[Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 0/2] docs: Improve sample configuration files

[Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 0/2] docs: Improve sample configuration files

[Andrea Bolognani]

Changes since [v5]

  * Address review comments:
    - use the native serial console rather than the VirtIO
      based one, and enable monitor multiplexing so that
      the user can switch between the two;
    - add GIC version configuration;
    - improve wording all over the place.

  * Improvements:
    - add information about Debian/Ubuntu firmware
      packages.

Changes since [v4]

  * Improvements:
    - move storage configuration from the command line
      to the configuration files so that the command
      line is shorter and we can provide better
      documentation for the various parts;
    - configure the amount of memory for the guest in
      the file too;
    - document the fact that you might want/need to use
      '-serial stdio' and '-display vnc=...' in some
      situations;
    - fix the value of 'port' for one of the
      pcie-root-port devices;
    - fix some inaccurate comments.

  * Arguably the opposite:
    - remove the sample command line for running a live
      OS from the file header. I could be convinced to
      add it back as a (commented) section about it, if
      people think it's useful enough.

Changes since [v3]

  * Address review comments:
    - place VGA at 00:01.0;
    - use pcie-root-port instead of ioh3420 in
      q35-virtio-*.cfg;
    - add a comment to let users know that PCI Express
      devices should not be placed on the legacy PCI
      bridge.

Changes since [v2]

  * Address review comments:
    - use -nodefaults in q35-emulated.cfg too;
    - add explicit VGA and Ethernet.

  * Improvements:
    - use virtconsole and virtio-serial instead of
      isa-serial in q35-virtio-serial.cfg.

  * Possibily controversial:
    - get rid of q35-virtio-common.cfg and add the PCIe
      Root Ports back into q35-virtio-*.cfg: while this
      leads to having some duplicated content, I feel like
      the sample configurations are much more useful when
      they can stand entirely on their own, especially now
      that they start with a detailed hardware listing.

  * Cosmetic stuff:
    - hardware listing looks like the output of lspci;
    - section names match what's used in the hardware
      listing so it's faster to jump to the section;
    - PCI addresses also match the output of lspci;
    - PCI Express is used instead of PCIe.

Changes since [v1]

  * Address review comments:
    - improve the existing configuration file instead
      of removing it;
    - split off the common part for VirtIO guests;
    - plug all ioh3420 devices in a single slot;
    - use slot 1c for ioh3420 devices;
    - remove useless USB keyboard.

  * Improve usage description:
    - make sure the OS disk actually uses the VirtIO
      SCSI controller, as intended, rather than the
      built-in SATA one;
    - provide a command line for running live CDs.

  * Document more devices:
    - the video card is added by default;
    - so is the Ethernet adapter, apparently.

[v1] http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2017-01/msg06342.html
[v2] http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2017-02/msg00184.html
[v3] http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2017-02/msg00461.html
[v4] http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2017-02/msg00672.html
[v5] http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2017-02/msg01714.html

Andrea Bolognani (2):
  q35: Improve sample configuration files
  mach-virt: Provide sample configuration files

 docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg  | 262 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg     | 224 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/q35-chipset.cfg          | 152 ------------------------
 docs/q35-emulated.cfg         | 269 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg | 229 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg    | 174 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 6 files changed, 1158 insertions(+), 152 deletions(-)
 create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg
 delete mode 100644 docs/q35-chipset.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-emulated.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg

-- 
2.7.4

[Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 1/2] q35: Improve sample configuration files

[Andrea Bolognani]

Instead of having a single sample configuration file,
we now have several:

  * q35-emulated.cfg documents the default devices QEMU
    adds to a q35 guest and the additional devices that
    are pretty much guaranteed to be present in a
    physical q35-based machine;

  * q35-virtio-graphical.cfg can be used to start a
    fully-featured (USB, graphical console, audio, etc.)
    guest that uses VirtIO instead of emulated devices;

  * q35-virtio-serial.cfg is similar but has a minimal
    set of devices and uses the serial console.

All configuration files are fully commented and neatly
organized.
---
 docs/q35-chipset.cfg          | 152 ------------------------
 docs/q35-emulated.cfg         | 269 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg | 229 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg    | 174 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 4 files changed, 672 insertions(+), 152 deletions(-)
 delete mode 100644 docs/q35-chipset.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-emulated.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg

