QEMU emulator version 2.5.0 (Debian 1:2.5+dfsg-5ubuntu10.16), Copyright (c) 2003-2008 Fabrice Bellard
usage: qemu-system-i386 [options] [disk_image]
'disk_image' is a raw hard disk image for IDE hard disk 0
Standard options:
-h or -help display this help and exit
-version display version information and exit
-machine [type=]name[,prop[=value][,...]]
selects emulated machine ('-machine help' for list)
property accel=accel1[:accel2[:...]] selects accelerator
supported accelerators are kvm, xen, tcg (default: tcg)
kernel_irqchip=on|off controls accelerated irqchip support
vmport=on|off|auto controls emulation of vmport (default: auto)
kvm_shadow_mem=size of KVM shadow MMU
dump-guest-core=on|off include guest memory in a core dump (default=on)
mem-merge=on|off controls memory merge support (default: on)
iommu=on|off controls emulated Intel IOMMU (VT-d) support (default=off)
igd-passthru=on|off controls IGD GFX passthrough support (default=off)
aes-key-wrap=on|off controls support for AES key wrapping (default=on)
dea-key-wrap=on|off controls support for DEA key wrapping (default=on)
suppress-vmdesc=on|off disables self-describing migration (default=off)
-cpu cpu select CPU ('-cpu help' for list)
-smp [cpus=]n[,maxcpus=cpus][,cores=cores][,threads=threads][,sockets=sockets]
set the number of CPUs to 'n' [default=1]
maxcpus= maximum number of total cpus, including
offline CPUs for hotplug, etc
cores= number of CPU cores on one socket
threads= number of threads on one CPU core
sockets= number of discrete sockets in the system
-numa node[,mem=size][,cpus=cpu[-cpu]][,nodeid=node]
-numa node[,memdev=id][,cpus=cpu[-cpu]][,nodeid=node]
-add-fd fd=fd,set=set[,opaque=opaque]
Add 'fd' to fd 'set'
-set group.id.arg=value
set <arg> parameter for item <id> of type <group>
i.e. -set drive.$id.file=/path/to/image
-global driver.property=value
-global driver=driver,property=property,value=value
set a global default for a driver property
-boot [order=drives][,once=drives][,menu=on|off]
[,splash=sp_name][,splash-time=sp_time][,reboot-timeout=rb_time][,strict=on|off]
'drives': floppy (a), hard disk (c), CD-ROM (d), network (n)
'sp_name': the file's name that would be passed to bios as logo picture, if menu=on
'sp_time': the period that splash picture last if menu=on, unit is ms
'rb_timeout': the timeout before guest reboot when boot failed, unit is ms
-m[emory] [size=]megs[,slots=n,maxmem=size]
configure guest RAM
size: initial amount of guest memory
slots: number of hotplug slots (default: none)
maxmem: maximum amount of guest memory (default: none)
NOTE: Some architectures might enforce a specific granularity
-mem-path FILE provide backing storage for guest RAM
-mem-prealloc preallocate guest memory (use with -mem-path)
-k language use keyboard layout (for example 'fr' for French)
-audio-help print list of audio drivers and their options
-soundhw c1,... enable audio support
and only specified sound cards (comma separated list)
use '-soundhw help' to get the list of supported cards
use '-soundhw all' to enable all of them
-balloon none disable balloon device
-balloon virtio[,addr=str]
enable virtio balloon device (default)
-device driver[,prop[=value][,...]]
add device (based on driver)
prop=value,... sets driver properties
use '-device help' to print all possible drivers
use '-device driver,help' to print all possible properties
-name string1[,process=string2][,debug-threads=on|off]
set the name of the guest
string1 sets the window title and string2 the process name (on Linux)
When debug-threads is enabled, individual threads are given a separate name (on Linux)
NOTE: The thread names are for debugging and not a stable API.
