hyper2kvm

Operating System Support

Comprehensive guides for migrating specific operating systems to KVM with Hyper2KVM.

🐧 Linux Distributions

RHEL/CentOS - Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7-10, CentOS 7-9
Ubuntu - Ubuntu 18.04-24.04, Debian 10-12
SUSE - SUSE Linux Enterprise, openSUSE Leap/Tumbleweed
Photon OS - VMware Photon OS 3.0-5.0

🪟 Windows

Windows Guide - Complete Windows migration guide (7-11, Server 2008-2025)
Driver Injection - VirtIO driver installation
Boot Cycle - Windows boot process and fixes
Networking - Network configuration
Troubleshooting - Windows-specific issues

Supported Operating Systems

Linux Distributions

OS Family	Versions	Status	Documentation
RHEL/CentOS	7, 8, 9, 10	✅ Fully Tested	Guide
Ubuntu	18.04, 20.04, 22.04, 24.04	✅ Fully Tested	Guide
Debian	10, 11, 12	✅ Tested	Ubuntu Guide
SUSE/SLES	15 SP1-SP6	✅ Tested	Guide
openSUSE	Leap 15+, Tumbleweed	✅ Tested	Guide
Photon OS	3.0, 4.0, 5.0	✅ Fully Tested	Guide
Oracle Linux	7, 8, 9	✅ Compatible	RHEL Guide
Rocky Linux	8, 9	✅ Compatible	RHEL Guide
AlmaLinux	8, 9	✅ Compatible	RHEL Guide
Fedora	35+	✅ Compatible	RHEL Guide
Amazon Linux	2, 2023	✅ Compatible	RHEL Guide

Windows

OS Version	Status	VirtIO Support	Documentation
Windows 11	✅ Fully Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Windows 10	✅ Fully Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Windows 8.1	✅ Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Windows 7	✅ Tested	✅ Manual	Guide
Server 2025	✅ Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Server 2022	✅ Fully Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Server 2019	✅ Fully Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Server 2016	✅ Fully Tested	✅ Automatic	Guide
Server 2012 R2	✅ Tested	✅ Manual	Guide
Server 2012	✅ Tested	⚠️ Limited	Guide

BSD (Community Supported)

OS	Versions	Status	Notes
FreeBSD	12+, 13+	🔶 Community	Basic support, manual fixes may be required
OpenBSD	7+	🔶 Community	Limited testing

OS-Specific Features

RHEL/CentOS

✅ Automatic SELinux context fixing ✅ Subscription Manager preservation ✅ XFS UUID regeneration ✅ LVM support ✅ Network scripts → NetworkManager migration

See: RHEL Guide

Ubuntu/Debian

✅ Netplan configuration ✅ systemd-networkd support ✅ Cloud-init preservation ✅ snap package compatibility ✅ AppArmor profile handling

See: Ubuntu Guide

SUSE/openSUSE

✅ YaST configuration preservation ✅ Btrfs support ✅ AutoYaST compatibility ✅ Zypper repository migration

See: SUSE Guide

Photon OS

✅ tdnf package manager support ✅ systemd-networkd configuration ✅ Lightweight footprint preservation ✅ Container runtime compatibility

See: Photon OS Guide

Windows

✅ VirtIO driver automatic injection ✅ Registry modification ✅ Boot sector fixes ✅ Network adapter configuration ✅ Service dependency handling

See: Windows Guide

Migration Compatibility Matrix

Bootloader Support

OS	BIOS/Legacy	UEFI	Secure Boot
RHEL/CentOS	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
Ubuntu	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
SUSE	✅ Full	✅ Full	✅ Full
Photon OS	✅ Full	✅ Full	⚠️ Manual
Windows	✅ Full	✅ Full	⚠️ Manual

Filesystem Support

Filesystem	Linux	Windows	Auto-Fix
ext4	✅ Full	N/A	✅ Yes
xfs	✅ Full	N/A	✅ Yes (UUID regen)
btrfs	✅ Full	N/A	✅ Yes
LVM	✅ Full	N/A	✅ Yes
NTFS	N/A	✅ Full	✅ Yes
ReFS	N/A	✅ Basic	⚠️ Limited

Network Configuration

OS	NetworkManager	systemd-networkd	Other
RHEL 9+	✅ Default	✅ Supported	-
Ubuntu 22.04+	✅ Supported	✅ Netplan	✅ Netplan
SUSE	✅ Wicked	✅ Supported	✅ Wicked
Photon OS	-	✅ Default	-
Windows	-	-	✅ Native

Testing Status by OS

Comprehensive Testing (500+ Migrations)

Linux Distributions:   385 migrations (96.5% success rate)
├── RHEL/CentOS:      120 (98% success)
├── Ubuntu/Debian:     95 (97% success)
├── SUSE/openSUSE:     60 (95% success)
├── Photon OS:         45 (94% success)
└── Other Linux:       65 (96% success)

Windows Systems:      115 migrations (94% success rate)
├── Windows 10/11:     45 (96% success)
├── Server 2016-2022:  50 (95% success)
├── Server 2012:       15 (90% success)
└── Legacy (<2012):     5 (80% success)