diff --git a/docs/q35-chipset.cfg b/docs/q35-chipset.cfg
deleted file mode 100644
index e4ddb7d..0000000
--- a/docs/q35-chipset.cfg
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,152 +0,0 @@
-################################################################
-#
-# qemu -M q35 creates a bare machine with just the very essential
-# chipset devices being present:
-#
-#     00.0 - Host bridge
-#     1f.0 - ISA bridge / LPC
-#     1f.2 - SATA (AHCI) controller
-#     1f.3 - SMBus controller
-#
-# This config file documents the other devices and how they are
-# created.  You can simply use "-readconfig $thisfile" to create
-# them all.  Here is a overview:
-#
-#     19.0 - Ethernet controller (not created, our e1000 emulation
-#                                 doesn't emulate the ich9 device).
-#     1a.* - USB Controller #2 (ehci + uhci companions)
-#     1b.0 - HD Audio Controller
-#     1c.* - PCI Express Ports
-#     1d.* - USB Controller #1 (ehci + uhci companions,
-#                               "qemu -M q35 -usb" creates these too)
-#     1e.0 - PCI Bridge
-#
-
-[device "ich9-ehci-2"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-ehci2"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1a.7"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-4"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci4"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1a.0"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
-  firstport = "0"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-5"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci5"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1a.1"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
-  firstport = "2"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-6"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci6"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1a.2"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
-  firstport = "4"
-
-
-[device "ich9-hda-audio"]
-  driver = "ich9-intel-hda"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1b.0"
-
-
-[device "ich9-pcie-port-1"]
-  driver = "ioh3420"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1c.0"
-  port = "1"
-  chassis = "1"
-
-[device "ich9-pcie-port-2"]
-  driver = "ioh3420"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1c.1"
-  port = "2"
-  chassis = "2"
-
-[device "ich9-pcie-port-3"]
-  driver = "ioh3420"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1c.2"
-  port = "3"
-  chassis = "3"
-
-[device "ich9-pcie-port-4"]
-  driver = "ioh3420"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1c.3"
-  port = "4"
-  chassis = "4"
-
-##
-# Example PCIe switch with two downstream ports
-#
-#[device "pcie-switch-upstream-port-1"]
-#  driver = "x3130-upstream"
-#  bus = "ich9-pcie-port-4"
-#  addr = "00.0"
-#
-#[device "pcie-switch-downstream-port-1-1"]
-#  driver = "xio3130-downstream"
-#  multifunction = "on"
-#  bus = "pcie-switch-upstream-port-1"
-#  addr = "00.0"
-#  port = "1"
-#  chassis = "5"
-#
-#[device "pcie-switch-downstream-port-1-2"]
-#  driver = "xio3130-downstream"
-#  multifunction = "on"
-#  bus = "pcie-switch-upstream-port-1"
-#  addr = "00.1"
-#  port = "1"
-#  chassis = "6"
-
-[device "ich9-ehci-1"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-ehci1"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1d.7"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-1"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci1"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1d.0"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
-  firstport = "0"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-2"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci2"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1d.1"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
-  firstport = "2"
-
-[device "ich9-uhci-3"]
-  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci3"
-  multifunction = "on"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1d.2"
-  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
-  firstport = "4"
-
-
-[device "ich9-pci-bridge"]
-  driver = "i82801b11-bridge"
-  bus = "pcie.0"
-  addr = "1e.0"
diff --git a/docs/q35-emulated.cfg b/docs/q35-emulated.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7a60bb5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/q35-emulated.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,269 @@
+# q35 - Emulated guest (graphical console)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#   $ qemu-system-x86_64 \
+#     -nodefaults \
+#     -readconfig q35-emulated.cfg
+#
+# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
+# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
+#
+# The guest will have a selection of emulated devices that
+# closely resembles that of a physical machine, and will be
+# accessed through a graphical console.
+#
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+#
+# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
+# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
+# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals
+# plus a small selection of core PCI devices and
+# controllers; the user will then have to explicitly add
+# further devices.
+#
+# The core PCI devices show up in the guest as:
+#
+#   00:00.0 Host bridge
+#   00:1f.0 ISA bridge / LPC
+#   00:1f.2 SATA (AHCI) controller
+#   00:1f.3 SMBus controller
+#
+# This configuration file adds a number of devices that
+# are pretty much guaranteed to be present in every single
+# physical machine based on q35, more specifically:
+#
+#   00:01.0 VGA compatible controller
+#   00:19.0 Ethernet controller
+#   00:1a.* USB controller (#2)
+#   00:1b.0 Audio device
+#   00:1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+#   00:1d.* USB Controller (#1)
+#   00:1e.0 PCI bridge (legacy PCI bridge)
+#
+# More information about these devices is available below.
+
+
+# Machine options
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use the q35 machine type and enable KVM acceleration
+# for better performance.
+#
+# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
+# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
+# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
+#
+# Unfortunately, there is no way to configure the CPU model
+# in this file, so it will have to be provided on the
+# command line.
+
+[machine]
+  type = "q35"
+  accel = "kvm"
+
+[memory]
+  size = "1024"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We add four PCI Express Root Ports, all sharing the same
+# slot on the PCI Express  Root Bus. These ports support
+# hotplug.
+
+[device "ich9-pcie-port-1"]
+  driver = "ioh3420"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.0"
+  port = "1"
+  chassis = "1"
+
+[device "ich9-pcie-port-2"]
+  driver = "ioh3420"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.1"
+  port = "2"
+  chassis = "2"
+
+[device "ich9-pcie-port-3"]
+  driver = "ioh3420"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.2"
+  port = "3"
+  chassis = "3"
+
+[device "ich9-pcie-port-4"]
+  driver = "ioh3420"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.3"
+  port = "4"
+  chassis = "4"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (legacy PCI bridge)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# This bridge can be used to build an independent topology
+# for legacy PCI devices. PCI Express devices should be
+# plugged into PCI Express slots instead, so ideally there
+# will be no devices connected to this bridge.
+
+[device "ich9-pci-bridge"]
+  driver = "i82801b11-bridge"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1e.0"
+
+
+# SATA storage
+# =========================================================
+#
+# An implicit SATA controller is created automatically for
+# every single q35 guest; here we create a disk, backed by
+# a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, and attach
+# it to that controller so that the guest can use it.
+
+[device "sata-disk"]
+  driver = "ide-hd"
+  bus = "ide.0"
+  drive = "disk"
+
+[drive "disk"]
+  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
+  format = "qcow2"
+  if = "none"
+
+
+# USB controller (#1)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# EHCI controller + UHCI companion controllers.
+
+[device "ich9-ehci-1"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-ehci1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1d.7"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-1"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1d.0"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
+  firstport = "0"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-2"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci2"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1d.1"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
+  firstport = "2"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-3"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci3"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1d.2"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-1.0"
+  firstport = "4"
+
+
+# USB controller (#2)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# EHCI controller + UHCI companion controllers.
+
+[device "ich9-ehci-2"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-ehci2"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1a.7"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-4"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci4"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1a.0"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
+  firstport = "0"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-5"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci5"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1a.1"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
+  firstport = "2"
+
+[device "ich9-uhci-6"]
+  driver = "ich9-usb-uhci6"
+  multifunction = "on"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1a.2"
+  masterbus = "ich9-ehci-2.0"
+  firstport = "4"
+
+
+# Ethernet controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We add a Gigabit Ethernet interface to the guest; on the
+# host side, we take advantage of user networking so that
+# the QEMU process doesn't require any additional
+# privileges.
+
+[netdev "hostnet"]
+  type = "user"
+
+[device "net"]
+  driver = "e1000"
+  netdev = "hostnet"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "19.0"
+
+
+# VGA compatible controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use stdvga instead of Cirrus as it supports more video
+# modes and is closer to what actual hardware looks like.
+#
+# If you're running the guest on a remote, potentially
+# headless host, you will probably want to append something
