paravirtualized Solaris
domains do not currently support a graphical con-
sole in this manner.
o URI for the location of the installation software.
This can be an NFS path, or the path to a local
directory or ISO. Some operating systems do not yet
support ISO installs. Some operating systems
require that the install host be fully qualified
(for example, my.nfs.server.com) for the install to
work. Examples of acceptable installation paths
are:
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System Administration Commands virt-install(1M)
nfs:my.nfs.server.com:/home/install/test/tree
/export/solarisdvd.iso
After entering required information, installation starts. If
you enabled graphics, a Virtual Network Computing (VNC) win-
dow opens and presents the graphical installer. If graphics
are not enabled, the text installer displays.
You can connect to the graphical console by finding the
correct display with the command:
% virsh vncdisplay dom-name
...and then running:
% vncviewer localhost:d
...where d is the display returned by the preceding virsh
vncdisplay command.
Autoconfiguration data (see the --autocf option, below) is
presented to the guest as a floppy device. For Solaris, this
can be a UFS or PCFS file system image containing
sysidcfg(4) and Jumpstart profile data.
To run virt-install, you must become superuser or assume the
Primary Administrator role.
OPTIONS
The following options are supported:
--autocf=location
Specifies location of autoconfiguration data for the
guest.
For fully virtualized guests installing from an ISO file
or DVD, location specifies the pathname of a disk image
to be presented to the guest as the floppy device fda.
The following is the path to a local filename containing
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System Administration Commands virt-install(1M)
a floppy image:
/path/to/guest/autocf.img
This option is ignored for fully virtualized guests ins-
talling over a network using PXE. Such a guest will
retrieve any autoconfiguration data over the network.
For paravirtualized guests, support for this option is
guest-specific.
For Solaris paravirtualized guests installing over NFS,
this option allows you to specify the NFS pathname to a
directory containing a sysidcfg(4) file along with a
Solaris Jumpstart profile. The following is the path to
a NFS directory containing Solaris autoconfiguration
data:
nfs:netinstall:/export/guests/guest.autocf
-b bridge, --bridge=bridge
Bridge to which to connect the network interface. If you
do not specify a bridge, the system attempts to deter-
mine the default. This should be the name of the inter-
face in the control domain through which to route the
domain's networking traffic, for example, bge0. This
option is obsolete. Use the -w/--network option,
instead.
-c cdrom, --cdrom=cdrom
File to use as a virtual CD-ROM device for fully virtu-
alized guests. This option works with HVM domains and is
ignored with paravirtualized domains. It can be path to
an ISO image, or to a CD-ROM device. It can also be a
URL from which to fetch or access a minimal boot ISO
image. The URLs take the same format as described for
the --location argument. If this option is omitted then
either the --location argument must be entered, to
specify a location for the kernel and initrd, or the --
pxe option used, to install from the network.
--check-cpu
Check that VCPUs do not exceed physical CPUs and warn if
they do.
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--connect=URI
Connect to hypervisor at URI.
--cpuset=cpuset
Specify which physical CPUs the guest can use. cpuset is
a comma-separated list of numbers, which can be speci-
fied in ranges. For example:
0,2,3,5 Use processors 0, 2, 3, and 5
1-3,5,6-8 Use processors 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8
-d, --debug
Display debugging information. The debugging information
is stored in $HOME/.virtinst/virt-install.log, even if
this option is omitted. In this path, $HOME is the home
directory of the user invoking virt-install, such as /
or /root.
-f pathname, --file=pathname
Path to the file, disk partition, or logical volume to
use as the backing store for the guest's virtual disk.
If the path does not exist, then --file-size option
should also be specified, allowing the disk to be
created.
-s filesize, --file-size=filesize
Size of the file to create for the guest virtual disk,
if the path specified with the --file does not already
exist. The filesize is specified in gigabytes, with
fractional numbers allowed. The storage for the file
will not be pre-allocated unless the --nonsparse option
is also specified.
-h, --help
Display list of virt-install options.
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-k keymap, --keymap=keymap
Request that the virtual console be configured to run
with a non-English keyboard layout.
-l location, --location=location
Installation source for paravirtualized guest. Fully
virtualized guests must use either --location to specify
a kernel and initrd or the --cdrom option to specify an
ISO/CDROM image. The location argument can take the
forms, nfs:host:/path, or a file system path in the con-
trol domain, as described above.
-m macaddr, --mac=macaddr
Specifies a fixed MAC address for the guest. If this
parameter is omitted, or the value random is specified,
a suitable address will be randomly generated. For xVM
virtual machines it is required that the first 3 pairs
in the MAC address be the sequence 00:16:3e. This option
could be used when performing PXE or NFS-based installa-
tions of Solaris guests. This option is obsolete. Use
the -w/--network option, instead.
