Guest Support Status

Qemu/kvm will likely run most production operating systems, but this page is maintained nonetheless for general information purposes. Updates are welcomed.

Windows Family

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Windows Small Business Server 2011	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.355.0.1.el6.centos.2	Intel	64	Works	Installed on CentOS 6.4 x64. Virtio drivers are installed in the guest os. Host machine has a Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2400 CPU @ 3.10GHz and 8GB RAM. The guest uses 4GB RAM and 1 CPU core. Works flawless. By Jens Voskuhl
Windows 2012 R2 Standard	64	qemu-kvm.x86_64 10:1.5.3-60.el7_0.5	Intel	64	Works	Installed on CentOS 7 64bit. Used Windows 2008 settings. Tested 1GB, 8GB and 16GB RAM on guest using virtio drivers.
Windows 2012 Standard 180-days Evaluation	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.295.el6	Intel	64	Works	Installed on CentOS 6.3 64bit. Used Windows2008 settings for guest installation. By Alexander O.
Windows 2008 Essential Business Server	64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	AMD	64	Works	Installed on 800 MB RAM only. Host is: Ubuntu Server 9.10 64-bit, 3 x 2.7 GHz AMD Athlon X3 425, 2 x 1 GB DDR2 667 MHz, single channel, 4 x 250 GB SATA Samsung 7200 drives: approx. 498 GB RAID 10 volume for host OS and machine images, 4 x 1 GB RAID 0 volume for swap due to low host main memory. USB hardware key works (Hasp), Virtio drivers for LAN and HDD still testing. By Tomaszg.
Windows 2008 Small Business Server	64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	AMD	64	Works (reboot from guest doesn't correctly work)	Installed on 2 GB RAM, 1 CPU core. Host is: Ubuntu Server 9.10 64-bit, 2 x Six-Core AMD Opteron(tm) Processor 2425 HE, 8 x 4 GB DDR2, ISCSI for Guest discspace. Don't use virtio drivers (harddisc/network), use IDE (harddisc) and e1000 (network) emulation instead. By Mark.
Windows 2008 Standard	64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	AMD	64	Works (reboot from guest doesn't correctly work)	Installed on 2 GB RAM, 1 CPU core. Host is: Ubuntu Server 9.10 64-bit, 2 x Six-Core AMD Opteron(tm) Processor 2425 HE, 8 x 4 GB DDR2, ISCSI for Guest discspace. Don't use virtio drivers (harddisc/network), use IDE (harddisc) and e1000 (network) emulation instead. By Mark.
Windows 2008 Standard	32	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	Intel	32	Works	Installed on 1.5 GB RAM, 2 CPU core. Host is: Fedora 14 32-bit, Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU 6300 @ 1.86GHz, 3 x 1 GB DDR2 + 1 x 2 GB DDR2, single SATA for host, separate SATA for guest. Working just fine with virtio or Realtek for network. CPU usage near 100% when viewing with KVM console, 14% when viewing through Remmina RDP.
Windows 2008 R2 RTM	64	kvm-88	Intel	64	Works	Installs and works with 1GB guest RAM. screenshot
Windows 2008 R2 Standard	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.5	Intel	64	Works	Installed on HP Proliant ML330 G6 with Ubuntu 10.04.1 server host (2.6.32-24-server) with kvm-kmod-2.6.32.16 using 2 CPU and 2GB guest RAM with IDE harddisc and e1000 network emulation. Works great. By Krunoslav Husak (h00s)
Windows 2008 R2 Datacenter	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.5	Intel	64	Works	Installed on HP Proliant DL530 G4 with Debian 6.0.2 (2.6.32-5-amd64). Using 4 CPU and 4GB RAM for guest. Run stable. By Alexander Pushkarev. Screenshot
Windows 10 Technical Preview for Enterprise	64	qemu-kvm-1.1.2	AMD	64	Works	using 2CPUs and 2GB guest RAM, latest virtio drivers 0.1-81 work fine. Screenshot
Windows 10 Professional build 10240 (release)	64	qemu-kvm-2.3.0	Intel	64	Works	Host running Debian Jessie, qemu-kvm packages from stretch. I followed the advice found here : https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/695c8997-52cf-4c30-a3f7-f26a40dc703a/failed-install-of-build-10041-in-the-kvm-virtual-machine-system-thread-exception-not-handled?forum=WinPreview2014Setup . Running a host with a I7 820 QM, Core2Duo vurtual CPU works, with 1 socket, 2 core and 1 thread assigned to 0-1. Core assignment may be unnecessary. Nehalem, kvm64 and qemu64 failed.
