What do I need to run a guest machine in full virtualization mode?

The processor must support Hardware-Assisted Virtual Machine (HVM).

To check if the processor supports HVM use the following command:

• For Intel processors:

   grep -i vmx /proc/cpuinfo

• For AMD processors:

   grep -i svm /proc/cpuinfo

• If nothing returns, then fully virtualization guests will not run. 

In the BIOS verify virtualization is enabled:

• To check if the BIOS is enabled, issue the following command:

     grep -i hvm /sys/hypervisor/properties/capabilities

• If nothing returns; reboot the system and enable the BIOS, look for the setting relating to virtualization, HVM, VT, VMX or SVM.

• The BIOS may contains different names for the virtualization setting; check the hardware manual or contact the hardware vendor for more details.

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This entry was posted by the editorial team on Monday, June 9th, 2008 at 2:40 pm and is filed under tips and tricks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.