-n name, --name=name
Name of the new guest virtual machine instance. This
must be unique among all guests known to the hypervisor
on this machine, including those not currently active.
--noacpi
Disables Advanced Configuration and Power Interface
(ACPI) for fully virtualized guest. Overrides configura-
tion setting stored in systems specified by --os-type
and --os-variant options.
--noapic
Disables Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller
(APIC) for fully virtualized guest. Overrides configura-
tion setting stored in systems specified by --os-type
and --os-variant options.
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--noautoconsole
Do not automatically try to connect to the guest con-
sole. The default behavior is to launch a VNC client to
display the graphical console, or to run the virsh con-
sole command to display the text console. Use of this
option disables this behavior.
--nodisks
Request a virtual machine without any local disk
storage, typically used for running "Live CD" images or
installing to network storage (iSCSI or NFS root). This
disables all interactive prompts for disk setup.
--nographics
Disable all interactive prompts for the guest virtual
console. No graphical console will be allocated for the
guest. A text-based console will always be available on
the first serial port (or equivalent paravirtualised
console device).
--nonsparse
Request creation of a non-sparse file for the guest vir-
tual disk. Note that use of this option causes guest
creation to be significantly slower than otherwise.
--os-type=ostype
Optimize the guest configuration for a type of operating
system. This option attempts to pick the most suitable
ACPI and APIC settings, select optimally supported mouse
drivers, and generally accommodate other operating sys-
tem peculiarities. See "OS Types and OS Variants", below
for a list of acceptable values.
For optimal guest operating system performance, you
should specify the --os-type and --os-variant options.
--os-variant=osvariant
The OS variant for fully virtualized guests. See "OS
Types and OS Variants", below for a list of acceptable
values.
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For optimal guest operating system performance, you
should specify the --os-type and --os-variant options.
-p, --paravirt
Indicates that guest is paravirtualized. If the host
supports both paravirtualization and full virtualiza-
tion, and neither this parameter nor the --hvm option
are specified, this will be prompted for interactively.
--pxe
Use the PXE boot protocol to load the initial ramdisk
and kernel for starting the guest installation process.
If this option is omitted, then either the --location or
--cdrom options must be entered, to specify a location
for the kernel and initrd.
-r memamount, --ram=memamount
Memory to allocate for guest instance, in megabytes.
-s disksize, --file-size=disksize
Size of the disk image (if it does not exist), in giga-
bytes
--sdl
Use Simple DirectMedia Layer (SDL) for graphics support.
This option works with some guest domains, including
HVM, but not with Solaris.
-u UID, --uuid=UID
Specifies UID, as a 32-digit hexadecimal number, for
the guest. if no UID is specified, the system generates
a random UID. If you enter a UID, keep in mind that it
is intended to be a globally unique value.
-v, --hvm
Specifies that the guest is a Hardware-assisted Virtual
Machine (HVM). Requests the use of full virtualization,
if both paravirtualization and full virtualization are
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available on the host. This parameter might not be
available if connecting to a hypervisor on a machine
without hardware virtualization support.
This guest should be fully virtualized.
--vcpus=vcpus
Number of Virtual (VCPUs) to configure for your guest.
--vnc
Use Virtual Network Computing (VNC) for graphics sup-
port. This option works with HVM domains but not with
paravirtualized domains. Unless the --vncport parameter
is also provided, the VNC server will run on the first
free port number at 5900 or above. The actual VNC
display allocated can be obtained using the vncdisplay
subcommand to virsh(1M).
--vncport=vncport
Request a permanent, statically assigned port number for
the guest VNC console. Use of this option is discouraged
as another guest might automatically choose to run on
the specified port, creating a conflict.
-w propertylist, --network=propertylist
Describes a virtual interface by means of a list of
property-value pairs, each pair separated by a comma.
Supported properties are:
bridge=bridge
Bridge to which to connect the virtual interface. If
you do not specify a bridge, the system attempts to
determine the default. This should be the name of
the interface in the control domain through which to
route the domain's networking traffic, for example,
bge0. This property makes the -b/--bridge option
obsolete.
mac=macaddr
Specifies a fixed MAC address for the guest. If this
parameter is omitted, or the value RANDOM is
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specified, a suitable address will be randomly gen-
erated. For Solaris xVM virtual machines it is
required that the first three pairs in the MAC
address be the sequence 00:16:3e. This property is
required when performing PXE or NFS-based installa-
tions of Solaris guests. This property makes the
-m/--mac option obsolete.
capped-bandwidth=bandwidth
Sets bandwidth of this interface. Bandwidth should
be specified as an integer with one of the scale
suffixes (K, M, or G for Kbps, Mbps, or Gbps,
respectively). Bandwidth will be rounded up to
1.2M, if the input is smaller than that figure.
vlanid=vid
Sets VLAN ID of this interface to vid.