Windows 8 Enterprise	64	qemu-kvm-devel-1.1.92 3.7.0-rc2	AMD	64	Works	using 2CPUs and 1GB guest RAM, latest virtio drivers work fine.
Windows 7 Professional (Final)	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-1 ARCH-2.6.32	AMD	64	Works	using 2CPUs and 2GB guest RAM Screenshot
Windows 7 RTM	32, 64	kvm-88	Intel	64	Works	Installs and works with 1GB guest RAM. screenshot
Windows 7 RC	64	kvm-72+dfsg-5	Intel	64	Works	Installs and works without any problem with 1GB guest RAM.
Windows 7 Beta	64	kvm-84	AMD	64	Works	Installs and works without any problem with 512MB guest RAM.
Windows 7 Beta	32	kvm-83	Intel	32	Works	Installed in about 25-30 minutes and worked flawlessly on my ThinkPad T60 (1953-7EU) with 1.5G of RAM
Windows 7 Beta	32	kvm-62	AMD	64	Works	"-m 2048 -vnc :0 -usbdevice tablet -smp 2 -std-vga" on qcow2
Windows Server 2008 (Datacenter)	64	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows Server 2008 (Datacenter)	32	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64, 32	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows Vista Ultimate	64	kvm-84	Intel, AMD	64	Works	(not Aero Glass capable) by Alexey.E.
Windows Vista Ultimate	32	kvm-84	Intel, AMD	64, 32	Works	(not Aero Glass capable) by Alexey.E.
Windows Server 2003 R2 (Std)	32	qemu-kvm-0.11.1	Intel	64	Works	Well with virtio drivers by Patrick.M.
Windows Server 2003 R2 (Std)	32	qemu-kvm-0.13	Intel	64	Works	Well with virtio drivers (1.1.13) by Alexandre D.
Windows Server 2003 x64	64	qemu-kvm-0.13	Intel, AMD	64	Works	Well with virtio drivers (1.1.13) by Alexandre D.
Windows Server 2003 x64	64	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E. (setup is unstable, rerun several times)
Windows Server 2003 (Enterprise)	32	kvm-72	Intel	32, 64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows Server 2003 (Enterprise)	32	kvm-72	AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows XP Pro x64	64	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E. (setup is unstable, rerun several times)
Windows XP Pro	32	kvm-72	Intel	32, 64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows XP Pro	32	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	AMD	64	Works	Installed on standard IDE driver. Swapped to Virtio XP drivers both for LAN and HDD after installation from "NetKVM-and-viostor.iso". Works well so far. by Tomaszg.
Windows XP Pro	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.415; kernel 2.6.32-358.23.2, CentOS 6.5	Intel	64	failing	crashed when qed disk format and quick format during installation chosen, normal works, XP didn't manage himself to reboot, forced but unable to finish the setup.
Windows XP Pro	32	kvm-72	AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Windows 2000 Pro (SP4)	32	kvm-64	Intel, AMD	64	Works	use Qcow2 format. (setup is unstable, rerun several times) by Alexey.E.
Windows 2000 Pro (SP4)	32	kvm-64	Intel	32	Works	use Qcow2 format. (setup is unstable, rerun several times) by Alexey.E.
Windows 2000 Advanced Server	32	kvm-44	Intel	64	Works	use Qcow2 format.
Windows 98SE	32	kvm-63	Intel	32	Fails	by Alexey.E. (halts when booting HIMEM)
Windows 98SE	32	kvm-80, 2.6.27.7	AMD	64	no way	install crashes
Windows 98SE	32	kvm-1.12.5	AMD	32, 64	works with a trick	copy an existing installation with qemu-img opts: -no-kvm, smp 1, nic,model=ne2k_pci, soundhw none, vga=cirrus+cirrus-Win95-Driver tested by hiekjoha
Windows NT Server 4.0 sp 1	32	kvm-72, 2.6.30	Intel	64	Works	for networking use -net nic,model=ne2k_pci and install rtl8029 guest driver (included in guest OS cd)
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 (no SP)	32	qemu-kvm 0.12.3, 2.6.33	AMD	64	Works	without any SP requires -cpu qemu64,level=1, also use -vga std
Windows NT 4.0 SP6	32	kvm 1.0, 2.6.32	Intel	64	Works	requires -cpu qemu32, use Universal VBE30 for VGA (http://bearwindows.zcm.com.au/vbempg.zip)
Windows NT 4.0 SP6	32	qemu-kvm 1.4.1, 2.6.32	Intel	64	Works	requires -cpu qemu32, install vmmouse driver instead of default ps/2 mouse, use Universal VBE30 for VGA (http://bearwindows.zcm.com.au/vbempg.zip)
Windows 95	32	kvm-44, 2.6.23-rc8	AMD	64, 32	no way

