Install Drivers and Guest Agent for Template Images

Overview

When uploading your own virtual machine templates to Softdrive, it is critical to install the necessary drivers and agents to ensure proper integration and functionality. Follow the steps below based on the operating system you are using.

Prerequisites

• Access to the VM/template before uploading to Softdrive.
• Ability to install software inside the guest OS (local admin / sudo).
• Internet access to download required drivers/agents (or the ability to upload/mount media).

Index

1. Windows Templates
   • Download VirtIO Drivers
   • Install Drivers and Guest Agent
   • Preserve Drivers During Sysprep (Optional)
2. Linux Templates
   • Install QEMU Guest Agent
   • Enable RPC Access for RHEL/CentOS
3. Summary

Content

Windows Templates

1. Download VirtIO Drivers
   Visit the official VirtIO driver repository to get the latest ISO: Download win-virtio ISO

2. Install Drivers and Guest Agent

   • Mount the downloaded ISO to your Windows VM.
   • Run virtio-win-guest-tools.exe from the mounted ISO.
   • During installation, select all available drivers and ensure the QEMU Guest Agent is installed.

3. Preserve Drivers During Sysprep (Optional but Recommended)
   If you are using sysprep with an unattend XML file, include the following section to retain drivers not currently in use:

   <component name="Microsoft-Windows-PnpSysprep"
             processorArchitecture="amd64"
             publicKeyToken="31bf3856ad364e35"
             language="neutral"
             versionScope="nonSxS"
             xmlns:wcm="http://schemas.microsoft.com/WMIConfig/2002/State"
             xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
     <PersistAllDeviceInstalls>true</PersistAllDeviceInstalls>
     <DoNotCleanUpNonPresentDevices>true</DoNotCleanUpNonPresentDevices>
   </component>
   

Linux Templates

1. Install QEMU Guest Agent
   Make sure the guest agent is installed and enabled on boot:

   sudo apt install qemu-guest-agent      # For Debian/Ubuntu
   sudo yum install qemu-guest-agent      # For RHEL/CentOS
   sudo systemctl enable --now qemu-guest-agent
   

2. Enable RPC Access for RHEL/CentOS
   On RHEL variants, modify the QEMU Guest Agent configuration to enable RPC commands:

   sudo sed -i "s/\(BLACKLIST_RPC.*\)/# \1/g" /etc/sysconfig/qemu-ga
   

Summary

Following this guide ensures your templates function properly with Softdrive’s virtualization environment.