-uuid %08x-%04x-%04x-%04x-%012x
specify machine UUID
Block device options:
-fda/-fdb file use 'file' as floppy disk 0/1 image
-hda/-hdb file use 'file' as IDE hard disk 0/1 image
-hdc/-hdd file use 'file' as IDE hard disk 2/3 image
-cdrom file use 'file' as IDE cdrom image (cdrom is ide1 master)
-drive [file=file][,if=type][,bus=n][,unit=m][,media=d][,index=i]
[,cyls=c,heads=h,secs=s[,trans=t]][,snapshot=on|off]
[,cache=writethrough|writeback|none|directsync|unsafe][,format=f]
[,serial=s][,addr=A][,rerror=ignore|stop|report]
[,werror=ignore|stop|report|enospc][,id=name][,aio=threads|native]
[,readonly=on|off][,copy-on-read=on|off]
[,discard=ignore|unmap][,detect-zeroes=on|off|unmap]
[[,bps=b]|[[,bps_rd=r][,bps_wr=w]]]
[[,iops=i]|[[,iops_rd=r][,iops_wr=w]]]
[[,bps_max=bm]|[[,bps_rd_max=rm][,bps_wr_max=wm]]]
[[,iops_max=im]|[[,iops_rd_max=irm][,iops_wr_max=iwm]]]
[[,iops_size=is]]
[[,group=g]]
use 'file' as a drive image
-mtdblock file use 'file' as on-board Flash memory image
-sd file use 'file' as SecureDigital card image
-pflash file use 'file' as a parallel flash image
-snapshot write to temporary files instead of disk image files
-hdachs c,h,s[,t]
force hard disk 0 physical geometry and the optional BIOS
translation (t=none or lba) (usually QEMU can guess them)
-fsdev fsdriver,id=id[,path=path,][security_model={mapped-xattr|mapped-file|passthrough|none}]
[,writeout=immediate][,readonly][,socket=socket|sock_fd=sock_fd]
-virtfs local,path=path,mount_tag=tag,security_model=[mapped-xattr|mapped-file|passthrough|none]
[,writeout=immediate][,readonly][,socket=socket|sock_fd=sock_fd]
-virtfs_synth Create synthetic file system image
USB options:
-usb enable the USB driver (will be the default soon)
-usbdevice name add the host or guest USB device 'name'
Display options:
-display sdl[,frame=on|off][,alt_grab=on|off][,ctrl_grab=on|off]
[,window_close=on|off]|curses|none|
gtk[,grab_on_hover=on|off]|
vnc=<display>[,<optargs>]
select display type
-nographic disable graphical output and redirect serial I/Os to console
-curses use a curses/ncurses interface instead of SDL
-no-frame open SDL window without a frame and window decorations
-alt-grab use Ctrl-Alt-Shift to grab mouse (instead of Ctrl-Alt)
-ctrl-grab use Right-Ctrl to grab mouse (instead of Ctrl-Alt)
-no-quit disable SDL window close capability
-sdl enable SDL
-spice [port=port][,tls-port=secured-port][,x509-dir=<dir>]
[,x509-key-file=<file>][,x509-key-password=<file>]
[,x509-cert-file=<file>][,x509-cacert-file=<file>]
[,x509-dh-key-file=<file>][,addr=addr][,ipv4|ipv6|unix]
[,tls-ciphers=<list>]
[,tls-channel=[main|display|cursor|inputs|record|playback]]
[,plaintext-channel=[main|display|cursor|inputs|record|playback]]
[,sasl][,password=<secret>][,disable-ticketing]
[,image-compression=[auto_glz|auto_lz|quic|glz|lz|off]]
[,jpeg-wan-compression=[auto|never|always]]
[,zlib-glz-wan-compression=[auto|never|always]]
[,streaming-video=[off|all|filter]][,disable-copy-paste]
[,disable-agent-file-xfer][,agent-mouse=[on|off]]
[,playback-compression=[on|off]][,seamless-migration=[on|off]]
enable spice
at least one of {port, tls-port} is mandatory
-portrait rotate graphical output 90 deg left (only PXA LCD)
-rotate <deg> rotate graphical output some deg left (only PXA LCD)
-vga [std|cirrus|vmware|qxl|xenfb|tcx|cg3|virtio|none]
select video card type
-full-screen start in full screen
-vnc display start a VNC server on display
1 target only:
-win2k-hack use it when installing Windows 2000 to avoid a disk full bug
-no-fd-bootchk disable boot signature checking for floppy disks
-no-acpi disable ACPI
-no-hpet disable HPET
-acpitable [sig=str][,rev=n][,oem_id=str][,oem_table_id=str][,oem_rev=n][,asl_compiler_id=str][,asl_compiler_rev=n][,{data|file}=file1[:file2]...]
