Libvirt is an open source virtualization API that provides a consistent interface enabling you to provision, start, stop, migrate, and monitor VMs on KVM hypervisor.
The management of the libvirtd service can vary slightly depending on the host operating system – whether it uses systemd or the older init systems like SysVinit or Upstart.
Here’s we show you how the management of the libvirtd service can be performed on different init systems. The list should cover the common Libvirtd service management operations you might need to perform on various systems.
1. Systemd
Enable libvirtd service to start on system boot:
sudo systemctl enable libvirtdStart the libvirtd service:
sudo systemctl start libvirtdCheck the libvirtd service status:
sudo systemctl status libvirtdStop the libvirtd service:
sudo systemctl stop libvirtdRestart the libvirtd service:
sudo systemctl restart libvirtdReload the libvirtd service configuration without stopping it:
sudo systemctl reload libvirtdDisable the libvirtd service so it does not start on boot:
sudo systemctl disable libvirtd2. SysVinit
Enable the libvirtd service to start on boot:
sudo chkconfig libvirtd onStart the libvirtd service:
sudo service libvirtd startCheck the status of the libvirtd service:
sudo service libvirtd statusStop the libvirtd service:
sudo service libvirtd stopRestart the libvirtd service:
sudo service libvirtd restartReload the libvirtd service configuration without stopping it:
sudo service libvirtd reloadDisable the libvirtd service so it does not start on boot:
sudo chkconfig libvirtd off3. Upstart
Upstart is primarily used in older versions of Ubuntu (from 9.10 to 14.10) and some other distributions.
Start the libvirtd service:
sudo start libvirtdCheck the status of the libvirtd service:
sudo status libvirtdStop the libvirtd service:
sudo stop libvirtdRestart the libvirtd service:
sudo restart libvirtdReload the libvirtd service configuration without stopping it:
sudo reload libvirtdSummary of Commands
| Action | Systemd | SysVinit | Upstart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enable service | systemctl enable libvirtd | chkconfig libvirtd on | N/A |
| Start service | systemctl start libvirtd | service libvirtd start | start libvirtd |
| Check status | systemctl status libvirtd | service libvirtd status | status libvirtd |
| Stop service | systemctl stop libvirtd | service libvirtd stop | stop libvirtd |
| Restart service | systemctl restart libvirtd | service libvirtd restart | restart libvirtd |
| Reload service | systemctl reload libvirtd | service libvirtd reload | reload libvirtd |
| Disable service | systemctl disable libvirtd | chkconfig libvirtd off | N/A |
