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Virt Manager Install on Arch Linux

  1. First, update the system:
sudo pacman -Syu
  1. Install virt-manager and its dependencies:
sudo pacman -S virt-manager qemu vde2 ebtables dnsmasq bridge-utils openbsd-netcat
  1. Enable and start the libvirtd service:
sudo systemctl enable libvirtd.service
sudo systemctl start libvirtd.service
  1. Add your user to the libvirt and kvm groups:
sudo usermod -aG libvirt $USER
sudo usermod -aG kvm $USER

You may need to log out and log back in for the group changes to take effect.

And you’ll be able to:

  • Create VMs from ISO images
  • Use bridged networking or NAT (for proper sysadmin testing)
  • Assign cores, RAM, disk
  • Take snapshots

Creating a New Virtual Machine

  1. Open Virtual Machine Manager

  2. Click "Create a new virtual machine"

  3. Choose "Local Install Media (ISO)"

  4. Select your ISO

  5. Assign CPU and Memory

  • 2 CPUs and 4GB Ram for Windows 7, for example.
  1. Create a disk
  • Allocate an appropriate size.
  • Make it qcow2 format
  1. Check "Customize configuration before install"

Customizing Before Install

  1. Check that Firmware is set to BIOS

  2. Add the VirtIO ISO

  • You need to grab the appropriate version from here
  • Go to “Add Hardware” → Storage → , Select or create custom storage, Add the VirtIO ISO
  • Set it as CD-ROM, SATA