docs on storage pools?

docs on storage pools?

[Richard Wurman]

So far I've been using files and/or LVM partitions for my VMs --
basically by using virt-manager and modifying existing XML configs and
just copying my VM files to be reused.

I'm wondering how KVM storage pools work -- at first I thought it was
something like KVM's version of LVM where you can just dump all your
VMs in one space .. .but it looks like it's really means "different
places you want to store your VMs":

- dir: Filesystem Directory
- disk: Physical Disk Device
- fs: Pre-Formatted Block Device
- iscsi: iSCSI Target
-logical: LVM Volume Group
- netfs: Network exported directory

I understand things like LVM and storing VMs in a filesystem
directory.. but what real difference is there by going through the
GUI? I suppose nothing. Maybe I'm overthinking this -- it's just a
frontend to where you store your VMs?

Re: docs on storage pools?

[Cole Robinson]

Richard Wurman wrote:
> So far I've been using files and/or LVM partitions for my VMs --
> basically by using virt-manager and modifying existing XML configs and
> just copying my VM files to be reused.
> 
> I'm wondering how KVM storage pools work -- at first I thought it was
> something like KVM's version of LVM where you can just dump all your
> VMs in one space .. .but it looks like it's really means "different
> places you want to store your VMs":
> 

The 'storage pool' concept you're talking about is libvirt functionality, not
KVM/QEMU:

http://libvirt.org/storage.html

> - dir: Filesystem Directory
> - disk: Physical Disk Device
> - fs: Pre-Formatted Block Device
> - iscsi: iSCSI Target
> -logical: LVM Volume Group
> - netfs: Network exported directory
> 
> I understand things like LVM and storing VMs in a filesystem
> directory.. but what real difference is there by going through the
> GUI? I suppose nothing. Maybe I'm overthinking this -- it's just a
> frontend to where you store your VMs?

Exposing storage management through libvirt allows remote storage
provisioning, and saves libvirt users (like virt-install and virt-manager) the
trouble of knowing all the differing details between creating lvm LVs, disk
partitions, raw/qcow2/vmdk images, etc. For desktop virt using raw files for
storage, there isn't much need to concern yourself with the concept.

Any further questions should be directed to libvirt-list@redhat.com (for
libvirt) or virt-tools-list@redhat.com (for virt-manager).

- Cole