If this option is omitted, a single NIC will be created
in the guest. If there is a bridge device in the host
with a physical interface enslaved, this interface will
be used for connectivity. This option can be specified
multiple times to setup more than one NIC. Do not mix it
with any one of the -b/--bridge and -m/--mac options.
-x extraargs, --extra-args=extraargs
When installing paravirtualized guests, specifies addi-
tional arguments to pass to the installer.
OS Types and OS Variants
The following are the valid OS type and OS variant values
for --os-type and --os-variant options described above.
os-type os-variant
------- ----------
linux (Linux 2.x series)
rhel2.1
rhel3
rhel4
rhel5
fedora5
fedora6
fedora7
fedora8
sles10
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debianEtch
debianLenny
generic24
generic26
windows (Microsoft Windows 9x or later)
winxp
win2k
win2k3
vista
unix (Traditional UNIX BSD or SysV derivatives)
freebsd6
openbsd4
solaris (Solaris 9 or later)
solaris9
solaris10
opensolaris
other (Not in one of groups above)
msdos
netware4
netware5
netware6
generic
EXAMPLES
Example 1 Installing Solaris onto a Local Disk from an ISO
The following command installs a Solaris guest from an ISO
file.
# virt-install --name solaris2 --ram 1024 --nographics \
--file /dev/md/dsk/solaris2-disk \
--os-type=solaris os-variant=solaris10 \
--location /export/isos/nv75-dvd.iso
Example 2 Installing Microsoft Windows
The following command installs a Microsoft Windows guest
using a local file as a root disk.
# virt-install --name windows1 --ram 1024 \
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--cdrom /enwinxpprowithsp2.iso \
--file /guests/windows1-disk \
--os-type=windows os-variant=winxp \
--file-size 10 --vnc
Example 3 Installing Paravirtualized Solaris Guest from an
NFS Server
The following command installs a Solaris paravirtualized xVM
guest, 500 MB of RAM, 6 GB of disk, from an NFS server, in
text-only mode:
# virt-install \
--paravirt \
--name demo \
--ram 500 \
--file /export/guests/demo/images/demo.img \
--file-size 6 \
--nographics \
--mac=00:16:3e:2f:8a:1a \
--os-type=solaris os-variant=solaris10 \
--location nfs:netinstall:/export/s10u6/combined.s10xu6wos/latest \
--autocf=nfs:netinstall:/export/guests/demo/autocf
Example 4 Installing xVM Guest Using ZFS zvol
The following command installs an xVM guest, using a ZFS
zvol, booting from the host CD-ROM, using the VNC
server/viewer:
# virt-install \
--name demo \
--ram 500 \
--file /dev/zvol/dsk/demo.zvol \
--vnc \
--hvm \
--os-type=solaris os-variant=opensolaris \
--autocf=/export/guests/demo/images/autocf.img \
--cdrom /dev/dsk/c2t0d0s2
Example 5 Installing Paravirtualized Guest over HTP
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The following command installs a paravirtualized Fedora
guest domain over HTP using the text installer:
# virt-install -n demo -x 'console=hvc0' --paravirt \
-f /dev/zvol/dsk/demo.zvol \
-l http:/mirror.cc.vt.edu/pub/fedora/linux/releases/8/Fedora/x8664/os/ \
--os-type=linux os-variant=fedora5 \
-r 512 --nographics
Example 6 Installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux Guest over NFS
The following sequence of commands installs a Red Hat Enter-
prise Linux guest over NFS using the text installer:
# mount -F hsfs /rhel.iso /mnt
# share -o ro /mnt
# virt-install -n pv-rhel -r 1024 -l nfs:mydom0:/mnt \
--os-type=linux os-variant=rhel4 \
-f /dev/zvol/dsk/pv-rhel.zvol -p --nographics
Example 7 Installing with Kickstart Automation
The following command installs a RedHat guest using the
media in the dom0 CD-ROM, utilizing kickstart to automate
the installation process.
# virt-install \
--name rhat \
--ram 500 \
--file /dev/zvol/dsk/rhat.zvol \
--paravirt \
--location /dev/dsk/c2t0d0s2 \
--os-type=linux os-variant=rhel5 \
--extra-args "ks=/export/install/rhat/ks.cfg
ATRIBUTES
See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attri-
butes:
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ATRIBUTE TYPE ATRIBUTE VALUE
Availability SUNWxvmu
Interface Stability Volatile
SEE ALSO
virsh(1M), virt-clone(1M), xend(1M), xentop(1M),
xenstored(1M), xm(1M), sysidcfg(4), attributes(5), xVM(5)
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