🖥️ QEMU/KVM Virtualization Setup Guide (Arch Linux + virt-manager)

📝 Note:
This guide targets Arch Linux, but is applicable to most Arch-based systems.
GUI is required (for virt-manager).

⚠️ Requirements:

• Internet connection
• sudo privileges
• Hardware virtualization enabled in BIOS (VT-x for Intel / AMD-V for AMD)

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📦 Step 1: Install Essential Packages

sudo pacman -S --needed qemu-base virt-manager virt-viewer dnsmasq vde2 bridge-utils \
                        openbsd-netcat ebtables iptables-nft libvirt swtpm ovmf

📌 Package Explanation:

• qemu-base – Core QEMU (no unnecessary extras like qemu-arch-extra)
• libvirt – Required for managing virtualization backends
• virt-manager – GUI interface for managing VMs
• virt-viewer – Lightweight remote viewer for VMs
• dnsmasq – Provides DHCP for NAT-based networking
• vde2, bridge-utils – Enable advanced networking setups (bridged/tap)
• openbsd-netcat – Used for port forwarding in some setups
• iptables-nft – Recommended for systems using iptables with nftables backend (default on Arch)
• swtpm – Software TPM module (needed for Windows 11)
• ovmf – UEFI firmware for VMs (also required for Windows 11)

Optional:
Add virt-install if you prefer scripting VM setups via CLI.

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🔌 Step 2: Enable and Start the libvirt Daemon

sudo systemctl enable --now libvirtd.service

This ensures the virtualization backend starts on boot.

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👤 Step 3: Add Your User to the libvirt Group

sudo usermod -aG libvirt $(whoami)

This gives your user access to manage VMs.
You'll need to log out and log back in (or reboot) for this to take effect.

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🔄 Step 4: Restart or Reboot

To apply group permissions immediately, reboot:

reboot

Or just restart the libvirtd service:

sudo systemctl restart libvirtd

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🛠️ Step 5: Optional VM Control via Terminal

🔹 Start a VM (using virsh):

virsh list --all       # See available VMs
virsh start <vm-name>  # Start a specific VM

virsh requires root or libvirt group access.

🔹 View a VM (fullscreen via SPICE):

remote-viewer spice://localhost:5900 -f

Adjust port if using multiple VMs or custom display settings.

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🧪 Step 6: Sanity Checks

✅ Confirm Virtualization Support:

lscpu | grep Virtualization

You should see:

• VT-x (Intel)
• AMD-V (AMD)

If nothing appears, enable virtualization in BIOS/UEFI.

✅ Confirm libvirtd is active:

systemctl status libvirtd.service

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🚀 Step 7: Launch Virt-Manager GUI

Run via app launcher or:

virt-manager

From here, you can:

• Create VMs from ISO images
• Use UEFI firmware (via OVMF)
• Attach TPM device for Win11
• Allocate CPU, RAM, storage
• Use bridged/NAT networking

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🧠 Pro Tips

• You can install Windows 11 by:

  • Enabling UEFI (OVMF)
  • Attaching TPM (swtpm)
  • Allocating at least 4 GB RAM + 2 CPUs

• Create disk images using qemu-img if needed:

qemu-img create -f qcow2 ~/vm_images/win11.qcow2 50G

• For better disk performance, enable VirtIO drivers (especially for Windows guests).

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🎉 You're Done!

You now have a complete KVM/QEMU virtualization setup with virt-manager on Arch Linux.