Guestfs.Session

g GObject.Object GObject.Object Guestfs.Session Guestfs.Session GObject.Object->Guestfs.Session

Subclasses:

None

Methods

Inherited:

GObject.Object (37)

Structs:

GObject.ObjectClass (5)

class

new ()

acl_delete_def_file (dir)

acl_get_file (path, acltype)

acl_set_file (path, acltype, acl)

add_cdrom (filename)

add_domain (dom, optargs)

add_drive (filename, optargs)

add_drive_ro (filename)

add_drive_ro_with_if (filename, iface)

add_drive_scratch (size, optargs)

add_drive_with_if (filename, iface)

add_libvirt_dom (dom, optargs)

aug_clear (augpath)

aug_close ()

aug_defnode (name, expr, val)

aug_defvar (name, expr)

aug_get (augpath)

aug_init (root, flags)

aug_insert (augpath, label, before)

aug_label (augpath)

aug_load ()

aug_ls (augpath)

aug_match (augpath)

aug_mv (src, dest)

aug_rm (augpath)

aug_save ()

aug_set (augpath, val)

aug_setm (base, sub, val)

aug_transform (lens, file, optargs)

available (groups)

available_all_groups ()

base64_in (base64file, filename, cancellable)

base64_out (filename, base64file, cancellable)

blkdiscard (device)

blkdiscardzeroes (device)

blkid (device)

blockdev_flushbufs (device)

blockdev_getbsz (device)

blockdev_getro (device)

blockdev_getsize64 (device)

blockdev_getss (device)

blockdev_getsz (device)

blockdev_rereadpt (device)

blockdev_setbsz (device, blocksize)

blockdev_setra (device, sectors)

blockdev_setro (device)

blockdev_setrw (device)

btrfs_balance_cancel (path)

btrfs_balance_pause (path)

btrfs_balance_resume (path)

btrfs_balance_status (path)

btrfs_device_add (devices, fs)

btrfs_device_delete (devices, fs)

btrfs_filesystem_balance (fs)

btrfs_filesystem_defragment (path, optargs)

btrfs_filesystem_resize (mountpoint, optargs)

btrfs_filesystem_show (device)

btrfs_filesystem_sync (fs)

btrfs_fsck (device, optargs)

btrfs_image (source, image, optargs)

btrfs_qgroup_assign (src, dst, path)

btrfs_qgroup_create (qgroupid, subvolume)

btrfs_qgroup_destroy (qgroupid, subvolume)

btrfs_qgroup_limit (subvolume, size)

btrfs_qgroup_remove (src, dst, path)

btrfs_qgroup_show (path)

btrfs_quota_enable (fs, enable)

btrfs_quota_rescan (fs)

btrfs_replace (srcdev, targetdev, mntpoint)

btrfs_rescue_chunk_recover (device)

btrfs_rescue_super_recover (device)

btrfs_scrub_cancel (path)

btrfs_scrub_resume (path)

btrfs_scrub_start (path)

btrfs_scrub_status (path)

btrfs_set_seeding (device, seeding)

btrfs_subvolume_create (dest, optargs)

btrfs_subvolume_delete (subvolume)

btrfs_subvolume_get_default (fs)

btrfs_subvolume_list (fs)

btrfs_subvolume_set_default (id, fs)

btrfs_subvolume_show (subvolume)

btrfs_subvolume_snapshot (source, dest, optargs)

btrfstune_enable_extended_inode_refs (device)

btrfstune_enable_skinny_metadata_extent_refs (device)

btrfstune_seeding (device, seeding)

c_pointer ()

canonical_device_name (device)

cap_get_file (path)

cap_set_file (path, cap)

case_sensitive_path (path)

cat (path)

checksum (csumtype, path)

checksum_device (csumtype, device)

checksums_out (csumtype, directory, sumsfile, cancellable)

chmod (mode, path)

chown (owner, group, path)

clear_backend_setting (name)

clevis_luks_unlock (device, mapname)

close ()

command (arguments)

command_lines (arguments)

compress_device_out (ctype, device, zdevice, optargs, cancellable)

compress_out (ctype, file, zfile, optargs, cancellable)

config (hvparam, hvvalue)

copy_attributes (src, dest, optargs)

copy_device_to_device (src, dest, optargs)

