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virt-xml — Edit libvirt Domain XML files with explicit command-line options. Note: `domain` refers to the name,

Submitted by: @import:tldr-pages·Mar 2, 2026·

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commandfilesdomainclilibvirteditvirt-xmlxml

linux

Problem

How to use the virt-xml command: Edit libvirt Domain XML files with explicit command-line options. Note: domain refers to the name, UUID, or ID for the existing VMs. See also: virsh. More information: <https://github.com/virt-manager/virt-manager/blob/main/man/virt-xml.rst>.

Solution

virt-xml — Edit libvirt Domain XML files with explicit command-line options. Note: domain refers to the name, UUID, or ID for the existing VMs. See also: virsh. More information: <https://github.com/virt-manager/virt-manager/blob/main/man/virt-xml.rst>.

List all the suboptions for a specific option:

virt-xml --{{option}}=?

List all the suboptions for disk, network, and boot:

virt-xml --disk=? --network=? --boot=?

Edit a value for a specific domain:

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --{{option}} {{suboption}}={{new_value}}

Change the description for a specific domain:

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --metadata description="{{new_description}}"

Enable/Disable the boot device menu for a specific domain:

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --boot bootmenu={{on|off}}

Attach host USB hub to a running VM (run lsusb to see a list of USB devices with their IDs):

virt-xml {{domain}} --update --add-device --hostdev {{bus}}.{{device}}

Code Snippets

List all the suboptions for a specific option

virt-xml --{{option}}=?

List all the suboptions for disk, network, and boot

virt-xml --disk=? --network=? --boot=?

Edit a value for a specific domain

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --{{option}} {{suboption}}={{new_value}}

Change the description for a specific domain

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --metadata description="{{new_description}}"

Enable/Disable the boot device menu for a specific domain

virt-xml {{domain}} --edit --boot bootmenu={{on|off}}

Context

tldr-pages: linux/virt-xml

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