Linux Family: Fedora/RedHat Derivatives

CentOS

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
CentOS 6.5	64	CentOS 6.5,qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.415, kernel 2.6.32-358.23.2	Intel	64	Works	Like a charm
CentOS 6.2	32, 64	0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Requires sufficient memory (≧1G) by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
CentOS 6.1	32, 64	0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Requires sufficient memory (≧1G) by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
CentOS 6.0	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
CentOS 5.8	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.295.el6	Intel	64	Works	by Alexander O.
CentOS 5.6	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
CentOS 5.5	64	kvm-83-164.el5.x86_64.rpm	AMD (Sempron 140)	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
CentOS 5.5	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.295.el6	Intel	64	Works	by Alexander O.
CentOS 5.4	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.3	AMD	64	Crashes	When installing from the netinstall image, hangs during installation of the first packet.

Enterprise Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Enterprise Linux 5.4 / Unbreakable Linux	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager

Fedora

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Fedora 18	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Requires sufficient memory (≧1G), install from DVD or network by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Fedora 17	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Requires sufficient memory (≧1G), install from DVD or network by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Fedora 16	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Requires sufficient memory (≧1G), install from DVD or network by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Fedora 15	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	Requires sufficient memory(e.g. 1.5G), and vga=std - by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
Fedora 13	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
Fedora 11	64	kvm-87	Intel	64	Fails	Anaconda freezes
Fedora 11	32	kvm-87	Intel	64	Works
Fedora 11 BETA	32, 64	kvm-84	Intel	64	Fails	by Alexey.E. Slowness and softlockups.
Fedora 10	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E. Updated by Lennert.B.
Fedora 9	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Fedora 8	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Fedora 7	32, 64	kvm-75	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Fedora 6	32	kvm-26	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works
Fedora 5	32, 64	kvm-12	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works
Fedora 4	64		AMD	64	Works, slightly high idle cpu	by MichaelKarliner
Fedora 3	64	kvm-78	AMD	64	Works	by George Y. Requires noacpi in boot options
Fedora 1	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.3	Intel	64	Crashes	by Patrick.M. KVM freeze unable to kill PID.
Fedora 1	32	qemu-kvm-0.11.1	Intel	64	Works	by Patrick.M.

RedHat Enterprise Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
RHEL6 beta	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
RHEL5	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
RHEL4	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Frank.Q. updated by Alexey.E.
RHEL3	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Frank.Q. updated by Alexey.E.
Red Hat Linux 9	32	kvm-51	Intel	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Red Hat Linux 8	32	kvm-64	Intel	64	Crashes	Fails on init. by Frank.Q.
Red Hat Linux 7.3	32	kvm-78	AMD	64	Works	-no-kvm is required for installation
Red Hat Linux 7	32	kvm-52	Intel, AMD	64	Crashes	Fails on init. by Alexey.E.