+# like
+#
+#   -display vnc=127.0.0.1:0
+#
+# to the command line in order to prevent QEMU from trying
+# to display a GTK+ window on the host and enable remote
+# access instead.
+
+[device "video"]
+  driver = "VGA"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "01.0"
+
+
+# Audio device
+# =========================================================
+#
+# The sound card is a legacy PCI device that is plugged
+# directly into the PCI Express Root Bus.
+
+[device "ich9-hda-audio"]
+  driver = "ich9-intel-hda"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1b.0"
+
+[device "ich9-hda-duplex"]
+  driver = "hda-duplex"
+  bus = "ich9-hda-audio.0"
+  cad = "0"
diff --git a/docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg b/docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..58ce145
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/q35-virtio-graphical.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,229 @@
+# q35 - VirtIO guest (graphical console)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#   $ qemu-system-x86_64 \
+#     -nodefaults \
+#     -readconfig q35-virtio-graphical.cfg
+#
+# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
+# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
+#
+# The guest will have a selection of VirtIO devices
+# tailored towards optimal performance with modern guests,
+# and will be accessed through a graphical console.
+#
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+#
+# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
+# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
+# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals
+# plus a small selection of core PCI devices and
+# controllers; the user will then have to explicitly add
+# further devices.
+#
+# The core PCI devices show up in the guest as:
+#
+#   00:00.0 Host bridge
+#   00:1f.0 ISA bridge / LPC
+#   00:1f.2 SATA (AHCI) controller
+#   00:1f.3 SMBus controller
+#
+# This configuration file adds a number of other useful
+# devices, more specifically:
+#
+#   00:01.0 VGA compatible controller
+#   00:1b.0 Audio device
+#   00.1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+#   01:00.0 SCSI storage controller
+#   02:00.0 Ethernet controller
+#   03:00.0 USB controller
+#
+# More information about these devices is available below.
+
+
+# Machine options
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use the q35 machine type and enable KVM acceleration
+# for better performance.
+#
+# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
+# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
+# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
+
+[machine]
+  type = "q35"
+  accel = "kvm"
+
+[memory]
+  size = "1024"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
+# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
+# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
+# available for hotplug.
+
+[device "pci.1"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.0"
+  port = "1"
+  chassis = "1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+
+[device "pci.2"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.1"
+  port = "2"
+  chassis = "2"
+
+[device "pci.3"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.2"
+  port = "3"
+  chassis = "3"
+
+[device "pci.4"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.3"
+  port = "4"
+  chassis = "4"
+
+[device "pci.5"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.4"
+  port = "5"
+  chassis = "5"
+
+[device "pci.6"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.5"
+  port = "6"
+  chassis = "6"
+
+[device "pci.7"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.6"
+  port = "7"
+  chassis = "7"
+
+[device "pci.8"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.7"
+  port = "8"
+  chassis = "8"
+
+
+# SCSI storage controller (and storage)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-scsi here so that we can (hot)plug a large
+# number of disks without running into issues; a SCSI disk,
+# backed by a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, is
+# attached to it.
+
+[device "scsi"]
+  driver = "virtio-scsi-pci"
+  bus = "pci.1"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "scsi-disk"]
+  driver = "scsi-hd"
+  bus = "scsi.0"
+  drive = "disk"
+
+[drive "disk"]
+  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
+  format = "qcow2"
+  if = "none"
+
+
+# Ethernet controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-net for improved performance over emulated
+# hardware; on the host side, we take advantage of user
+# networking so that the QEMU process doesn't require any
+# additional privileges.
+
+[netdev "hostnet"]
+  type = "user"
+
+[device "net"]
+  driver = "virtio-net-pci"
+  netdev = "hostnet"
+  bus = "pci.2"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+
+# USB controller (and input devices)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We add a virtualization-friendly USB 3.0 controller and
+# a USB tablet so that graphical guests can be controlled
+# appropriately. A USB keyboard is not needed, as q35
+# guests get a PS/2 one added automatically.
+
+[device "usb"]
+  driver = "nec-usb-xhci"
+  bus = "pci.3"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "tablet"]
+  driver = "usb-tablet"
+  bus = "usb.0"
+
+
+# VGA compatible controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We plug the QXL video card directly into the PCI Express
+# Root Bus as it is a legacy PCI device; this way, we can
+# reduce the number of PCI Express controllers in the
+# guest.
+#
+# If you're running the guest on a remote, potentially
+# headless host, you will probably want to append something
+# like
+#
+#   -display vnc=127.0.0.1:0
+#
+# to the command line in order to prevent QEMU from trying
+# to display a GTK+ window on the host and enable remote
+# access instead.
+
+[device "video"]
+  driver = "qxl-vga"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "01.0"
+
+
+# Audio device
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Like the video card, the sound card is a legacy PCI
+# device and as such can be plugged directly into the PCI
+# Express Root Bus.
+
+[device "sound"]
+  driver = "ich9-intel-hda"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1b.0"
+
+[device "duplex"]
+  driver = "hda-duplex"
+  bus = "sound.0"
+  cad = "0"
diff --git a/docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg b/docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1fcdefd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/q35-virtio-serial.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+# q35 - VirtIO guest (serial console)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#   $ qemu-system-x86_64 \
+#     -nodefaults \
+#     -readconfig q35-virtio-serial.cfg \
+#     -display none -serial mon:stdio
+#
+# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
+# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
+#
+# The guest will have a selection of VirtIO devices
+# tailored towards optimal performance with modern guests,
+# and will be accessed through the serial console.
+#
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+#
+# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
+# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
+# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals
+# plus a small selection of core PCI devices and
+# controllers; the user will then have to explicitly add
+# further devices.
+#
+# The core PCI devices show up in the guest as:
+#
+#   00:00.0 Host bridge
+#   00:1f.0 ISA bridge / LPC
+#   00:1f.2 SATA (AHCI) controller
+#   00:1f.3 SMBus controller
+#
+# This configuration file adds a number of other useful
+# devices, more specifically:
+#
+#   00.1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+#   01:00.0 SCSI storage controller
+#   02:00.0 Ethernet controller
+#
+# More information about these devices is available below.
+#
+# We use '-display none' to prevent QEMU from creating a
+# graphical display window, which would serve no use in
+# this specific configuration, and '-serial mon:stdio' to
+# multiplex the guest's serial console and the QEMU monitor
+# to the host's stdio; use 'Ctrl+A h' to learn how to
+# switch between the two and more.
+
+
+# Machine options
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use the q35 machine type and enable KVM acceleration
+# for better performance.
+#
+# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
+# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
+# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
+
+[machine]
+  type = "q35"
+  accel = "kvm"
+
+[memory]
+  size = "1024"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
+# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
+# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
+# available for hotplug.
+
+[device "pci.1"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.0"
+  port = "1"
+  chassis = "1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+
+[device "pci.2"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.1"
+  port = "2"
+  chassis = "2"
+
+[device "pci.3"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.2"
+  port = "3"
+  chassis = "3"
+
+[device "pci.4"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.3"
+  port = "4"
+  chassis = "4"
+
+[device "pci.5"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.4"
+  port = "5"
+  chassis = "5"
+
+[device "pci.6"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.5"
+  port = "6"
+  chassis = "6"
+
+[device "pci.7"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.6"
+  port = "7"
+  chassis = "7"
+
+[device "pci.8"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.7"
+  port = "8"
+  chassis = "8"
+
+
+# SCSI storage controller (and storage)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-scsi here so that we can (hot)plug a large
+# number of disks without running into issues; a SCSI disk,
+# backed by a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, is
+# attached to it.
+
+[device "scsi"]
+  driver = "virtio-scsi-pci"
+  bus = "pci.1"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "scsi-disk"]
+  driver = "scsi-hd"
+  bus = "scsi.0"
+  drive = "disk"
+
+[drive "disk"]
+  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
+  format = "qcow2"
+  if = "none"
+
+
+# Ethernet controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-net for improved performance over emulated
+# hardware; on the host side, we take advantage of user
+# networking so that the QEMU process doesn't require any
+# additional privileges.
+
+[netdev "hostnet"]
+  type = "user"
+
+[device "net"]
+  driver = "virtio-net-pci"
+  netdev = "hostnet"
+  bus = "pci.2"
+  addr = "00.0"
-- 
2.7.4

[Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 2/2] mach-virt: Provide sample configuration files

[Andrea Bolognani]

These are very much like the sample configuration files
for q35, and can be used both as documentation and as
a starting point for creating your own guest.

Two sample configuration files are provided:

  * mach-virt-graphical.cfg can be used to start a
    fully-featured (USB, graphical console, etc.)
    guest that uses VirtIO devices;

  * mach-virt-serial.cfg is similar but has a minimal
    set of devices and uses the serial console.

All configuration files are fully commented and neatly
organized.
---
 docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg | 262 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg    | 224 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 2 files changed, 486 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
 create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg

diff --git a/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg b/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2dab3af
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,262 @@
+# mach-virt - VirtIO guest (graphical console)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#   $ qemu-system-aarch64 \
+#     -nodefaults \
+#     -readconfig mach-virt-graphical.cfg \
+#     -cpu host
+#
+# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
+# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
+#
+# The guest will have a selection of VirtIO devices
+# tailored towards optimal performance with modern guests,
+# and will be accessed through a graphical console.
+#
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+#
+# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
+# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
+# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals,
+# such as the PL011 UART, plus a PCI Express Root Bus; the
+# user will then have to explicitly add further devices.
+#
+# The PCI Express Root Bus shows up in the guest as:
+#
+#   00:00.0 Host bridge
+#
+# This configuration file adds a number of other useful
+# devices, more specifically:
+#
+#   00:01.0 Display controller
+#   00.1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+#   01:00.0 SCSI storage controller
+#   02:00.0 Ethernet controller
+#   03:00.0 USB controller
+#
+# More information about these devices is available below.
+
+
+# Machine options
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use the virt machine type and enable KVM acceleration
+# for better performance.
+#
+# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
+# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
+# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
+#
+# Unfortunately, there is no way to configure the CPU model
+# in this file, so it will have to be provided on the
+# command line, but we can configure the guest to use the
+# same GIC version as the host.
+
+[machine]
+  type = "virt"
+  accel = "kvm"
+  gic-version = "host"
+
+[memory]
+  size = "1024"
+
+
+# Firmware configuration
+# =========================================================
+#
+# There are two parts to the firmware: a read-only image
+# containing the executable code, which is shared between
+# guests, and a read/write variable store that is owned
+# by one specific guest, exclusively, and is used to
+# record information such as the UEFI boot order.
+#
+# For any new guest, its permanent, private variable store
+# should initially be copied from the template file
+# provided along with the firmware binary.
+#
+# Depending on the OS distribution you're using on the
+# host, the name of the package containing the firmware
+# binary and variable store template, as well as the paths
+# to the files themselves, will be different. For example:
+#
+# Fedora
+#   edk2-aarch64                                      (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/QEMU_EFI-pflash.raw       (bin)
+#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/vars-template-pflash.raw  (var)
+#
+# RHEL
+#   AAVMF                                             (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
+#
+# Debian/Ubuntu
+#   qemu-efi                                          (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
+
+[drive "uefi-binary"]
+  file = "/usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd"       # CHANGE ME
+  format = "raw"
+  if = "pflash"
+  unit = "0"
+  readonly = "on"
+
+[drive "uefi-varstore"]
+  file = "guest_VARS.fd"                        # CHANGE ME
+  format = "raw"
+  if = "pflash"
+  unit = "1"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
+# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
+# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
+# available for hotplug.
+
+[device "pci.1"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.0"
+  port = "1"
+  chassis = "1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+
+[device "pci.2"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.1"
+  port = "2"
+  chassis = "2"
+
+[device "pci.3"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.2"
+  port = "3"
+  chassis = "3"
+
+[device "pci.4"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.3"
+  port = "4"
+  chassis = "4"
+
+[device "pci.5"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.4"
+  port = "5"
+  chassis = "5"
+
+[device "pci.6"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.5"
+  port = "6"
+  chassis = "6"
+
+[device "pci.7"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.6"
+  port = "7"
+  chassis = "7"
+
+[device "pci.8"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.7"
+  port = "8"
+  chassis = "8"
+
+
+# SCSI storage controller (and storage)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-scsi here so that we can (hot)plug a large
+# number of disks without running into issues; a SCSI disk,
+# backed by a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, is
+# attached to it.
+
+[device "scsi"]
+  driver = "virtio-scsi-pci"
+  bus = "pci.1"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "scsi-disk"]
+  driver = "scsi-hd"
+  bus = "scsi.0"
+  drive = "disk"
+
+[drive "disk"]
+  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
+  format = "qcow2"
+  if = "none"
+
+
+# Ethernet controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-net for improved performance over emulated
+# hardware; on the host side, we take advantage of user
+# networking so that the QEMU process doesn't require any
+# additional privileges.
+
+[netdev "hostnet"]
+  type = "user"
+
+[device "net"]
+  driver = "virtio-net-pci"
+  netdev = "hostnet"
+  bus = "pci.2"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+
+# USB controller (and input devices)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We add a virtualization-friendly USB 3.0 controller and
+# a USB keyboard / USB tablet combo so that graphical
+# guests can be controlled appropriately.
