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Date:      Sat, 8 Jul 2023 13:08:51 -0600
From:      John Nielsen <lists@jnielsen.net>
To:        void <void@f-m.fm>
Cc:        freebsd-virtualization@freebsd.org
Subject:   Re: convert bhyve vm image to something linux lvm/kvm/qemu can use
Message-ID:  <ADE05824-E6B0-4E01-B149-3E65087145BB@jnielsen.net>
In-Reply-To: <ZKlBoqY3JLrcrH-U@int21h>
References:  <ZKlBoqY3JLrcrH-U@int21h>

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> On Jul 8, 2023, at 5:00 AM, void <void@f-m.fm> wrote:
>=20
> =EF=BB=BFHello list,
>=20
> I need to convert a bhyve filebacked (so: .img) freebsd instance to
> something a linux host running lvm+kvm+qemu would understand.
>=20
> What format do I need to convert it to?

Qemu can handle raw images just fine. If you want something more space frien=
dly with more features you could do qcow2. (Use qemu-img to convert.)

> Do I need to worry about the boot partition of the freebsd instance?

If the VM is set up to boot with UEFI then the partitioning should be fine w=
ith no changes, just make sure you use an appropriate UEFI boot firmware wit=
h qemu (libvirtd makes this pretty straightforward).

If you are using bhyve-load or similar to load the kernel from the bhyve hyp=
ervisor you=E2=80=99ll need to adapt to a normal boot (could be either BIOS o=
r UEFI, IMO UEFI is easier and it=E2=80=99s much more modern). If doing the f=
ormer then you will likely need a FreeBSD-boot partition and to make sure al=
l the boot blocks are in the right places (see the man page for gpart=E2=80=99=
s =E2=80=9Cbootstrap=E2=80=9D command). If doing the latter you=E2=80=99ll n=
eed an EFI MSDOS partition but you can just copy the EFI boot loader to it. S=
ee the handbook. Also keep in mind that EFI doesn=E2=80=99t have to be the f=
irst partition so if you=E2=80=99re out of space you can just extend the dis=
k and add it at the end.

JN





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