2.8 KiB
title, description, published, date, tags, editor, dateCreated
| title | description | published | date | tags | editor | dateCreated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chipset | true | 2023-10-15T14:29:39.629Z | markdown | 2021-11-13T11:56:47.463Z |
Virtual chipsets
Just as with physical computers, virtual machines are built around a central chipset or machine type.
These virtual chipsets are routinely updated. If no version of a chipset is defined, it is the latest that will be used.
There are three main chipsets, i440fx, Q35 and the more recent virt.
Comparison
i440fx |
Q35 |
virt |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Firmware | SeaBIOS / OVMF | SeaBIOS / OVMF | Modified OVMF / RHF |
| PS/2 devices | Yes | Yes | No |
| USB Controller | Yes | Yes | No |
| SATA Controller | No | Yes | No |
| IDE Controller | Yes | No | No |
| Floppy Controller | Yes | No | No |
| TPM Support | No | Yes | No? |
| PCI-Express Bus | No | Yes | Yes |
| PCI Bus | Yes | No? | No? |
| Virtual Function I/O | No | Yes | Yes |
The
i440fxandQ35chipsets are currently supported by Phyllome OS. Early support for thevirtmodel is expected for the Beta version {.is-info}
Available chipsets for virtual machines
i440fx
The i440fx virtual chipset is a legacy chipset, compatible with PCI.
<domain type='kvm'>
[...]
<os firmware="efi">
<type arch="x86_64" machine="pc-i440fx">hvm</type>
</os>
[...]
</domain>
There are revisions of the i440fx chipset, such as pc-i440fx-10.1. If left undefined, the latest locally available version will be used.
Q35
The Q35 virtual chipset is based on a modern chipset, compatible with PCI-Express.
<domain type='kvm'>
[...]
<os firmware="efi">
<type arch="x86_64" machine="pc-q35">hvm</type>
</os>
[...]
</domain>
There are also revisions for the Q35 chipset. If left undefined, the latest locally available version will be used.
Did you know that the Open Virtual Machine Firmware (OVMF), which is based on TianoCore, is the default firmware for EFI-based virtual machines? Its configuration utility can be accessed using the Esc key. {.is-info}
The TianoCore splash screen
virt
The virt virtual chipset is the most modern chipset, compatible with PCI-Express. It only supports virtio-devices.
Resources
- Official documentation on Q35
- QEMU machine types and compatibility blog post, by Cornelia Huck