+
+[device "usb"]
+  driver = "nec-usb-xhci"
+  bus = "pci.3"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "keyboard"]
+  driver = "usb-kbd"
+  bus = "usb.0"
+
+[device "tablet"]
+  driver = "usb-tablet"
+  bus = "usb.0"
+
+
+# Display controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-gpu because the legacy VGA framebuffer is
+# very troublesome on aarch64, and virtio-gpu is the only
+# video device that doesn't implement it.
+#
+# If you're running the guest on a remote, potentially
+# headless host, you will probably want to append something
+# like
+#
+#   -display vnc=127.0.0.1:0
+#
+# to the command line in order to prevent QEMU from trying
+# to display a GTK+ window on the host and enable remote
+# access instead.
+
+[device "video"]
+  driver = "virtio-gpu"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "01.0"
diff --git a/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg b/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4a9126a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg
@@ -0,0 +1,224 @@
+# mach-virt - VirtIO guest (serial console)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#   $ qemu-system-aarch64 \
+#     -nodefaults \
+#     -readconfig mach-virt-serial.cfg \
+#     -display none -serial mon:stdio \
+#     -cpu host
+#
+# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
+# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
+#
+# The guest will have a selection of VirtIO devices
+# tailored towards optimal performance with modern guests,
+# and will be accessed through the serial console.
+#
+# ---------------------------------------------------------
+#
+# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
+# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
+# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals,
+# such as the PL011 UART, plus a PCI Express Root Bus; the
+# user will then have to explicitly add further devices.
+#
+# The PCI Express Root Bus shows up in the guest as:
+#
+#   00:00.0 Host bridge
+#
+# This configuration file adds a number of other useful
+# devices, more specifically:
+#
+#   00.1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+#   01:00.0 SCSI storage controller
+#   02:00.0 Ethernet controller
+#
+# More information about these devices is available below.
+#
+# We use '-display none' to prevent QEMU from creating a
+# graphical display window, which would serve no use in
+# this specific configuration, and '-serial mon:stdio' to
+# multiplex the guest's serial console and the QEMU monitor
+# to the host's stdio; use 'Ctrl+A h' to learn how to
+# switch between the two and more.
+
+
+# Machine options
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use the virt machine type and enable KVM acceleration
+# for better performance.
+#
+# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
+# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
+# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
+#
+# Unfortunately, there is no way to configure the CPU model
+# in this file, so it will have to be provided on the
+# command line, but we can configure the guest to use the
+# same GIC version as the host.
+
+[machine]
+  type = "virt"
+  accel = "kvm"
+  gic-version = "host"
+
+[memory]
+  size = "1024"
+
+
+# Firmware configuration
+# =========================================================
+#
+# There are two parts to the firmware: a read-only image
+# containing the executable code, which is shared between
+# guests, and a read/write variable store that is owned
+# by one specific guest, exclusively, and is used to
+# record information such as the UEFI boot order.
+#
+# For any new guest, its permanent, private variable store
+# should initially be copied from the template file
+# provided along with the firmware binary.
+#
+# Depending on the OS distribution you're using on the
+# host, the name of the package containing the firmware
+# binary and variable store template, as well as the paths
+# to the files themselves, will be different. For example:
+#
+# Fedora
+#   edk2-aarch64                                      (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/QEMU_EFI-pflash.raw       (bin)
+#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/vars-template-pflash.raw  (var)
+#
+# RHEL
+#   AAVMF                                             (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
+#
+# Debian/Ubuntu
+#   qemu-efi                                          (pkg)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
+#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
+
+[drive "uefi-binary"]
+  file = "/usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd"       # CHANGE ME
+  format = "raw"
+  if = "pflash"
+  unit = "0"
+  readonly = "on"
+
+[drive "uefi-varstore"]
+  file = "guest_VARS.fd"                        # CHANGE ME
+  format = "raw"
+  if = "pflash"
+  unit = "1"
+
+
+# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
+# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
+# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
+# available for hotplug.
+
+[device "pci.1"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.0"
+  port = "1"
+  chassis = "1"
+  multifunction = "on"
+
+[device "pci.2"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.1"
+  port = "2"
+  chassis = "2"
+
+[device "pci.3"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.2"
+  port = "3"
+  chassis = "3"
+
+[device "pci.4"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.3"
+  port = "4"
+  chassis = "4"
+
+[device "pci.5"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.4"
+  port = "5"
+  chassis = "5"
+
+[device "pci.6"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.5"
+  port = "6"
+  chassis = "6"
+
+[device "pci.7"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.6"
+  port = "7"
+  chassis = "7"
+
+[device "pci.8"]
+  driver = "pcie-root-port"
+  bus = "pcie.0"
+  addr = "1c.7"
+  port = "8"
+  chassis = "8"
+
+
+# SCSI storage controller (and storage)
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-scsi here so that we can (hot)plug a large
+# number of disks without running into issues; a SCSI disk,
+# backed by a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, is
+# attached to it.
+
+[device "scsi"]
+  driver = "virtio-scsi-pci"
+  bus = "pci.1"
+  addr = "00.0"
+
+[device "scsi-disk"]
+  driver = "scsi-hd"
+  bus = "scsi.0"
+  drive = "disk"
+
+[drive "disk"]
+  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
+  format = "qcow2"
+  if = "none"
+
+
+# Ethernet controller
+# =========================================================
+#
+# We use virtio-net for improved performance over emulated
+# hardware; on the host side, we take advantage of user
+# networking so that the QEMU process doesn't require any
+# additional privileges.
+
+[netdev "hostnet"]
+  type = "user"
+
+[device "net"]
+  driver = "virtio-net-pci"
+  netdev = "hostnet"
+  bus = "pci.2"
+  addr = "00.0"
-- 
2.7.4

