How to Install KVM on Linux Mint 21 – Step-by-step

GNU/Linux Mint 21 Installing KVM – QuickStart Guide

Welcome! This tutorial provides a step-by-step guide on how to install KVM on GNU/Linux Mint 21.x Vanessa/Vera/Victoria/Virginia LTS Desktop.

KVM for Mint 21 is a complete virtualization solution for Linux on x86 hardware with virtualization extensions (Intel VT or AMD-V). Using KVM, you can run multiple virtual machines with unmodified Linux or Windows images, each with its own private virtualized hardware, including network cards, disks, and graphics adapters.

This guide includes detailed instructions on how to install KVM in Linux Mint 21 and get started with QEMU KVM virtualization.

1. 1. Terminal Getting-Started Guide

   How to Quick-Start with the Command Line on Linux Mint 21:

   Console Linux Mint QuickStart Guide

   Getting-Started with Command Line on Linux Mint.

   Start by updating the apt repository sources with:

   sudo apt update

   Authenticate with your user admin password. If you encounter the “User is Not in Sudoers file” error, refer to: How to Enable sudo.

2. 2. Pre-Installation Checks

   Before you install KVM on Linux Mint 21, check if your system supports hardware virtualization:

   egrep -c '(vmx|svm)' /proc/cpuinfo

   If the output is greater than 0, your processor supports hardware virtualization. You might need to enable this in your BIOS. Install the required tool with:

   sudo apt install cpu-checker

   Then verify with:

   kvm-ok

   If the result is positive, you will see:

   INFO: /dev/kvm exists
   KVM acceleration can be used
   

   Otherwise, KVM can still be used but may operate in a slower mode.

3. 3. Installing KVM

   Proceed to install KVM on Linux Mint 21 by executing:

   sudo apt update

   sudo apt install qemu qemu-system qemu-kvm libvirt-bin ubuntu-vm-builder bridge-utils

   Here’s a breakdown of the installed packages:

   • libvirt-bin provides libvirtd, necessary for managing qemu and KVM instances using libvirt.
   • qemu & qemu-kvm serve as the backend for virtualization.
   • ubuntu-vm-builder is a powerful command-line tool for building virtual machines.
   • bridge-utils creates a network bridge for connecting virtual machines.

4. 4. Adding User to Group

   Add your user to the libvirt group to manage virtual machines:

   sudo addgroup libvirtd

   sudo adduser `id -un` libvirtd

   Only users in this group can run virtual machines. Make sure to log out and log back in to apply these changes.

5. 5. Verifying KVM Installation

   To verify the KVM installation on Mint 21, use:

   virsh list --all

   In the output, you should see:

    Id    Name                           State
   ----------------------------------------------------

   This indicates that no virtual machines have been created yet.