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240 lines
8.1 KiB
Markdown
240 lines
8.1 KiB
Markdown
# Creating a Virtual Machine in KVM
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This step-by-step guide will take you through setting up a CPU and memory efficient virtual machine
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to use with WinApps leveraging KVM, an open-source virtualization software contained in most Linux distributions.
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## Install KVM
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First up, you must install KVM and the Virtual Machine Manager. By installing `virt-manager`, you will get everything you need for your distribution:
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```bash
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sudo apt install -y virt-manager
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```
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## Download the Windows Professional and KVM VirtIO drivers
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You will need Windows 10 Professional (or Enterprise or Server) to run RDP apps, Windows 10 Home will not suffice.
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You will also need drivers for VirtIO to ensure the best performance and the lowest overhead for your system.
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You can download these at the following links:
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Windows 10 ISO: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO
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KVM VirtIO drivers (for all distros): https://fedorapeople.org/groups/virt/virtio-win/direct-downloads/stable-virtio/virtio-win.iso
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## Create your virtual machine
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The following guide will take you through the setup. If you're an expert user, you may wish to:
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- [Define a VM from XML (may not work on all systems)](#define-a-vm-from-xml)
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- [Run KVM in user mode](#run-kvm-in-user-mode)
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Otherwise, to set up the standard way, open `virt-manager` (Virtual Machines).
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Next, go to `Edit`->`Preferences`, and check `Enable XML editing`, then click the `Close` button.
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Now it is time to add a new VM by clicking the `+` button.
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Choose `Local install media` and click `Forward`.
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Now select the location of your Windows 10 ISO, and `Automatically detect` the installation.
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Set your memory and CPUs. We recommend `2` CPUs and `4096MB` for memory. We will be using a Memory Ballooning service,
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meaning 4096 is the maximum amount of memory the VM will ever use, but will not use this amount except when it is needed.
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Choose your virtual disk size, keep in mind this is the maximum size the disk will grow to,
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but it will not take up this space until it needs it.
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Next, name your machine `RDPWindows` so that WinApps can detect it, and choose to `Customize configuration before install`.
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After clicking `Finish`, ensure under CPU that `Copy host CPU configuration` is selected, and `Apply`.
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**NOTE:** Sometimes this gets turned off after Windows is installed. You should check this option after install as well.
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Next, go to the `XML` tab, and edit the `<clock>` section to contain:
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```xml
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<clock offset='localtime'>
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<timer name='hpet' present='yes'/>
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<timer name='hypervclock' present='yes'/>
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</clock>
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```
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Then `Apply`. This will drastically reduce idle CPU usage (from ~25% to ~3%).
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Next, under Memory, lower the `Current allocation` to the minimum memory the VM should use. We recommend `1024MB`.
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Under `Boot options`, check `Start virtual machine on host boot up`.
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For SATA Disk 1, set the `Disk bus` to `VirtIO`.
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For the NIC, set the `Device model` to `virtio`.
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Click the `Add Hardware` button in the lower right, and choose `Storage`. For `Device type`, select `CDROM device`
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and choose the VirtIO driver ISO you downloaded earlier. This will give the Windows 10 Installer access
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to drivers during the installation process. Now click `Finish` to add the new CD-ROM device.
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You're now ready to click `Begin Installation`
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Now move on to installing the virtual machine.
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## Install the virtual machine
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From here out you will install Windows 10 Professional as you would on any other machine.
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Once you get to the point of selecting the location for installation, you will see there are no disks available.
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This is because we need to load the VirtIO driver. Select `Load driver`.
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The installer will then ask you to specify where the driver is located. Select the `E:\` drive
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or whichever drive the VirtIO driver ISO is located on.
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Choose the appropriate driver for the OS you've selected, which is most likely the `w10` driver for Windows 10.
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You will now see a disk you can select for the installation.
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Windows will begin to install, and you will likely need to reboot the VM a number of times during this process.
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At some point, you will come to a network screen. This is because the VirtIO drivers
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for the network haven't yet been loaded. Simply click `I don't have internet`.
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It will confirm your choice, so just choose `Continue with limited setup`.
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After you get into Windows and login with the user you created during the installation. Open `Explorer`
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and navigate the `E:\` drive or wherever the VirtIO driver ISO is mounted. Double-click the `virt-win-gt-64.exe` file
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to launch the VirtIO driver installer.
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Leave everything as default and click `Next` through the installer. This will install device drivers as well as
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the Memory Ballooning service.
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Once you finish the driver install, you will need to make some registry changes to enable RDP Applications
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to run on the system. Start by downloading the [RDPApps.reg](/install/RDPApps.reg) file,
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right-clicking on the `Raw` button, and clicking on `Save target as`.
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Once you've downloaded the registry file, right-click on it, and choose `Merge`, then accept any confirmations along the way.
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Next up, we need to rename the VM so that WinApps can locate it. Go to the start menu and type `About`
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to bring up the `About your PC` settings.
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Scroll down and click on `Rename this PC`.
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Rename to `RDPWindows`, and then `Next`, but **don't** restart.
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Lastly, scroll down to `Remote Desktop`, and toggle `Enable Remote Desktop` on, and `Confirm`.
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At this point, you will need to restart, and you've completed your setup.
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Rather than restart, you can go right ahead and install other applications like Microsoft Office or Adobe CC
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that could be used through WinApps.
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You may also wish to install
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the [Spice Guest Tools](https://www.spice-space.org/download/windows/spice-guest-tools/spice-guest-tools-latest.exe)
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inside the VM which enables features like auto-desktop resize and cut-and-paste when using `virt-manager`.
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As WinApps uses RDP, this is unnecessary if you don't plan to access the machine via `virt-manager`.
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Once you're finished, restart the VM, but don't log in. Simply close the VM viewer, and close the Virtual Machine Manager.
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## Expert installs
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### Define a VM from XML
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This expert guide for XML imports is specific to Ubuntu 20.04 and may not work on all hardware platforms.
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You can refer to the [KVM](https://www.linux-kvm.org) documentation for specifics, but the first thing you need to do is
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set up a Virtual Machine running Windows 10 Professional (or any version that supports RDP). First, install KVM:
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``` bash
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sudo apt install -y virt-manager
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```
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Now, copy your Windows ISO and VirtIO iso (links to download in the main guide) into the folder
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and update the `kvm/RDPWindows.xml` appropriately.
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Next, define a VM called RDPWindows from the sample XML file with:
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``` bash
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virsh define kvm/RDPWindows.xml
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virsh autostart RDPWindows
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```
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You should then open the VMs properties in `virt-manager` and ensure that under CPU `Copy host CPU configuration` is selected.
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Boot it up, install Windows, and then [Install the virtual machine](#install-the-virtual-machine).
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### Run KVM in user mode
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Now set up KVM to run as your user instead of root and allow it through AppArmor (for Ubuntu 20.04 and above):
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``` bash
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sudo sed -i "s/#user = "root"/user = "$(id -un)"/g" /etc/libvirt/qemu.conf
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sudo sed -i "s/#group = "root"/group = "$(id -gn)"/g" /etc/libvirt/qemu.conf
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sudo usermod -a -G kvm $(id -un)
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sudo usermod -a -G libvirt $(id -un)
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sudo systemctl restart libvirtd
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sudo ln -s /etc/apparmor.d/usr.sbin.libvirtd /etc/apparmor.d/disable/
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```
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You will likely need to reboot to ensure your current shell is added to the group.
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