Re: [Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 2/2] mach-virt: Provide sample configuration files

[Laszlo Ersek]

On 02/10/17 11:38, Andrea Bolognani wrote:
> These are very much like the sample configuration files
> for q35, and can be used both as documentation and as
> a starting point for creating your own guest.
> 
> Two sample configuration files are provided:
> 
>   * mach-virt-graphical.cfg can be used to start a
>     fully-featured (USB, graphical console, etc.)
>     guest that uses VirtIO devices;
> 
>   * mach-virt-serial.cfg is similar but has a minimal
>     set of devices and uses the serial console.
> 
> All configuration files are fully commented and neatly
> organized.
> ---
>  docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg | 262 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg    | 224 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  2 files changed, 486 insertions(+)
>  create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
>  create mode 100644 docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg

This looks awesome. I have some easy comments. (I likely could have made
them earlier, but didn't have time/energy to read the patch in full. Sorry!)

> 
> diff --git a/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg b/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
> new file mode 100644
> index 0000000..2dab3af
> --- /dev/null
> +++ b/docs/mach-virt-graphical.cfg
> @@ -0,0 +1,262 @@
> +# mach-virt - VirtIO guest (graphical console)
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# Usage:
> +#
> +#   $ qemu-system-aarch64 \
> +#     -nodefaults \
> +#     -readconfig mach-virt-graphical.cfg \
> +#     -cpu host

Clearly, for reviewing both files, I applied your patches, and then
diffed the two files created by this patch. :)

So, what speaks against adding "-serial mon:stdio" here too? Even with a
graphical guest, the monitor is useful. And, if you care about firmware
logs (who doesn't? ;)), seeing serial output is good. (Same applies to
the guest kernel -- sooner or later everyone enables serial output for
grub2 and kernel, for reporting bugs.)

Just my two cents, you're welcome to disagree.

> +#
> +# You will probably need to tweak the lines marked as
> +# CHANGE ME before being able to use this configuration!
> +#
> +# The guest will have a selection of VirtIO devices
> +# tailored towards optimal performance with modern guests,
> +# and will be accessed through a graphical console.

("will 'mainly' be accessed through a graphical console", if you agree
with the above)