copy_device_to_file (src, dest, optargs)

copy_file_to_device (src, dest, optargs)

copy_file_to_file (src, dest, optargs)

copy_in (localpath, remotedir)

copy_out (remotepath, localdir)

copy_size (src, dest, size)

cp (src, dest)

cp_a (src, dest)

cp_r (src, dest)

cpio_out (directory, cpiofile, optargs, cancellable)

cryptsetup_close (device)

cryptsetup_open (device, key, mapname, optargs)

dd (src, dest)

debug (subcmd, extraargs)

debug_drives ()

debug_upload (filename, tmpname, mode, cancellable)

device_index (device)

device_name (index)

df ()

df_h ()

disk_create (filename, format, size, optargs)

disk_format (filename)

disk_has_backing_file (filename)

disk_virtual_size (filename)

dmesg ()

download (remotefilename, filename, cancellable)

download_blocks (device, start, stop, filename, optargs, cancellable)

download_inode (device, inode, filename, cancellable)

download_offset (remotefilename, filename, offset, size, cancellable)

drop_caches (whattodrop)

du (path)

e2fsck (device, optargs)

e2fsck_f (device)

echo_daemon (words)

egrep (regex, path)

egrepi (regex, path)

equal (file1, file2)

exists (path)

extlinux (directory)

f2fs_expand (device)

fallocate (path, len)

fallocate64 (path, len)

feature_available (groups)

fgrep (pattern, path)

fgrepi (pattern, path)

file (path)

file_architecture (filename)

filesize (file)

filesystem_available (filesystem)

filesystem_walk (device, cancellable)

fill (c, len, path)

fill_dir (dir, nr)

fill_pattern (pattern, len, path)

find (directory)

find0 (directory, files, cancellable)

find_inode (device, inode, cancellable)

findfs_label (label)

findfs_uuid (uuid)

fsck (fstype, device)

fstrim (mountpoint, optargs)

get_append ()

get_attach_method ()

get_autosync ()

get_backend ()

get_backend_setting (name)

get_backend_settings ()

get_cachedir ()

get_direct ()

get_e2attrs (file)

get_e2generation (file)

get_e2label (device)

get_e2uuid (device)

get_hv ()

get_identifier ()

get_libvirt_requested_credential_challenge (index)

get_libvirt_requested_credential_defresult (index)

get_libvirt_requested_credential_prompt (index)

get_libvirt_requested_credentials ()

get_memsize ()

get_network ()

get_path ()

get_pgroup ()

get_pid ()

get_program ()

get_qemu ()

get_recovery_proc ()

get_selinux ()

get_smp ()

get_sockdir ()

get_state ()

get_tmpdir ()

get_trace ()

get_umask ()

get_verbose ()

getcon ()

getxattr (path, name)

getxattrs (path)

glob_expand (pattern, optargs)

grep (regex, path, optargs)

grepi (regex, path)

grub_install (root, device)

head (path)

head_n (nrlines, path)

hexdump (path)

hivex_close ()

hivex_commit (filename)

hivex_node_add_child (parent, name)

hivex_node_children (nodeh)

hivex_node_delete_child (nodeh)

hivex_node_get_child (nodeh, name)

hivex_node_get_value (nodeh, key)

hivex_node_name (nodeh)

hivex_node_parent (nodeh)

hivex_node_set_value (nodeh, key, t, val)

hivex_node_values (nodeh)

hivex_open (filename, optargs)

hivex_root ()

hivex_value_key (valueh)

hivex_value_string (valueh)

hivex_value_type (valueh)

hivex_value_utf8 (valueh)

hivex_value_value (valueh)

initrd_cat (initrdpath, filename)

initrd_list (path)

inotify_add_watch (path, mask)

inotify_close ()

inotify_files ()

inotify_init (maxevents)

inotify_read ()

inotify_rm_watch (wd)

inspect_get_arch (root)

inspect_get_build_id (root)

inspect_get_distro (root)

inspect_get_drive_mappings (root)

inspect_get_filesystems (root)

inspect_get_format (root)

inspect_get_hostname (root)

inspect_get_icon (root, optargs)

inspect_get_major_version (root)

inspect_get_minor_version (root)

inspect_get_mountpoints (root)

inspect_get_osinfo (root)

inspect_get_package_format (root)