Scientific Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Scientific Linux 5.4.1	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager

Trixbox

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Trixbox (CentOS)	32	kvm-12	Intel	64	Works

Linux Family: Ubuntu/Debian Derivatives

Debian GNU/Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Debian GNU/Linux 7.0 beta (Kernel 3.4.4)	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Debian GNU/Linux 6.0	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
Debian GNU/Linux 5.0	64	kvm-88	Intel, AMD	64	Works	2009/10/22 by Christian Berendt / B1 Systems
Debian GNU/Linux 5.0	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
Debian Lenny 5.0	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.3	Intel	64	Works	by Patrick. M.
Debian Lenny 5.0	64	qemu-kvm-0.11.1	Intel	64	Works	by Patrick. M.
Debian Lenny 5.0	32, 64	kvm-72/77	Intel	64	Works	Buggy virtio implementation (netinst), crc errors / segfaults after instalation.
Debian Etch 4.0	64	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
Debian Etch 4.0	32	kvm-64	Intel	64, 32	Works	by Alexey.E.
Debian Etch 4.0	32	kvm-64	AMD	64	FAILS, workaround exists	by Alexey.E. (manually choose i586 kernel, do not use default "k7" kernel)
Debian Sarge 3.1	32	kvm-12	Intel	32	Works
Debian Sarge 3.1	32	kvm-12	Intel	64	Mostly works	Install hangs, will install via -no-kvm. Runs fine after

Ubuntu

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Ubuntu 12.10	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, upgrade from Ubuntu 12.04	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Ubuntu 12.04	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, installs from network	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Ubuntu 11.10	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, installs from network	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Ubuntu 11.04	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, installs from network	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
Ubuntu 10.10	64	kvm-83	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
Ubuntu 10.04 LTS	32, 64	kvm-84	Intel, AMD	64	Works	2010/05/15 by KeithW
Ubuntu 9.04	64	kvm-84	Intel	64	Works	It's actually Xubuntu but should be the same both block and net virtio devices working too
Ubuntu 8.10	32	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	by Peter.v.V.
Ubuntu 8.04 LTS	32, 64	kvm-64	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	by Alexey.E. (some issues with virtio)
Ubuntu 7.10	32, 64	kvm-62	Intel,AMD	32, 64	Crashes, Workaround exists	Install using Qemu, remove GFX boot. by Alexey.E.
Ubuntu 7.10 Server	64	kvm-60	AMD	64	Works	No framebuffer (black screen at first). Hit enter to start installer.
Ubuntu 7.10 Server	32	kvm-60/61	Intel	64	Doesn't work	Installer crashes (by Ryota Ozaki)
Ubuntu 7.04	32, 64	kvm-62	Intel,AMD	32, 64	Crashes, Workaround exists	Install using Qemu, remove GFX boot. by Alexey.E.
Ubuntu 6.06 LTS Server	32	kvm-20	Intel	32	Works	use -no-acpi

Xandros

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Xandros 3 OCE	32	kvm-29	Intel	64	Works	by Alexey.E.

Knoppix

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
KNOPPIX 5.1.1	32	kvm-18	Intel	64	Works	use nmi_watchdog=0 or nolapic kernel parameter to boot
Knoppix 5.2	32	kvm-18	Intel	32	Works
Knoppix 6.2	32	kvm-1.12.5	AMD	32, 64	Works	tested by hiekjoha
Knoppix 6.7.1	32	kvm-1.12.5	AMD	32, 64	Works	tested by hiekjoha

Other Linux Distros

Android

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Android 2.2	32	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	deactivate suspend-mode(Screen timeout), by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11	32, 64	kvm-88	Intel, AMD	64	Works	2009/10/22 by Christian Berendt / B1 Systems
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10	32	kvm-88	Intel, AMD	64	Works	2009/10/22 by Christian Berendt / B1 Systems

openSUSE

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
openSUSE 11.3	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
openSUSE 11.2	64	kvm-83	Intel	64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
openSUSE 11.1	32, 64	kvm-88	Intel, AMD	64	Works	2009/10/22 by Christian Berendt / B1 Systems
openSUSE 11.1	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
openSUSE 11.0	32, 64	kvm-85	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
openSUSE 10.3	32	kvm-57	AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
openSUSE 10.3	32/64	kvm-64	Intel	64, 32	Crashes, Workaround exists	Start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
openSUSE 10.2	32/64	kvm-28/kvm-51	Intel	64	Crashes, Workaround exists	Start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
SUSE Linux 10.0	32	kvm-64	Intel	64, 32	Crashes, Workaround exists	Start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
SUSE Linux 9.1	32	kvm-72	Intel/AMD	64, 32	Works	by Alexey.E.