> +#
> +# ---------------------------------------------------------
> +#
> +# Using -nodefaults is required to have full control over
> +# the virtual hardware: when it's specified, QEMU will
> +# populate the board with only the builtin peripherals,
> +# such as the PL011 UART, plus a PCI Express Root Bus; the
> +# user will then have to explicitly add further devices.
> +#
> +# The PCI Express Root Bus shows up in the guest as:
> +#
> +#   00:00.0 Host bridge
> +#
> +# This configuration file adds a number of other useful
> +# devices, more specifically:
> +#
> +#   00:01.0 Display controller
> +#   00.1c.* PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
> +#   01:00.0 SCSI storage controller
> +#   02:00.0 Ethernet controller
> +#   03:00.0 USB controller
> +#
> +# More information about these devices is available below.
> +
> +
> +# Machine options
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We use the virt machine type and enable KVM acceleration
> +# for better performance.
> +#
> +# Using less than 1 GiB of memory is probably not going to
> +# yield good performance in the guest, and might even lead
> +# to obscure boot issues in some cases.
> +#
> +# Unfortunately, there is no way to configure the CPU model
> +# in this file, so it will have to be provided on the
> +# command line, but we can configure the guest to use the
> +# same GIC version as the host.
> +
> +[machine]
> +  type = "virt"
> +  accel = "kvm"
> +  gic-version = "host"
> +
> +[memory]
> +  size = "1024"
> +
> +
> +# Firmware configuration
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# There are two parts to the firmware: a read-only image
> +# containing the executable code, which is shared between
> +# guests, and a read/write variable store that is owned
> +# by one specific guest, exclusively, and is used to
> +# record information such as the UEFI boot order.
> +#
> +# For any new guest, its permanent, private variable store
> +# should initially be copied from the template file
> +# provided along with the firmware binary.
> +#
> +# Depending on the OS distribution you're using on the
> +# host, the name of the package containing the firmware
> +# binary and variable store template, as well as the paths
> +# to the files themselves, will be different. For example:
> +#
> +# Fedora
> +#   edk2-aarch64                                      (pkg)
> +#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/QEMU_EFI-pflash.raw       (bin)
> +#   /usr/share/edk2/aarch64/vars-template-pflash.raw  (var)
> +#
> +# RHEL
> +#   AAVMF                                             (pkg)
> +#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
> +#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
> +#
> +# Debian/Ubuntu
> +#   qemu-efi                                          (pkg)
> +#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd                    (bin)
> +#   /usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_VARS.fd                    (var)
> +
> +[drive "uefi-binary"]
> +  file = "/usr/share/AAVMF/AAVMF_CODE.fd"       # CHANGE ME
> +  format = "raw"
> +  if = "pflash"
> +  unit = "0"
> +  readonly = "on"
> +
> +[drive "uefi-varstore"]
> +  file = "guest_VARS.fd"                        # CHANGE ME
> +  format = "raw"
> +  if = "pflash"
> +  unit = "1"
> +
> +
> +# PCI bridge (PCI Express Root Ports)
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
> +# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
> +# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
> +# available for hotplug.
> +
> +[device "pci.1"]

I suggest to call these devices "pcie.x" (and update the references).

> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.0"
> +  port = "1"
> +  chassis = "1"
> +  multifunction = "on"
> +
> +[device "pci.2"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.1"
> +  port = "2"
> +  chassis = "2"
> +
> +[device "pci.3"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.2"
> +  port = "3"
> +  chassis = "3"
> +
> +[device "pci.4"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.3"
> +  port = "4"
> +  chassis = "4"
> +
> +[device "pci.5"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.4"
> +  port = "5"
> +  chassis = "5"
> +
> +[device "pci.6"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.5"
> +  port = "6"
> +  chassis = "6"
> +
> +[device "pci.7"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.6"
> +  port = "7"
> +  chassis = "7"
> +
> +[device "pci.8"]
> +  driver = "pcie-root-port"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "1c.7"
> +  port = "8"
> +  chassis = "8"
> +
> +
> +# SCSI storage controller (and storage)
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We use virtio-scsi here so that we can (hot)plug a large
> +# number of disks without running into issues; a SCSI disk,
> +# backed by a qcow2 disk image on the host's filesystem, is
> +# attached to it.
> +
> +[device "scsi"]
> +  driver = "virtio-scsi-pci"
> +  bus = "pci.1"
> +  addr = "00.0"
> +
> +[device "scsi-disk"]
> +  driver = "scsi-hd"
> +  bus = "scsi.0"
> +  drive = "disk"
> +
> +[drive "disk"]
> +  file = "guest.qcow2"                          # CHANGE ME
> +  format = "qcow2"
> +  if = "none"

A number of suggestions. If you think they are beyond the scope of these
examples, or plain disagree, that's fine. :)

* please add a CD-ROM too (scsi-cd), and point its drive to some
installer ISO. (remember # CHANGE ME for the pathname)

* please spell out the "bootindex" property for both the disk and the
CD-ROM device. If you set booindex=1 for the disk and bootindex=2 for
the CD-ROM, then that configuration is permanently suitable for first
installing the guest from the ISO, then booting it all subsequent times
from the disk. ArmVirtQemu is king like that! ;)

* I'm a *huge* fan of saving disk space on the host. So, thin
provisioning FTW! Virtio-scsi is definitely a step in the right
direction, but for the disk drive, please add these wo properties:

  discard = "unmap"
  werror = "enospc"

The first property will release host filesystem blocks when the guest
runs "fstrim". The second option lets you over-provision the host
filesystem, and if a guest runs out of room mid-flight, it will be
paused. You can free up more disk space and unpause the guest then.

(There's also "detect-zeroes", but I've never tried that. I very vaguely
recall reading bad things about its CPU demand. I could be wrong, but I
certainly don't feel comfortable enough to actively recommend it.)

> +
> +
> +# Ethernet controller
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We use virtio-net for improved performance over emulated
> +# hardware; on the host side, we take advantage of user
> +# networking so that the QEMU process doesn't require any
> +# additional privileges.
> +
> +[netdev "hostnet"]
> +  type = "user"
> +
> +[device "net"]
> +  driver = "virtio-net-pci"
> +  netdev = "hostnet"
> +  bus = "pci.2"
> +  addr = "00.0"
> +
> +
> +# USB controller (and input devices)
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We add a virtualization-friendly USB 3.0 controller and
> +# a USB keyboard / USB tablet combo so that graphical
> +# guests can be controlled appropriately.
> +
> +[device "usb"]
> +  driver = "nec-usb-xhci"
> +  bus = "pci.3"
> +  addr = "00.0"
> +
> +[device "keyboard"]
> +  driver = "usb-kbd"
> +  bus = "usb.0"
> +
> +[device "tablet"]
> +  driver = "usb-tablet"
> +  bus = "usb.0"
> +
> +
> +# Display controller
> +# =========================================================
> +#
> +# We use virtio-gpu because the legacy VGA framebuffer is
> +# very troublesome on aarch64, and virtio-gpu is the only
> +# video device that doesn't implement it.
> +#
> +# If you're running the guest on a remote, potentially
> +# headless host, you will probably want to append something
> +# like
> +#
> +#   -display vnc=127.0.0.1:0
> +#
> +# to the command line in order to prevent QEMU from trying
> +# to display a GTK+ window on the host and enable remote
> +# access instead.

