Re: [Qemu-devel] RFC for new features

Re: [Qemu-devel] RFC for new features

[Thomas Munn]

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Things I think would be nice:
 
1.  Definately a DISK manager/compressor ala vmware disk images (so I
don't have to waste 4+gb if I don't have a full fileysystem!)
2.  Command line support for restoring state files (instead of having
to start and then load state in monitor machines) -state filename?
3.  support for -march athlon-xp and -march athlon-xp (and other x-86
processors) for faster binary
 
Thomas

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Re: [Qemu-devel] RFC for new features

[Johannes Schindelin]

Hi,

On Thu, 8 Jul 2004, Thomas Munn wrote:
> 1.  Definately a DISK manager/compressor ala vmware disk images (so I
> don't have to waste 4+gb if I don't have a full fileysystem!)

Fabrice already mentioned that, right? I would favor using cloop devices,
i.e. using the toolset from cloop to create compressed "devices". Knoppix
uses this system to pack much more than 700MB on a CD.

The advantage of cloop as compared to gzip'ed filesystem: Everytime you
seek in the file, with gzip you have to either have stored a certain zlib
state or decompress the whole file up to that point. With cloop this
problem is solved.

> 2.  Command line support for restoring state files (instead of having
> to start and then load state in monitor machines) -state filename?

This is the "-V" option in the VNC patch. For this to work we also need a
save handler for the keyboard. I will prepare that patch later today.

The config file came up a few times. I don't know. For those who
absolutely have to have it, maybe just a file which has exactly the same
syntax as the command line so you don't have to learn two ways to say the
same thing. For sure not an overkill like XML! The extended markup
language is good to markup complex structures, certainly not something as
trivial as a qemu command line.

The Ctrl-Shift-F2 monitor thing is a cute idea, but I really would like to
at least optionally retain the old style monitor.

Ciao,
Dscho

Re: [Qemu-devel] RFC for new features

[Julian Seward]

On Friday 09 July 2004 11:02, Johannes Schindelin wrote:
> Hi,
>
> On Thu, 8 Jul 2004, Thomas Munn wrote:
> > 1.  Definately a DISK manager/compressor ala vmware disk images (so I
> > don't have to waste 4+gb if I don't have a full fileysystem!)
>
> Fabrice already mentioned that, right? I would favor using cloop devices,
> i.e. using the toolset from cloop to create compressed "devices". Knoppix
> uses this system to pack much more than 700MB on a CD.
>
> The advantage of cloop as compared to gzip'ed filesystem: Everytime you
> seek in the file, with gzip you have to either have stored a certain zlib
> state or decompress the whole file up to that point. With cloop this
> problem is solved.

I don't think it's a good idea to compress the real data in the filesystem
it reduces performance and adds complexity.  All that's needed is
to modify the current cow disk system so that unused sectors don't take
any (much) space in the .cow file _without_ having to rely on filesystems
which support holes in files.

vmware (afaik) doesn't really compress disk images, at least not
compression in the gzip/zlib sense.  What it does is understand the
filesystem in the disk image, so it knows where the unused sectors are,
and arranges for them to take more or less zero space in the .vmdk
file.

> The Ctrl-Shift-F2 monitor thing is a cute idea, but I really would like to
> at least optionally retain the old style monitor.

I agree it is a good idea.  Mostly I just want to run WinXP without
having to have a seperate xterm for the monitor, so I vote in favour
of this one.

J

[Qemu-devel] savevm handler for pckbd

[Johannes Schindelin]

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Hi,

attached are patches to support a savevm handler for the keyboard and
mouse against current CVS. One is with the touchpad support (the patch
that Jim sent to this list), the other one without.

This handler is necessary in order to loadvm a state of a running X11
system (at least according to my tests).

Ciao,
Dscho

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Re: [Qemu-devel] savevm handler for pckbd

[Fabrice Bellard]

Johannes Schindelin wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> attached are patches to support a savevm handler for the keyboard and
> mouse against current CVS. One is with the touchpad support (the patch
> that Jim sent to this list), the other one without.
> 
> This handler is necessary in order to loadvm a state of a running X11
> system (at least according to my tests).

Applied (no touchpad for 0.6.0 release).

Fabrice.