topic qcow2 image format? in Tools

qcow2 image format?

Andras Dosztal — Fri, 05 Aug 2016 14:27:00 GMT

Hi,

Would it be possible to export releases of the VM in qcow2 too? The reason I'm asking is because GNS3 integration would be much simpler then: I can create a template (aka appliance) file for QEMU VMs and, using that, users can import the VM with a few clicks. (Here's an example.)

I know that converting a vmdk to qcow2 is quite easy but we're checking the md5sum of the image file during import, and I'm not sure if users would get the same hash for their local conversions.

Re: qcow2 image format?

hhaim@cisco.com — Sat, 06 Aug 2016 20:15:11 GMT

If you have a Ubuntu 16/14 qcow2 image, it would be running one 'wget' command to have a running TRex

Hanoh

Sent from my iPhone

Re: qcow2 image format?

ibarnea — Sun, 07 Aug 2016 06:35:08 GMT

Hi Andras,

We can do what you are asking.

Just to understand. Is QEMU VM better than virtual box?

I am asking because we already have virtual box image. see here<https://trex-tgn.cisco.com/trex/doc/trex_vm_manual.html>

Do you think we should support both?

Thanks,

Ido

Re: qcow2 image format?

eckelcu — Mon, 08 Aug 2016 14:07:16 GMT

I see advantages to both formats. There are tools to convert from one to the other. Perhaps it is best for both images to be produced and released in a verifiable manner rather than having community members needing to create there own images. I think it is important to continue to offer the virtualbox .ova file. Just my 2 cents.

Re: qcow2 image format?

ibarnea — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 07:29:58 GMT

I see your point. To be honest, we did not give much thought into running Trex in these virtual scenarios. Because it is a tool aimed for performance, we assumed there will not be much interest in this case. The virtual box today has old version, and you need to get in, get new sources, and compile after installation (not too complicated, but requires some work).

I understand the need now. We will consider automating the process.

Re: qcow2 image format?

Andras Dosztal — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 09:43:16 GMT

We can do what you are asking.

Just to understand. Is QEMU VM better than virtual box?

I am asking because we already have virtual box image. see here<https://trex-tgn.cisco.com/trex/doc/trex_vm_manual.html>

Do you think we should support both?

GNS3 with QEMU can create linked clones of the original image when a device is pulled into the GNS3 topology, enabling the user to run multiple instances of a VM and re-use the same base image in another project.

I know VirtualBox supports linked clones too but creating and destroying the clones needs more manual work.

Supporting both would give the GNS3 users a huge advantage in testing their virtual topologies with real data, even if the performance can't be guaranteed (at least functional testing can be done).

Re: qcow2 image format?

Andras Dosztal — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 09:49:16 GMT

eckelcu wrote:

[...] Perhaps it is best for both images to be produced and released in a verifiable manner rather than having community members needing to create there own images. [...]

Yes, that's the exact reason I started this discussion. I can convert the image for myself, I can download and configure TRex on a Linux box, but I don't think everybody can. In addition, even if users can create the images, it's very hard to check the result because the MD5 hash of the created images will be different. How would I check if the image is corrupt then?

Re: qcow2 image format?

santoni69 — Fri, 10 Jul 2020 11:05:21 GMT

Hi all,

can i have infos regarding how i can find/download an preconfgured qcow2 files ?

thanks in advance

Stefano