VM Creation & Lifecycle

Overview

Virtual machines are the primary workload unit in VergeOS. The VergeOS UI provides a streamlined workflow for creating VMs, attaching storage and networking, and managing the full lifecycle — from first boot through snapshots, clones, and live migration. Whether you are building a single test server or deploying hundreds of production workloads, the process follows the same consistent pattern.

VergeOS offers four methods for creating a VM:

Method	Description	Use Case
Custom VM	Blank VM with no drives or NICs — you configure everything	Full control over hardware configuration
Recipe	Pre-built golden-image template with guided questions	Standardized, repeatable deployments
Clone	Copy of an existing VM with new MAC addresses	Quick duplication of running workloads
Import	From OVF/OVA, VMX, VMDK, VHDX, or QCOW2 files	Migration from VMware, Hyper-V, or other platforms

Creating a Custom VM

A custom VM is created as a blank shell — no drives, no NICs, no OS. This gives you full control over every aspect of the hardware configuration before installing a guest operating system.

Walkthrough

1. From the Cloud Dashboard, click Machines > Virtual Machines.
2. Click New from the left menu.
3. Select — Custom — from the options list.
4. Click Next and configure the VM fields (see the field reference below).
5. Click Submit to create the VM.
6. Add drives and NICs from the VM dashboard (detailed in the sections below).
7. Power on the VM and install a guest OS from an ISO or import disk.

Getting Started Quickly

If you just want a working VM fast, use a Recipe instead of Custom. Recipes include pre-configured drives, NICs, and an OS image — you just answer a few questions (cores, RAM, network, storage tier) and the VM is ready to boot.

VM Field Reference

When creating or editing a VM, the following fields control its hardware configuration:

Field	Description	Recommendation
Name	Unique identifier for the VM	Use descriptive, consistent naming
CPU Cores	Number of virtual CPU cores	Start conservatively; increase as needed
RAM (MB)	Memory allocation in megabytes	Start conservatively with RAM allocation and scale based on monitoring
OS Family	Windows, Linux, or FreeBSD	Affects QEMU flags and performance optimization
Machine Type	Q35 (modern) or i440FX (legacy)	Q35 is recommended for all new VMs
UEFI	Enable UEFI boot firmware	Required for Secure Boot and modern OS features
Secure Boot	Validates boot chain signatures	Enable for Windows Server 2016+ and hardened Linux
QEMU Guest Agent	Host-to-guest communication channel	Always enable — required for quiesced snapshots
Video	Display adapter (VirtIO, std, cirrus)	VirtIO for best performance
Console	VNC, SPICE, or Serial	SPICE for desktop; VNC for general use
Boot Order	Priority of boot devices	Set OS drive to order 0
HA Group	High-availability placement group	Keeps related VMs on separate nodes
Preferred Node	Pin VM to a specific node	Use sparingly — limits failover flexibility
Snapshot Profile	Automated snapshot schedule	Assign for per-VM backup beyond system snapshots
RTC Base	UTC or Local Time	UTC for Linux; configure Windows to use UTC or set to Local Time
Allow Hotplug	Enable drive/NIC hot-plug	Enabled by default — leave on

VMware Bridge

The VM creation form in VergeOS maps closely to vSphere’s Edit Settings dialog. Machine Type Q35 is analogous to selecting a newer virtual hardware version. The Guest Agent replaces VMware Tools for host-guest integration (quiesced snapshots, IP reporting, graceful shutdown). Unlike vSphere, VergeOS VMs are created as empty shells first — drives and NICs are added as separate objects, giving you more flexibility.

Adding Drives

Drives are added to the VM after creation. From the VM Dashboard, click Drives > New (or use the New Drive shortcut on the left menu).

