exposing cmd-line for VM/VE

[bryang]

While PB seems to expose some cmd-line options for the VM/VE invocations, and does allow, through environment variables the ability to augment the cmd-line PB uses, I'd also like to see PB offer the ability to utilize a specific cmd-line (for qemu/rinse/mock) that the user specifies. IT should be noted that if this new facility is utilized, that it is not a PB support issue, but more along the lines of a "here's the rope, feel free to hang yourself" option.

[bruno]

I've looked at the possibility to do that and I'm encountering problems:

I could easily externalize the name of the command itself. However, depending on the virtualization tool used, some additional features are provided by additional tool options, build on the fly inside pb and then passed to the command. (port monitor, ssh redirection, ...)

Can we discuss about that feature request more in details ?

[bruno]

Bryan,

Even if I externalized most of what I could up to now, this topic has still not been adressed in 0.9.9.

I'd need your feedback on it for working on this in the upoming version.

We can externalize the command name easily, and some parameters. However, the way the host is expecting to discus with the guest is not flexible enough to allow everybody to pass whatever param to qemu/kvm.

Of course, I forgot to mention that there is a PBVMOPT env variable which allows you to change the list of parameters. Is it be sufficient ?

Let me know here, by mail or on IRC.

[joachim]

Patch (devel-version) to use a vmcmd64 too

[joachim]

The attached patch changes the vmcmd option to vmcmd32 (to make it clearer) and introduces also a vmcmd64. pb_launchv decides than which command should be used. The decision is done with the "old" algorithm from pb-0.9.10.

[bruno]

Patches [1072] and [1073] have made the vmcmd option available so that, in addition to the vmopt option and the PBVMOPT env var you can customize as much as possible the way the VMs are called.

Let me know if this closes this enhancement request.

[bruno]

I think that for the moment, most of what could be given to users to be modified has been done. So I'll close this BR. Feel free to ropen if you think it's not th case.