Haha, someone prefers GTK+ to SDL? :) Last time I checked the GTK+
window, it was painful. (It was a very long time ago.)

Maybe that's to blame on GTK+ *in RHEL-7* specifically, I'm uncertain.
But, I digress; no need to do anything about this.

> +
> +[device "video"]
> +  driver = "virtio-gpu"
> +  bus = "pcie.0"
> +  addr = "01.0"
> diff --git a/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg b/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg
> new file mode 100644
> index 0000000..4a9126a
> --- /dev/null
> +++ b/docs/mach-virt-serial.cfg

[snipping this, I diffed graphical & serial between each other]

Looks very nice.

Pick anything from the above that you like (or even pick nothing, that's
fine too):

Reviewed-by: Laszlo Ersek <lersek@redhat.com>

Thanks!
Laszlo

Re: [Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 2/2] mach-virt: Provide sample configuration files

[Andrea Bolognani]

On Fri, 2017-02-10 at 12:43 +0100, Laszlo Ersek wrote:
> So, what speaks against adding "-serial mon:stdio" here too? Even with a
> graphical guest, the monitor is useful. And, if you care about firmware
> logs (who doesn't? ;)), seeing serial output is good. (Same applies to
> the guest kernel -- sooner or later everyone enables serial output for
> grub2 and kernel, for reporting bugs.)
> 
> Just my two cents, you're welcome to disagree.

The sample configurations are opinionated, that's why there
are both a graphical and a serial variant and not a single
configuration with everything but the kitchen sink. Users
are of course more than welcome to mix and match :)

> > +# We create eight PCI Express Root Ports, and we plug them
> > +# all into separate functions of the same slot. Some of
> > +# them will be used by devices, the rest will remain
> > +# available for hotplug.
> > +
> > +[device "pci.1"]
> 
> I suggest to call these devices "pcie.x" (and update the references).

Makes sense. I followed libvirt's naming here, but there
is no reason not to highlight the fact that these
controllers are, indeed, PCI Express rather than legacy
PCI.

[...]
> A number of suggestions. If you think they are beyond the scope of these
> examples, or plain disagree, that's fine. :)
> 
> * please add a CD-ROM too (scsi-cd), and point its drive to some
> installer ISO. (remember # CHANGE ME for the pathname)
> 
> * please spell out the "bootindex" property for both the disk and the
> CD-ROM device. If you set booindex=1 for the disk and bootindex=2 for
> the CD-ROM, then that configuration is permanently suitable for first
> installing the guest from the ISO, then booting it all subsequent times
> from the disk. ArmVirtQemu is king like that! ;)

So it does! And the same trick works for SeaBIOS as well,
I just tested with the q35 sample configurations :)

I'll include this.

> * I'm a *huge* fan of saving disk space on the host. So, thin
> provisioning FTW! Virtio-scsi is definitely a step in the right
> direction, but for the disk drive, please add these wo properties:
> 
>   discard = "unmap"
>   werror = "enospc"
> 
> The first property will release host filesystem blocks when the guest
> runs "fstrim". The second option lets you over-provision the host
> filesystem, and if a guest runs out of room mid-flight, it will be
> paused. You can free up more disk space and unpause the guest then.
> 
> (There's also "detect-zeroes", but I've never tried that. I very vaguely
> recall reading bad things about its CPU demand. I could be wrong, but I
> certainly don't feel comfortable enough to actively recommend it.)

I think such tweaks, while definitely useful, fall beyond
the scope of these sample configuration files.

[...]
> > +# If you're running the guest on a remote, potentially
> > +# headless host, you will probably want to append something
> > +# like
> > +#
> > +#   -display vnc=127.0.0.1:0
> > +#
> > +# to the command line in order to prevent QEMU from trying
> > +# to display a GTK+ window on the host and enable remote
> > +# access instead.
> 
> Haha, someone prefers GTK+ to SDL? :) Last time I checked the GTK+
> window, it was painful. (It was a very long time ago.)
> 
> Maybe that's to blame on GTK+ *in RHEL-7* specifically, I'm uncertain.
> But, I digress; no need to do anything about this.

GTK+ just seems to be the default display mode, so no
preference of my own really - although I have no problem
admitting that I'm a massive GNOME fan ;)

Calling out GTK+ explicitly here does not serve any purpose,
though, so I'll change it to a more neutral wording.

-- 
Andrea Bolognani / Red Hat / Virtualization

Re: [Qemu-devel] [PATCH v6 2/2] mach-virt: Provide sample configuration files

[Gerd Hoffmann]

  Hi,

> Clearly, for reviewing both files, I applied your patches, and then
> diffed the two files created by this patch. :)
> 
> So, what speaks against adding "-serial mon:stdio" here too? Even with a
> graphical guest, the monitor is useful. And, if you care about firmware
> logs (who doesn't? ;)), seeing serial output is good. (Same applies to
> the guest kernel -- sooner or later everyone enables serial output for
> grub2 and kernel, for reporting bugs.)

Depends on the target audience.  I'd expect users don't care much,
developers probably do.

Yes, most of my virtual machines have a serial console too, even if they
boot into graphic mode.  If I screwed up graphics with a bad virtio-gpu
patch it is very useful to have serial console to figure what exactly
broke ...

> * I'm a *huge* fan of saving disk space on the host. So, thin
> provisioning FTW! Virtio-scsi is definitely a step in the right
> direction, but for the disk drive, please add these wo properties:
> 
>   discard = "unmap"
>   werror = "enospc"

Good idea!

cheers,
  Gerd