Drive Media Types

Media Type	Description
Disk	Empty virtual disk (thin-provisioned)
CD-ROM	Read-only ISO media for OS installation
Clone Disk	Duplicate of an existing .raw disk in the same cloud
Import Disk	Create from uploaded disk images (.vmdk, .qcow2, .vhd, .vhdx, .raw)
Non-Persistent	Reverts to a golden image on every boot (ideal for VDI)
EFI Disk	Auto-generated UEFI firmware disk (system-managed)

Drive Interface Types

Interface	Performance	Notes
Virtio-SCSI	Excellent	Recommended for all new VMs. Supports hot-plug, TRIM/discard, and online resize. Linux includes drivers natively; Windows requires VirtIO driver ISO.
Virtio-SCSI (Dedicated Controller)	Excellent	Use when mixing drives across different storage tiers within the same VM.
Virtio (Legacy)	Maximum I/O	Highest raw throughput but lacks SCSI features like TRIM.
SATA (AHCI)	Good	Q35 machine type only. Broad guest OS compatibility.
IDE	Basic	i440FX machine type only. Legacy compatibility.
LSI	Good	VMware compatibility mode.

Preferred Tier

Every disk drive is assigned a preferred tier that determines which vSAN storage tier holds its data. Select based on your workload requirements:

• Tier 1 (NVMe) — Highest performance for databases and latency-sensitive workloads
• Tier 2 (SSD) — Good balance of performance and capacity
• Tier 3 (SSD/HDD) — General-purpose storage
• Tier 4–5 (HDD/Archive) — Capacity-optimized for cold data

Tip

VergeOS uses thin provisioning — allocating a generous disk size does not consume space until the guest actually writes data. It is often better to over-allocate initially rather than needing to expand later.

Adding NICs

From the VM Dashboard, click NICs > New to add a network interface.

NIC Configuration Fields

Field	Description
Name	Optional label (recommended if multiple NICs)
Interface	Virtio (recommended), Intel E1000, AMD PCnet, Realtek 8139
Network	Target virtual network (internal or external)
MAC Address	Auto-generated or manually specified
Enabled	Toggle NIC on/off without deleting
Asset	Unique identifier for use in recipes

Tip

Virtio provides the best network performance. Linux includes VirtIO drivers natively. For Windows, install drivers from the VirtIO driver ISO or use the VergeOS custom Windows ISOs which bundle them.

Hot-Plug Capabilities

VergeOS supports modifying certain VM hardware while the VM is running, controlled by the Allow Hotplug setting (enabled by default).

What Can Be Hot-Plugged

Resource	Hot-Plug?	Notes
Drives	Yes	Guest OS must support hot-add; Virtio-SCSI recommended
NICs	Yes	Widely supported by modern guest operating systems
Drive Resize	Yes	Virtio-SCSI drives can be expanded without power cycle

What Requires a Power Cycle

Resource	Notes
RAM	Memory changes always require VM power off and on
CPU Cores	Core count changes always require a power cycle
Console Type	VNC/SPICE/Serial changes take effect on next power on
Video Card	Video adapter changes require power cycle
Machine Type	Chipset changes require power cycle
UEFI/BIOS	Boot mode changes require power cycle

Nutanix Bridge

Nutanix AHV has similar hot-plug constraints — you can add/remove disks and NICs on a running VM, but CPU and memory changes require a power cycle. The key difference is that VergeOS tenant nodes (not VMs) support live CPU and RAM changes without a restart, similar to Nutanix’s Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling for node-level resource adjustments.

Creating a VM from a Clone

Cloning creates a new VM instance as a copy of an existing VM. This is useful for quickly duplicating workloads, creating test environments, or scaling out identical servers.

Clone Options

Option	Default	Description
VM Name	<original>clone	Rename as desired
Preserve MAC Addresses	Off	Creates new MACs (safe for same-network operation)
Preserve Device UUIDs	Off	Creates new UUIDs (enable only if application requires it)
Quiesce File System	Off	Freezes filesystem and flushes buffers for application-consistent clone (requires Guest Agent)

Clone Walkthrough

1. Navigate to Machines > Virtual Machines > New.
2. Select —Clone— from the options list.
3. Select the source VM from the available list.
4. Click Next, configure clone options, and click Submit.

Caution

Running a clone on the same network as the original with Preserve MAC Addresses enabled will cause network conflicts. Always verify that MAC addresses and IP configurations are unique before powering on the clone.