Slackware

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Slackware 12 .2	32	kvm-36	Intel	32	Works
Slackware 12	32	kvm-36	Intel	32	Works
Slackware 11	32	kvm-15	Intel	64	Works	using test26.s kernel

Qemu-Puppy

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Qemu-Puppy 2.01-3	32	kvm-17/18	Intel	32	Works
Qemu-Puppy 2.13-1	32	kvm-17/18	Intel	32	Works

SystemRescueCD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
SystemRescueCD 0.3.4	32	kvm-18	Intel	64	Works	Works fine, except for initial X-setting "cirrus" - changed to "vesa", then works.

Gentoo

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Gentoo 2006.1	32	kvm-24	Intel	64	Works
Gentoo 2007.0	32	kvm-24	Intel	64	Works
Gentoo 20100311	64	qemu-kvm-0.11.1	Intel	64	Works	using hardened kernel 2.6.32-r3

Arch Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Arch Linux (Duke)	32	kvm-17	AMD	64	Works	Host: 2.6.21-ARCH, guest: 2.6.22-rc5-ARCH says "booting paravirtualized kernel on bare hardware"

Mandrake Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Mandrake Linux 9.2	32	kvm-51	Intel	64	Works	by Alexey.E.

Mandriva

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Mandriva 2009	32/64	kvm-75	Intel	64	Crashes, Workaround exists	start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
Mandriva 2008.1	32	kvm-64	Intel	64, 32	Crashes, Workaround exists	start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
Mandriva 2008	32	kvm-51	Intel	64	Crashes, Workaround exists	start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.
Mandriva 2007	32	kvm-51	Intel	64	Crashes, Workaround exists	start kvm with -no-kvm for installation. Remove graphical GRUB. by Alexey.E.

Crux Linux

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Crux Linux 2.5	32	kvm-82	Intel	32	Works	Boots Automatically at 'Guest Install' stage. Installs without issue. by Chris P

Mikrotik

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Mikrotik 5.0rc3	32	qemu-kvm-0.13.0	Intel	64	Works	using virtio nic + vhost_net, watchdog does not work, does not support virtio block device

