Enable VNC on Existing KVM Instances
This article outlines the steps needed to enable VNC on existing virtual machines.
KVM
Step 1 – Shutdown the Instance
SSH into the host where the virtual machine of interest resides. To shut down the virtual machine gracefully, invoke the following command on the terminal:
[code lang=”bash”]virsh shutdown test-vm[/code]where test-vm is the name of the virtual machine.
Check to see if the instance is in the shut off state by invoking the following:
[code lang=”bash”]virsh list –all[/code]You may also SSH into the instance and power off the instance from the terminal.
If all else fails, you may want to shutdown the instance ungracefully (WARNING: This is the equivalent of pulling the power cord):
[code lang=”bash”]virsh destroy test-vm[/code]Step 2 – Edit the Virtual Machine’s XML Configuration
After verifying that the instance is shut off, open the instance’s XML configuration:
[code lang=”bash”]virsh edit test-vm[/code]Add the following inside the devices element:
[code lang=”bash”] [/code]It should look similar to this:
[code lang=”bash”].
.
.
[/code]
Step 3 – Start the Instance
Start the instance after saving the configuration:
[code lang=”bash”]virsh start test-vm[/code]To verify whether the configuration succeeded, run the following on the terminal:
[code lang=”bash”]virsh vncdisplay test-vm[/code]You should see something similar to this:
[code lang=”bash”]root@localhost:~# virsh vncdisplay test-vm127.0.0.1:0[/code]