ACPI table description
-smbios file=binary
load SMBIOS entry from binary file
-smbios type=0[,vendor=str][,version=str][,date=str][,release=%d.%d]
[,uefi=on|off]
specify SMBIOS type 0 fields
-smbios type=1[,manufacturer=str][,product=str][,version=str][,serial=str]
[,uuid=uuid][,sku=str][,family=str]
specify SMBIOS type 1 fields
-smbios type=2[,manufacturer=str][,product=str][,version=str][,serial=str]
[,asset=str][,location=str]
specify SMBIOS type 2 fields
-smbios type=3[,manufacturer=str][,version=str][,serial=str][,asset=str]
[,sku=str]
specify SMBIOS type 3 fields
-smbios type=4[,sock_pfx=str][,manufacturer=str][,version=str][,serial=str]
[,asset=str][,part=str]
specify SMBIOS type 4 fields
-smbios type=17[,loc_pfx=str][,bank=str][,manufacturer=str][,serial=str]
[,asset=str][,part=str][,speed=%d]
specify SMBIOS type 17 fields
Network options:
-netdev user,id=str[,net=addr[/mask]][,host=addr][,restrict=on|off]
[,hostname=host][,dhcpstart=addr][,dns=addr][,dnssearch=domain][,tftp=dir]
[,bootfile=f][,hostfwd=rule][,guestfwd=rule][,smb=dir[,smbserver=addr]]
configure a user mode network backend with ID 'str',
its DHCP server and optional services
-netdev tap,id=str[,fd=h][,fds=x:y:...:z][,ifname=name][,script=file][,downscript=dfile]
[,helper=helper][,sndbuf=nbytes][,vnet_hdr=on|off][,vhost=on|off]
[,vhostfd=h][,vhostfds=x:y:...:z][,vhostforce=on|off][,queues=n]
configure a host TAP network backend with ID 'str'
use network scripts 'file' (default=/etc/qemu-ifup)
to configure it and 'dfile' (default=/etc/qemu-ifdown)
to deconfigure it
use '[down]script=no' to disable script execution
use network helper 'helper' (default=/usr/lib/qemu/qemu-bridge-helper) to
configure it
use 'fd=h' to connect to an already opened TAP interface
use 'fds=x:y:...:z' to connect to already opened multiqueue capable TAP interfaces
use 'sndbuf=nbytes' to limit the size of the send buffer (the
default is disabled 'sndbuf=0' to enable flow control set 'sndbuf=1048576')
use vnet_hdr=off to avoid enabling the IFF_VNET_HDR tap flag
use vnet_hdr=on to make the lack of IFF_VNET_HDR support an error condition
use vhost=on to enable experimental in kernel accelerator
(only has effect for virtio guests which use MSIX)
use vhostforce=on to force vhost on for non-MSIX virtio guests
use 'vhostfd=h' to connect to an already opened vhost net device
use 'vhostfds=x:y:...:z to connect to multiple already opened vhost net devices
use 'queues=n' to specify the number of queues to be created for multiqueue TAP
-netdev bridge,id=str[,br=bridge][,helper=helper]
configure a host TAP network backend with ID 'str' that is
connected to a bridge (default=br0)
using the program 'helper (default=/usr/lib/qemu/qemu-bridge-helper)
-netdev l2tpv3,id=str,src=srcaddr,dst=dstaddr[,srcport=srcport][,dstport=dstport]
[,rxsession=rxsession],txsession=txsession[,ipv6=on/off][,udp=on/off]
[,cookie64=on/off][,counter][,pincounter][,txcookie=txcookie]
[,rxcookie=rxcookie][,offset=offset]
configure a network backend with ID 'str' connected to
an Ethernet over L2TPv3 pseudowire.
