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I just installed RHEL 7.1 on a server. I'm using it to study for the RHCSA/RHCE exams. One of the steps in the study guide is to install a VM through virt-manager using installation media on an FTP server. The OS variant list only goes up to RHEL 7.0.

I attempted to install 7.1 but it threw an error every time:

An unknown error has occurred

The dialog that contains the error also provides debug information and a backtrace leading up to the error. I have not been able to find any cause of the problem when sifting through this data.

I downloaded the RHEL 7.0 installation media. When pointing the VM at that during the configuration the installation does not throw the error and runs normally.

I find it strange that virt-manager on RHEL 7.1 can't install a RHEL 7.1 VM. But that's neither here nor there.

Is it possible to add RHEL 7.1 to the list? If so will it be recognized or are there other things that virt-manager relies on to ensure the process functions correctly?

theillien
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2 Answers2

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The OS variants are from the libosinfo project, from which virt-manager/virt-install builds an initial QEMU profile.

It's worth noting that Cole Robinson, primary developer of virt-manager, wrote that

Use of virt-install without a detected guest OS, and without manually specified --os-variant, is a never ending source of bugs and user confusion and poorly performing VM configs.

In the same mail he proposed (and subsequently added) generic Linux profiles like linux2018 and linux2020. In the libosinfo database, those profiles are derived from Ubuntu LTS versions.

You should avoid using generic. If your specific distro + version is not available, use an older version for the same distro, or use a linuxYYYY profile.

Craig Younkins
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The OS variant isn't really that important. It just sets some defaults like the default amount of RAM and CPUs. You can safely set it to the closest available match (e.g. RHEL 7.0 for 7.1).

Michael Hampton
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  • I did that. The error appeared every time I attempted to run the installation. Only after pointing to the 7.0 directory did it succeed. – theillien Jun 11 '15 at 01:53
  • I dunno. When I point virt-manager at `rhel-server-7.1-x86_64-dvd.iso`, and have it set to "Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0" it installs without a problem. You may want to make sure you got the right image; [Red Hat accidentally released a bad ISO image and had to replace it](https://access.redhat.com/discussions/1373663). Or you can install 7.0 and update it to 7.1. – Michael Hampton Jun 11 '15 at 02:06
  • I'm not using the ISO. I'm performing a network installation pulling from FTP. – theillien Jun 11 '15 at 02:59
  • @theillien I'd suspect something wrong with your FTP server or the files on it, then, long before virt-manager. – Michael Hampton Jun 11 '15 at 03:06
  • I downloaded a fresh copy of RHEL 7.1 directly to the server, wiped out the existing directory, created a new directory, then copied all of the files over. The error persists. It definitely isn't something with FTP; I was able to successfully install 7.0. It wouldn't be `virt-manager` for the same reason.The checksum on the ISO is correct. – theillien Jun 11 '15 at 09:52