Choose the right kvm & kernel version

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Three Components

A functional KVM system consists of three main components:

  • Linux Module
  • User Space Application
  • Guest Virtio Driver

Linux Module

KVM requires a few kernel modules in order to support full virtualization. Most distributions contain these modules by default, but they may need to be loaded manually. You can check if the KVM module is currently loaded with:

lsmod | grep kvm

If the module is not loaded, simply issue:

modprobe kvm

You may also need to load the appropriate module for your processor:

modprobe kvm_intel  # Intel processors
modprobe kvm_amd    # AMD processors

Guest virtio driver

Generally, there are no special requirements for the guest operating system. If you are using para-virtualized disks or network adapters however, make sure you have loaded the virtio_pci.ko, virtio_rng.ko, virtio_blk.ko, and virtio_net.ko modules (available since kernel version 2.6.25).

Refer to Virtio for more information