Linux kernel 3.3+ as well as most routers can talk
L2TPv3. This transport allows connecting a VM to a VM,
VM to a router and even VM to Host. It is a nearly-universal
standard (RFC3391). Note - this implementation uses static
pre-configured tunnels (same as the Linux kernel).
use 'src=' to specify source address
use 'dst=' to specify destination address
use 'udp=on' to specify udp encapsulation
use 'srcport=' to specify source udp port
use 'dstport=' to specify destination udp port
use 'ipv6=on' to force v6
L2TPv3 uses cookies to prevent misconfiguration as
well as a weak security measure
use 'rxcookie=0x012345678' to specify a rxcookie
use 'txcookie=0x012345678' to specify a txcookie
use 'cookie64=on' to set cookie size to 64 bit, otherwise 32
use 'counter=off' to force a 'cut-down' L2TPv3 with no counter
use 'pincounter=on' to work around broken counter handling in peer
use 'offset=X' to add an extra offset between header and data
-netdev socket,id=str[,fd=h][,listen=[host]:port][,connect=host:port]
configure a network backend to connect to another network
using a socket connection
-netdev socket,id=str[,fd=h][,mcast=maddr:port[,localaddr=addr]]
configure a network backend to connect to a multicast maddr and port
use 'localaddr=addr' to specify the host address to send packets from
-netdev socket,id=str[,fd=h][,udp=host:port][,localaddr=host:port]
configure a network backend to connect to another network
using an UDP tunnel
-netdev vhost-user,id=str,chardev=dev[,vhostforce=on|off]
configure a vhost-user network, backed by a chardev 'dev'
-netdev hubport,id=str,hubid=n
configure a hub port on QEMU VLAN 'n'
-net nic[,vlan=n][,macaddr=mac][,model=type][,name=str][,addr=str][,vectors=v]
old way to create a new NIC and connect it to VLAN 'n'
(use the '-device devtype,netdev=str' option if possible instead)
-net dump[,vlan=n][,file=f][,len=n]
dump traffic on vlan 'n' to file 'f' (max n bytes per packet)
-net none use it alone to have zero network devices. If no -net option
is provided, the default is '-net nic -net user'
-net [user|tap|bridge|socket][,vlan=n][,option][,option][,...]
old way to initialize a host network interface
(use the -netdev option if possible instead)
Character device options:
-chardev null,id=id[,mux=on|off]
-chardev socket,id=id[,host=host],port=port[,to=to][,ipv4][,ipv6][,nodelay][,reconnect=seconds]
[,server][,nowait][,telnet][,reconnect=seconds][,mux=on|off] (tcp)
-chardev socket,id=id,path=path[,server][,nowait][,telnet][,reconnect=seconds][,mux=on|off] (unix)
-chardev udp,id=id[,host=host],port=port[,localaddr=localaddr]
[,localport=localport][,ipv4][,ipv6][,mux=on|off]
-chardev msmouse,id=id[,mux=on|off]
-chardev vc,id=id[[,width=width][,height=height]][[,cols=cols][,rows=rows]]
[,mux=on|off]
-chardev ringbuf,id=id[,size=size]
-chardev file,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev pipe,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev pty,id=id[,mux=on|off]
-chardev stdio,id=id[,mux=on|off][,signal=on|off]
-chardev braille,id=id[,mux=on|off]
-chardev serial,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev tty,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev parallel,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev parport,id=id,path=path[,mux=on|off]
-chardev spicevmc,id=id,name=name[,debug=debug]
-chardev spiceport,id=id,name=name[,debug=debug]
Device URL Syntax:
-iscsi [user=user][,password=password]
[,header-digest=CRC32C|CR32C-NONE|NONE-CRC32C|NONE
[,initiator-name=initiator-iqn][,id=target-iqn]
[,timeout=timeout]
iSCSI session parameters
Bluetooth(R) options:
-bt hci,null dumb bluetooth HCI - doesn't respond to commands
-bt hci,host[:id]
use host's HCI with the given name
-bt hci[,vlan=n]
emulate a standard HCI in virtual scatternet 'n'
-bt vhci[,vlan=n]
add host computer to virtual scatternet 'n' using VHCI
-bt device:dev[,vlan=n]
emulate a bluetooth device 'dev' in scatternet 'n'
TPM device options:
-tpmdev passthrough,id=id[,path=path][,cancel-path=path]
use path to provide path to a character device; default is /dev/tpm0
use cancel-path to provide path to TPM's cancel sysfs entry; if
not provided it will be searched for in /sys/class/misc/tpm?/device