UNIX Family: BSD

OpenBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
OpenBSD 5.5/5.6	32	qemu 1.7	Intel with flexpriority	32/64	Works	Use virtio-block for disk and virtio-net for network. more info
OpenBSD 5.5/5.6	32	qemu 1.7	AMD/Intel without flexpriority	32/64	Very slow	Use 64bit guest instead. more info
OpenBSD 5.5/5.6	64	qemu 1.7	Intel+AMD	64	Works	Use virtio-block for disk and virtio-net for network. more info
OpenBSD 5.2 (prerelease)	32	qemu-kvm-1.0+noroms-0ubuntu14.1	Intel Core2 6400	64	Works	Only tested single processor, disabling mpbios wasn't required but did reduce host CPU usage, as did disabling USB (either via guest kernel config at boot time or via omitting -usb flag)
OpenBSD 5.2 (prerelease)	64	qemu-kvm-1.0+noroms-0ubuntu14.1	Intel Core2 6400	64	Works	Only tested single processor, disabling mpbios wasn't required but did reduce host CPU usage, as did disabling USB (either via guest kernel config at boot time or via omitting -usb flag)
OpenBSD 5.0	64	qemu-kvm-0.15.0, Linux 2.6.37.6 (Slackware 13.37)	Intel Core2Duo E8400	64	Works	SMP works, no need to disable mpbios anymore. Must use if=ide as the scsi interface will result in sd0(siop0) errors during install; recommend using the e1000 network driver as well. More information can be found here.
OpenBSD 4.9	64	qemu-kvm-0.14, linux 2.6.38.4 (Fedora 15 Beta)	AMD Phenom(tm) 9650 Quad-Core	64	Works	Disable mpbios as with 4.5
OpenBSD 4.8	32	kvm-83, linux 2.6.18 (CentOS 5.5)	Intel E5700	64	Works	Disable mpbios as with 4.5
OpenBSD 4.7	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.5	Intel	64	Works	Need e1000 driver. (scsi driver does not work). Ide works out of the box. disabling the mpbios is not needed. Done with Linux 2.6.34.2 host kernel.
OpenBSD 4.6	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0-0ubuntu6.3	Intel	64	Works	Need e1000 driver and disable mpbios (same as other OpenBSD ≧ 4.5 entries)
OpenBSD 4.6	32	kvm-84-7.6	AMD	32	Works	Use the e1000 driver [-net nic,model=e1000]. Does not find the network after the installation (during install is fine) but disabling mpbios as suggested in 4.5 workaround fixes it.
OpenBSD 4.5	32	kvm-85	Intel	32	Crashes	Use the e1000 driver [-net nic,model=e1000] to avoid lockups and slow network speeds. Crashes after "setting tty flags" - Jaco van der Schyff 4.0 would hang on me at the same place if i booted /bsd.mp but not if i boot /bsd (uniprocessor kernel) - Buck 4.5 can be made to boot by disabling mpbios as described here; this is a workaround though, not a fix - Maxim
OpenBSD 4.5	64	kvm-84	Intel	64	Works	Use e1000 drivers. Install from CD works, but then you must do the following at the next boot prompt: "bsd -c", "disable mpbios", then "quit" Make this permanent by using "config -ef /bsd" as root, once everything has booted. -- Garry Dolley
OpenBSD 4.4	64	kvm-78	AMD	64	Works
OpenBSD 4.2	32	kvm-58	Intel	32	Works
OpenBSD 4.1	32	kvm-72	Intel, AMD	64	Works	by Alexey.E.
OpenBSD 4.0	64	kvm-12	Intel	64	Works
OpenBSD 4.0	32	kvm-16 + CVS	Intel	64	Works

FreeBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
FreeBSD CURRENT	32, 64	qemu-kvm-1.0+dfsg-9, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, use NIC model=e1000	Upgrade from FreeBSD 9.0-STABLE by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 9.0	32, 64	qemu-kvm-1.0+dfsg-9, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works, use NIC model=e1000	installed from full DVD or Network Install by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 8.3	32, 64	qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works, use NIC model=ne2k_pci or model=e1000 (prefered)	installed from full DVD or Network Install by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
FreeBSD 7.4	32, 64	Debian Lenny, kvm-60	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, use NIC model=e2k_pci or model=e1000 (prefered)	No issues in several weeks of testing. Tested with 1 and 2 virtual CPUs. Freddie; installed from full DVD or Network Install by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 7.2	64	kvm-86-3	Intel	64	Works, need to install from the DVD or CD image	Damon Chesser, Jadase Staff
FreeBSD 7.1	64	kvm-84	Intel	64	Works	sdl graphics mess up if using kvm, setup with -nokvm then use ssh or -nographics and serial console
FreeBSD 7.0	64	OpenSUSE 10.3 kvm-63	AMD	64	crashes after boot loader
FreeBSD 6.3 (EOL)	32, 64	Fedora 8 - kvm-37-7.fc8, qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	works	No issues in several weeks of testing. Freddie by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 6.2 (EOL)	32, 64	kvm-12, qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 6.1 (EOL)	32, 64	kvm-17/18, qemu-kvm 0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	by Thomas Schweikle Xompu
FreeBSD 6.0 (EOL), FreeBSD 6.2, FreeBSD 7.2	32, 64	debian squeeze, kvm-0.12.5, libvirt	Intel Xeon	64	works	freeze with "ad0: TIMEOUT - WRITE_DMA retrying (1 retry left) LBA=XXXXXXX". fix with 'hw.ata.ata_dma=0' in /boot/loader.conf