See: Test Results

Common Scenarios by OS

RHEL/CentOS

Scenario: Clone Fix (Duplicate XFS UUIDs)

command: local
vmdk: /vmware/rhel9-clone.vmdk
output_dir: /kvm/vms
to_output: rhel9-fixed.qcow2

# XFS UUID regeneration
xfs_regenerate_uuid: true
fstab_mode: stabilize-all
regen_initramfs: true
update_grub: true

See: RHEL Guide

Ubuntu

Scenario: Cloud-init VM

command: local
vmdk: /vmware/ubuntu-cloud.vmdk
output_dir: /kvm/vms
to_output: ubuntu-cloud.qcow2

# Preserve cloud-init
fstab_mode: stabilize-all
regen_initramfs: true
update_grub: true
# cloud-init automatically preserved

See: Ubuntu Guide

Windows Server

Scenario: Active Directory Domain Controller

command: local
vmdk: /vmware/dc01.vmdk
output_dir: /kvm/vms
to_output: dc01.qcow2

# Windows with careful driver injection
windows_drivers: true
fstab_mode: stabilize-all
update_grub: true

# Don't compress (faster first boot)
compress: false

See: Windows Guide

Known Issues & Workarounds

Linux

Issue: NetworkManager network names change Workaround: Pre-configure with MAC address matching See: Troubleshooting

Issue: SELinux relabeling required Workaround: Automatic or manual touch /.autorelabel See: RHEL Guide

Windows

Issue: Windows activation may be required Workaround: Use MAK or KMS reactivation See: Windows Guide

Issue: BitLocker encrypted disks not supported Workaround: Disable BitLocker, migrate, re-enable See: Windows Troubleshooting

OS-Specific Recipes

Quick migration recipes for each OS:

Quick Linux Recipe

sudo hyper2kvm --config << EOF
command: local
vmdk: /vmware/linux-vm.vmdk
output_dir: /kvm/vms
to_output: linux-vm.qcow2
fstab_mode: stabilize-all
regen_initramfs: true
update_grub: true
compress: true
EOF

Quick Windows Recipe

sudo hyper2kvm --config << EOF
command: local
vmdk: /vmware/windows-vm.vmdk
output_dir: /kvm/vms
to_output: windows-vm.qcow2
windows_drivers: true
fstab_mode: stabilize-all
compress: true
EOF

See: Migration Recipes

Performance by OS

Boot Time After Migration

OS	First Boot	Subsequent Boots
RHEL 9	30-45s	15-20s
Ubuntu 24.04	25-35s	12-18s
SUSE 15	35-50s	18-25s
Photon OS	10-15s	5-8s
Windows 11	60-90s	30-45s
Server 2022	50-70s	25-35s

Migration Time Estimates

OS Type	Size	Time
Linux (minimal)	10 GB	5-8 min
Linux (desktop)	30 GB	15-20 min
Linux (server)	50 GB	25-35 min
Windows (minimal)	25 GB	15-20 min
Windows (desktop)	50 GB	30-40 min
Windows (server)	80 GB	45-60 min

Getting Help

Documentation

Main Documentation - Complete documentation hub
Tutorials - Step-by-step guides
Migration Recipes - Quick solutions
Troubleshooting - Common issues
FAQ - Frequently asked questions

Support

GitHub Issues: Report OS-specific bugs
GitHub Discussions: Ask questions

Testing

Test Results - Detailed test results by OS
Test Reports - Success rates and statistics

Contributing OS Documentation

Help us improve OS support documentation:

Add a New OS

Create guide: docs/os-support/your-os.md
Test migrations: Document success rate
Note issues: Document known issues and workarounds
Add examples: Include working configurations
Update this README: Add to supported OS list

Improve Existing Guides

Test more versions: Expand version coverage
Document edge cases: Add troubleshooting tips
Add examples: More real-world scenarios
Update status: Keep testing status current

See: Contributing Guide

What’s Next?

Choose your OS to get started:

🐧 I’m migrating Linux

→ Check OS-specific guides above

🪟 I’m migrating Windows

→ Start with Windows Guide

🎓 I want to learn first

→ Try Tutorials

🍳 I want quick recipes

→ See Migration Recipes

Last Updated: February 2026 Total OS Coverage: 15+ operating systems Success Rate: 96%+ across all Linux, 94%+ Windows

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hyper2kvm

Operating System Support

Quick Navigation

🐧 Linux Distributions

🪟 Windows

Supported Operating Systems

Linux Distributions

Windows

BSD (Community Supported)

OS-Specific Features

RHEL/CentOS

Ubuntu/Debian

SUSE/openSUSE

Photon OS

Windows

Migration Compatibility Matrix

Bootloader Support

Filesystem Support

Network Configuration

Testing Status by OS

Comprehensive Testing (500+ Migrations)

Common Scenarios by OS

RHEL/CentOS

Ubuntu

Windows Server

Known Issues & Workarounds

Linux

Windows

OS-Specific Recipes

Quick Linux Recipe

Quick Windows Recipe

Performance by OS

Boot Time After Migration

Migration Time Estimates

Getting Help

Documentation

Support

Testing

Contributing OS Documentation

Add a New OS

Improve Existing Guides

What’s Next?

🐧 I’m migrating Linux

🪟 I’m migrating Windows

🎓 I want to learn first

🍳 I want quick recipes