Linux/Multiboot boot specific:
-kernel bzImage use 'bzImage' as kernel image
-append cmdline use 'cmdline' as kernel command line
-initrd file use 'file' as initial ram disk
-dtb file use 'file' as device tree image
Debug/Expert options:
-fw_cfg [name=]<name>,file=<file>
add named fw_cfg entry from file
-fw_cfg [name=]<name>,string=<str>
add named fw_cfg entry from string
-serial dev redirect the serial port to char device 'dev'
-parallel dev redirect the parallel port to char device 'dev'
-monitor dev redirect the monitor to char device 'dev'
-qmp dev like -monitor but opens in 'control' mode
-qmp-pretty dev like -qmp but uses pretty JSON formatting
-mon [chardev=]name[,mode=readline|control][,default]
-debugcon dev redirect the debug console to char device 'dev'
-pidfile file write PID to 'file'
-singlestep always run in singlestep mode
-S freeze CPU at startup (use 'c' to start execution)
-realtime [mlock=on|off]
run qemu with realtime features
mlock=on|off controls mlock support (default: on)
-gdb dev wait for gdb connection on 'dev'
-s shorthand for -gdb tcp::1234
-d item1,... enable logging of specified items (use '-d help' for a list of log items)
-D logfile output log to logfile (default stderr)
-L path set the directory for the BIOS, VGA BIOS and keymaps
-bios file set the filename for the BIOS
-enable-kvm enable KVM full virtualization support
-xen-domid id specify xen guest domain id
-xen-create create domain using xen hypercalls, bypassing xend
warning: should not be used when xend is in use
-xen-attach attach to existing xen domain
xend will use this when starting QEMU
-no-reboot exit instead of rebooting
-no-shutdown stop before shutdown
-loadvm [tag|id]
start right away with a saved state (loadvm in monitor)
-daemonize daemonize QEMU after initializing
-option-rom rom load a file, rom, into the option ROM space
-rtc [base=utc|localtime|date][,clock=host|rt|vm][,driftfix=none|slew]
set the RTC base and clock, enable drift fix for clock ticks (x86 only)
-icount [shift=N|auto][,align=on|off][,sleep=no,rr=record|replay,rrfile=<filename>]
enable virtual instruction counter with 2^N clock ticks per
instruction, enable aligning the host and virtual clocks
or disable real time cpu sleeping
-watchdog model
enable virtual hardware watchdog [default=none]
-watchdog-action reset|shutdown|poweroff|pause|debug|none
action when watchdog fires [default=reset]
-echr chr set terminal escape character instead of ctrl-a
-virtioconsole c
set virtio console
-show-cursor show cursor
-tb-size n set TB size
-incoming tcp:[host]:port[,to=maxport][,ipv4][,ipv6]
-incoming rdma:host:port[,ipv4][,ipv6]
-incoming unix:socketpath
prepare for incoming migration, listen on
specified protocol and socket address
-incoming fd:fd
-incoming exec:cmdline
accept incoming migration on given file descriptor
or from given external command
-incoming defer
wait for the URI to be specified via migrate_incoming
-nodefaults don't create default devices
-chroot dir chroot to dir just before starting the VM
-runas user change to user id user just before starting the VM
-sandbox <arg> Enable seccomp mode 2 system call filter (default 'off').
-readconfig <file>
-writeconfig <file>
read/write config file
-nodefconfig
do not load default config files at startup
-no-user-config
do not load user-provided config files at startup
-trace [events=<file>][,file=<file>]
specify tracing options
-enable-fips enable FIPS 140-2 compliance
-msg timestamp[=on|off]
change the format of messages
on|off controls leading timestamps (default:on)
-dump-vmstate <file>
Output vmstate information in JSON format to file.
Use the scripts/vmstate-static-checker.py file to
check for possible regressions in migration code
by comparing two such vmstate dumps.
Generic object creation
-object TYPENAME[,PROP1=VALUE1,...]
create a new object of type TYPENAME setting properties
in the order they are specified. Note that the 'id'
property must be set. These objects are placed in the
'/objects' path.
During emulation, the following keys are useful:
ctrl-alt-f toggle full screen
ctrl-alt-n switch to virtual console 'n'
ctrl-alt toggle mouse and keyboard grab
When using -nographic, press 'ctrl-a h' to get some help.