Chapter 6. Shutting down virtual machines
To shut down a running virtual machine hosted on RHEL 9, use the command line interface or the web console GUI.
6.1. Shutting down a virtual machine by using the command-line interface
To shut down a responsive virtual machine (VM), do one of the following:
- Use a shutdown command appropriate to the guest OS while connected to the guest.
Use the
virsh shutdowncommand on the host:If the VM is on a local host:
# virsh shutdown demo-guest1 Domain 'demo-guest1' is being shutdownIf the VM is on a remote host, in this example 192.0.2.1:
# virsh -c qemu+ssh://root@192.0.2.1/system shutdown demo-guest1 root@192.0.2.1's password: Domain 'demo-guest1' is being shutdown
To force a VM to shut down, for example if it has become unresponsive, use the virsh destroy command on the host:
# virsh destroy demo-guest1
Domain 'demo-guest1' destroyed
The virsh destroy command does not actually delete or remove the VM configuration or disk images. It only terminates the running VM instance of the VM, similarly to pulling the power cord from a physical machine. As such, in rare cases, virsh destroy may cause corruption of the VM’s file system, so using this command is only recommended if all other shutdown methods have failed.
6.2. Shutting down and restarting virtual machines by using the web console
Using the RHEL 9 web console, you can shut down or restart running virtual machines. You can also send a non-maskable interrupt to an unresponsive virtual machine.
6.2.1. Shutting down virtual machines in the web console
If a virtual machine (VM) is in the running state, you can shut it down by using the RHEL 9 web console.
Prerequisites
- The web console VM plug-in is installed on your system.
Procedure
- In the interface, find the row of the VM you want to shut down.
On the right side of the row, click .
The VM shuts down.
Troubleshooting
- If the VM does not shut down, click the Menu button next to the button and select .
- To shut down an unresponsive VM, you can also send a non-maskable interrupt.
6.2.2. Restarting virtual machines by using the web console
If a virtual machine (VM) is in the running state, you can restart it by using the RHEL 9 web console.
Prerequisites
- The web console VM plug-in is installed on your system.
Procedure
- In the interface, find the row of the VM you want to restart.
On the right side of the row, click the Menu button .
A drop-down menu of actions appears.
In the drop-down menu, click .
The VM shuts down and restarts.
Troubleshooting
- If the VM does not restart, click the Menu button next to the button and select .
- To shut down an unresponsive VM, you can also send a non-maskable interrupt.
6.2.3. Sending non-maskable interrupts to VMs by using the web console
Sending a non-maskable interrupt (NMI) may cause an unresponsive running virtual machine (VM) to respond or shut down. For example, you can send the Ctrl+Alt+Del NMI to a VM that is not responding to standard input.
Prerequisites
- The web console VM plug-in is installed on your system.
Procedure
- In the interface, find the row of the VM to which you want to send an NMI.
On the right side of the row, click the Menu button .
A drop-down menu of actions appears.
In the drop-down menu, click .
An NMI is sent to the VM.
