KVM backup
KVM
Creating copy of an existing VM:
Find the VM you want to save.
[root@localhost ~]# lvdisplay --- Logical volume --- LV Path /dev/vg1/kvm101_img LV Name kvm101_img VG Name vg1 LV UUID ZCfjys-Ut9b-2iKZ-VFen-DG2i-79Hn-dfUnOf LV Write Access read/write LV Creation host, time , LV Status available # open 1 LV Size 30.00 GiB Current LE 960 Segments 1 Allocation inherit Read ahead sectors auto - currently set to 1024 Block device 253:0
Shutdown it
virsh shutdown kvm101
Now create the backup
dd if=/dev/vg1/kvm101_img | gzip | dd of=/home/kvm101_backup.gz bs=4096
Make sure you replaced vg1 with proper Volume Group.
This archive can be used either for general backup or for cloning, migrating VMs.
Restoring backup:
Backup file can be sent to remote server:
scp /home/kvm101_backup.gz root@remote.server.com:/home/
See man scp if any issues.
Create a logical volume the same size as the original one:
lvcreate -n kvm101_img --size 30G /dev/vg1
Restore backup to the new volume
dd if=/home/kvm101_backup.gz | gzip -d | dd of=/dev/vg1/kvm101_img bs=4096
If source VM became useless it can be removed
lvremove /dev/vg1/kvm101_img
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