Debian GNU/kFreeBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
GNU/kFreeBSD CURRENT	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, but significant more CPU needed compared to regular Debian GNU/Linux and FreeBSD CURRENT	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
GNU/kFreeBSD 9.0	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, but significant more CPU needed compared to regular Debian GNU/Linux and FreeBSD 9.0	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
GNU/kFreeBSD 8.3	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works, but significant more CPU needed compared to regular Debian GNU/Linux and FreeBSD 8.3	by Thomas Schweikle / Xompu
GNU/kFreeBSD	32	kvm-16 + CVS	AMD	64	Works

NetBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
NetBSD 3.1	32	kvm-17/18	Intel	32	Works
NetBSD 3.1	32	kvm-21	AMD	64	Works
NetBSD 4.0	32	kvm-60	Intel	64	Works	avoid hangup on boot with --no-acpi and network card timeout by trying out a different card, e.g. -net nic,model=ne2k_pci
NetBSD 5.0	64	kvm-88	Intel	64	Crashes/hangs	Install CD image will crash or hang, depending on if ACPI is enabled or not. NetBSD 4.0 workarounds ineffective.
NetBSD 5.0.2	32	kvm from 2.6.32-2-amd64 debian kernel on debian sid	both Intel and Amd	64	Works	avoid slow down/ hangs with --no-acpi and network timeout by using -net nic,model=ne2k_pci, disable both SMP and ACPI in /boot.cfg inside guest

MirBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
MirBSD 2009/10	32	kvm_1:84+dfsg-0ubuntu12.4~hardy1	Intel	Works	Use of nic,model=e1000 is strongly recommended, ne2k variants work too, emulated Realtek are crappier than metal ones and do not work.

PC-BSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
PC-BSD 1.4	32	kvm-56	Intel	64	Works	By Alexey.E.

Darwin

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Darwin 8.0.1	32	kvm-29	Intel	64	Crashes	by Alexey.E.

DragonflyBSD

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
DragonflyBSD 1.10.1	32	kvm-58	Intel	64	Works	avoid kvm-[64-67] which require -no-kvm-pit to work; use -net nic,model=e1000 to avoid network timeouts
DragonflyBSD 2.2.1	32	kvm-85	Intel	64	Works	not tried X

UNIX Family: Solaris/OpenSolaris

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Solaris 10 U1	32	kvm-12	Intel	64	Works	later releases will detect the CPU is 64 bit capable and try to default to run a 64 bit kernel and fail, for those you have to override Solaris autodetection by adding "kernel/unix" to the kernel multiboot entry in GRUB
Solaris 10 U3	64	kvm-58 + patch	Intel	64	Works	needs additional patch to kvm for kvm kernel longmode
Oracle Solaris 10 1/13	64	qemu-kvm 2.3.1	Intel	64	Works	Use Cirrus for display.
Nexenta Core 1.0	64	kvm-61	Intel	64	Works	needs additional patch to kvm for kvm kernel longmode. Use -m 512 -net nic,model=e1000
Nexenta Core 2.0 b104 rc3	32 / 64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0	Intel	64	Works	Might need additional patch to kvm for kvm kernel longmode. My qemu-kvm was already patched. Had to switch of 'acpi', 'apic' and 'pae' features in guest configuration. Guest machine-type set to pc-0.10. Use -m 512 -net nic,model=e1000.
OpenSolaris 2008.05	64	kvm-69	Intel	64	Works	Use -m 512 -net nic,model=e1000
Milax 0.3.2	32	kvm-62	Intel	64	Works	Use the kvm option -net nic,model=rtl8139 and add atapi-cd-dma-enabled=0,atapi-other-dma-enabled=0 to the kernel line in the grub menu for older releases of Milax http://www.milax.org/ in version 0.3.2 choose the Qemu grub menu entry ; tested on Ubuntu 8.04.1 by BerndSchemmer
Belenix 0.7.1	64	kvm-62	Intel	64	Works	Note: older releases of Belenix only work in text mode; tested on Ubuntu 8.04.1 by BerndSchemmer
Solaris 10 U6	32 & 64	kvm-62	Intel	64	Mostly Works (see note)	Note: the grub menu entry for Solaris 10 created by the installer is wrong, to make it work add kernel/unix to the line beginning with kernel ; tested on Ubuntu 8.04.1 by BerndSchemmer
OpenSolaris 2008.11	64	kvm-62	Intel	64	Works	tested on Ubuntu 8.04.1 by BerndSchemmer
OpenSolaris 2009.06	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.11.0-0ubuntu6.3	Intel	64	Works	Used "-vga std" but don't recall why.
Solaris 11 Express 2010.11	32, 64	qemu-kvm-0.12.1.2-2.113.el6_0.8	Intel	64	Works but without USB support	During boot the system prints the following warning: "No SOF interrupts have been received. This USB EHCI controller is unusable." As a result, no keyboard and mouse functionality from the console. Must install with automatic networking enabled, and login via the network to use it. Also warns at boot "rtls0: Failure resetting PHY" but networking seems to still work.
OpenIndiana Build 151a (Desktop)	64	qemu-kvm-0.12.5+dfsg-5+squeeze	Intel Core i7	64	Works	During boot the system prints the following warning: "No SOF interrupts have been received. This USB EHCI controller is unusable." However, the mouse and keyboard work fine via the VNC console. Also warns at boot "rtls0: Failure resetting PHY" but networking works fine. Installed using "Solaris -> OpenSolaris" settings in virt-manager.

