Ubuntu Manpage: virt-convert - convert virtual machines between formats

Provided by: virtinst_0.600.4-3ubuntu2_all

NAME

       virt-convert - convert virtual machines between formats

SYNOPSIS

       virt-convert [OPTION]... INPUT.VMX|INPUT-DIR [OUTPUT.XML|OUTPUT-DIR]

DESCRIPTION

       virt-convert is a command line tool for converting virtual machines from one format to
       another. Pass in either a VM definition file (such as VMWare vmx format) or a directory
       containing a VM. By default, a new VM definition file, and converted disk images, will be
       placed in a new output directory.

       If an output directory is specified, it will be created if necessary, and the output VM
       definition placed within, along with any disk images as needed.

       If an output VM definition file is specified, it will be created alongside any disks in
       the same directory.

OPTIONS

Any of the options can be omitted, in which case virt-convert will use defaults when
required. An input VM definition or containing directory must be provided. By default, an
output directory is generated based upon the name of the VM. The default input format is
VMWare vmx, and the default output format is a libvirt "image" XML definition (see
virt-image(5)).

-h, --help
Show the help message and exit

Conversion Options
-i format
Input format. Currently, "vmx", "virt-image", and "ovf" are supported.

-o format
Output format. Currently, "vmx" and "virt-image" are supported.

-D format
Output disk format, or "none" if no conversion should be performed. See qemu-img(1).

Virtualization Type options
Options to override the default virtualization type choices.

-v, --hvm Create a fully virtualized guest image
Convert machine to a hvm/qemu based image (this is the default if paravirt is not
specified)

-p, --paravirt Create a paravirtualized guest image
Convert machine to a paravirt xen based image

General Options
General configuration parameters that apply to all types of guest installs.

-a ARCH, --arch=ARCH
Architecture of the virtual machine (i686, x86_64, ppc). Defaults to that of the host
machine.

--os-type=OS_TYPE
Optimize the guest configuration for a type of operating system (ex. 'linux',
'windows'). This will attempt to pick the most suitable ACPI & APIC settings, optimally
supported mouse drivers, virtio, and generally accommodate other operating system
quirks. See virt-install(1) for valid values.

--os-variant=OS_VARIANT
Further optimize the guest configuration for a specific operating system variant (ex.
'fedora8', 'winxp'). This parameter is optional, and does not require an "--os-type" to
be specified. See virt-install(1) for valid values.

--noapic
Override the OS type / variant to disables the APIC setting for fully virtualized guest.

--noacpi
Override the OS type / variant to disables the ACPI setting for fully virtualized guest.

Miscellaneous Options
-q, --quiet
Avoid verbose output.

-d, --debug
Print debugging information

--dry-run
Proceed through the conversion process, but don't convert disks or actually write any
converted files.

EXAMPLES

       Convert a paravirt guest from "image.vmx":

         # virt-convert --arch=i686 --paravirt image.vmx

       Convert a 64-bit hvm guest:

         # virt-convert --arch=x86_64 vmx-appliance/ hvm-appliance/

AUTHOR

       Written by Joey Boggs, John Levon, and Cole Robinson

       See the AUTHORS file in the source distribution for the complete list of credits.

BUGS

       Please see http://virt-manager.org/page/BugReporting

COPYRIGHT

       Copyright (C) 2006-2012 Red Hat, Inc, and various contributors.  This is free software.
       You may redistribute copies of it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
       "http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html".  There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by
       law.