Lifecycle Operations

Once a VM is created and configured, the following operations are available from the VM Dashboard:

Operation	Description
Power On	Start the VM
Power Off	Immediate power cut (use Shutdown for graceful stop)
Shutdown	ACPI-initiated graceful shutdown via guest OS
Restart	Graceful reboot
Hibernate	Save VM state to disk and stop (resume to same state)
Snapshot	Create a point-in-time backup (manual or scheduled)
Clone	Create a copy of the VM
Live Migrate	Move a running VM to another node with zero downtime

Snapshot Methods

VergeOS provides three levels of VM snapshot protection:

Method	Scope	Quiesce Support	Use Case
Full System Snapshot	All VMs, tenants, settings	No	System-wide DR recovery points
Partial System Snapshot	Tagged VMs/tenants only	Yes (by tag)	Higher frequency for selected workloads
Individual VM Snapshot	Single VM	Yes (if selected)	Per-VM protection, pre-maintenance backups

Quiesced snapshots freeze the guest filesystem and flush write buffers before capture, providing application-consistent backups. On Windows VMs, VSS writers are invoked for VSS-aware applications. The Guest Agent must be installed and registered for quiesced snapshots to work.

Live Migration

Live migration moves a running VM from one physical node to another with no downtime. This is essential for:

• Planned maintenance — Evacuate VMs before taking a node offline
• Load balancing — Redistribute workloads across the cluster
• Hardware upgrades — Move VMs off a node before replacing components

VergeOS handles live migration automatically during maintenance operations, or you can trigger it manually from the VM Dashboard.

Guest Agent

The QEMU Guest Agent is a lightweight service installed inside the guest OS that enables host-to-guest communication. It is critical for production VMs.

Guest Agent Benefits

• Quiesced snapshots — Application-consistent backups with filesystem freeze
• IP address reporting — Guest IP and hostname visible on VM dashboard
• Graceful shutdown — Reliable power-off without ACPI dependency
• VSS integration — Windows Volume Shadow Copy for database-consistent snapshots

Installation

Platform	Installation Command
Debian/Ubuntu	apt-get install qemu-guest-agent
RHEL/CentOS	yum install qemu-guest-agent
Windows	Install virtio-win-guest-tools.exe from the VirtIO driver package

After installation, verify the agent is connected by checking the Guest Agent checkbox on the VM Dashboard — a version number will appear next to it when successfully connected.

VMware Bridge

The QEMU Guest Agent serves the same role as VMware Tools — it enables quiesced snapshots, reports guest information to the host, and supports graceful shutdown. If you are migrating from VMware, uninstall VMware Tools before importing and install the Guest Agent after the VM is running in VergeOS.

Nutanix Bridge

The QEMU Guest Agent in VergeOS serves a similar role to Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT), enabling application-consistent snapshots and host-guest communication. However, NGT and qemu-guest-agent are distinct packages — NGT is a Nutanix-specific bundle, while qemu-guest-agent is an open-source package. If migrating a VM from Nutanix AHV, remove NGT and separately install qemu-guest-agent inside the guest OS after importing into VergeOS.

Best Practices

Right-Size RAM

Start conservatively with RAM allocation and scale up based on actual workload monitoring.

Use Virtio Everywhere

Select Virtio-SCSI for drives and Virtio for NICs. These para-virtualized drivers deliver near-native performance. Install VirtIO drivers on Windows before switching interfaces.

Always Enable Guest Agent

The Guest Agent enables quiesced snapshots, IP reporting, and graceful shutdown. Install it on every production VM immediately after OS setup.

Disable Power Saving in Guest

Guest OS power-saving features provide no benefit in a virtual environment and can cause performance issues. Use a Performance power profile within the guest.

Getting Started Path

1. Create a custom VM with 2 cores, 4 GB RAM, Q35 machine type, UEFI enabled, Guest Agent enabled
2. Add a Virtio-SCSI disk (50 GB on your preferred tier) and a CD-ROM with an OS ISO
3. Add a Virtio NIC connected to your internal network
4. Power on and install the guest OS
5. Install the Guest Agent inside the guest
6. Take a snapshot as your first recovery point
7. Test lifecycle operations — restart, clone, and migrate the VM