Other UNIX systems

Minix

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
MINIX 3.1.6	32	qemu-0.12.3, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Crashes	Only boots without -enable-kvm
MINIX 3.1.2a	32	kvm-71, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works

Debian GNU/Hurd

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
GNU hurd live CD (20051117)	32	kvm-28, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	Seems to have networking problems.
GNU/Hurd (Debian K16)	32	kvm-69, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	avoid kvm-[64-67] which require -no-kvm-pit to work
GNU/Hurd (Debian K14)	32	kvm-33	Intel, AMD	32, 64	Works	screenshot

QNX

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
QNX 6.4.1	32	qemu-kvm-0.11.0, 2.6.31.5; qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works
QNX 6.4.0	32	kvm-83, qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works	by Arno-Can Uestuensoez / UnifiedSessionsManager
QNX 6.3.2	32	qemu-kvm 88, host kernel: 2.6.30; qemu-kvm-0.14.1+noroms-0ubuntu6.2	Intel	32, 64	Works	Use "-net nic,model=ne2k_pci" for network. See also [1]
QNX 4.25	32	qemu-kvm-0.12.3, kernel 2.6.32-24	Intel	64	Works	Use "-net nic,model=ne2k_pci" for network.

Others

Guest	Guest bitness	Host version	Host cpu	Host bitness	Status	Comments
Haiku OS	32	kvm-12	AMD	64	Works
Amiga Research OS (AROS)	32	kvm-12	AMD	64	Works	LiveCD tested.
Amiga Research OS (AROS)	32	kvm-58	Intel	32	Works	LiveCD tested.
ReactOS 0.3.0	32	kvm-14	AMD	64	Works
FreeDOS 1.0	32	kvm-71	Intel	64	Works
MS DOS 6.22	32	kvm-88	Intel	64	Works	Works with "-cpu qemu32". Do not load emm386.exe inside config.sys screenshot
MS DOS 5.0	32	kvm-62	Intel	64	Works	Installs and boots. Tested by Alan J.
Syllable 0.61	32	kvm-29	Intel	64	Crashes	by Alexey.E.
Visopsys 0.62	32	kvm-29	Intel	64	Crashes	by Alexey.E.
Plan 9	32	kvm-68	Intel	64	Works	needs -no-kvm-irqchip
FreeDOS 7 + Novell Netware 4.1	32	kvm-83	AMD	64	Works	tested by Ruediger G. Biernat / screenshot
clonezilla-live-1.2.* - iso	32	kvm-1.12.5	AMD	32, 64	Works	tested by hiekjoha