inspect_get_package_management (root)

inspect_get_product_name (root)

inspect_get_product_variant (root)

inspect_get_roots ()

inspect_get_type (root)

inspect_get_windows_current_control_set (root)

inspect_get_windows_software_hive (root)

inspect_get_windows_system_hive (root)

inspect_get_windows_systemroot (root)

inspect_is_live (root)

inspect_is_multipart (root)

inspect_is_netinst (root)

inspect_list_applications (root)

inspect_list_applications2 (root)

inspect_os ()

internal_exit (cancellable)

internal_test (str, optstr, strlist, b, integer, integer64, filein, fileout, bufferin, optargs, cancellable)

internal_test_63_optargs (optargs, cancellable)

internal_test_close_output ()

internal_test_only_optargs (optargs, cancellable)

internal_test_rbool (val)

internal_test_rboolerr ()

internal_test_rbufferout (val)

internal_test_rbufferouterr ()

internal_test_rconstoptstring (val)

internal_test_rconstoptstringerr ()

internal_test_rconststring (val)

internal_test_rconststringerr ()

internal_test_rhashtable (val)

internal_test_rhashtableerr ()

internal_test_rint (val)

internal_test_rint64 (val)

internal_test_rint64err ()

internal_test_rinterr ()

internal_test_rstring (val)

internal_test_rstringerr ()

internal_test_rstringlist (val)

internal_test_rstringlisterr ()

internal_test_rstruct (val)

internal_test_rstructerr ()

internal_test_rstructlist (val)

internal_test_rstructlisterr ()

internal_test_set_output (filename)

is_blockdev (path, optargs)

is_busy ()

is_chardev (path, optargs)

is_config ()

is_dir (path, optargs)

is_fifo (path, optargs)

is_file (path, optargs)

is_launching ()

is_lv (mountable)

is_ready ()

is_socket (path, optargs)

is_symlink (path)

is_whole_device (device)

is_zero (path)

is_zero_device (device)

isoinfo (isofile)

isoinfo_device (device)

journal_close ()

journal_get ()

journal_get_data_threshold ()

journal_get_realtime_usec ()

journal_next ()

journal_open (directory)

journal_set_data_threshold (threshold)

journal_skip (skip)

kill_subprocess ()

launch ()

lchown (owner, group, path)

ldmtool_create_all ()

ldmtool_diskgroup_disks (diskgroup)

ldmtool_diskgroup_name (diskgroup)

ldmtool_diskgroup_volumes (diskgroup)

ldmtool_remove_all ()

ldmtool_scan ()

ldmtool_scan_devices (devices)

ldmtool_volume_hint (diskgroup, volume)

ldmtool_volume_partitions (diskgroup, volume)

ldmtool_volume_type (diskgroup, volume)

lgetxattr (path, name)

lgetxattrs (path)

list_9p ()

list_devices ()

list_disk_labels ()

list_dm_devices ()

list_filesystems ()

list_ldm_partitions ()

list_ldm_volumes ()

list_md_devices ()

list_partitions ()

ll (directory)

llz (directory)

ln (target, linkname)

ln_f (target, linkname)

ln_s (target, linkname)

ln_sf (target, linkname)

lremovexattr (xattr, path)

ls (directory)

ls0 (dir, filenames)

lsetxattr (xattr, val, vallen, path)

lstat (path)

lstatlist (path, names)

lstatns (path)

lstatnslist (path, names)

luks_add_key (device, key, newkey, keyslot)

luks_close (device)

luks_format (device, key, keyslot)

luks_format_cipher (device, key, keyslot, cipher)

luks_kill_slot (device, key, keyslot)

luks_open (device, key, mapname)

luks_open_ro (device, key, mapname)

luks_uuid (device)

lvcreate (logvol, volgroup, mbytes)

lvcreate_free (logvol, volgroup, percent)

lvm_canonical_lv_name (lvname)

lvm_clear_filter ()

lvm_remove_all ()

lvm_scan (activate)

lvm_set_filter (devices)

lvremove (device)

lvrename (logvol, newlogvol)

lvresize (device, mbytes)

lvresize_free (lv, percent)

lvs ()

lvs_full ()

lvuuid (device)

lxattrlist (path, names)

max_disks ()

md_create (name, devices, optargs)

md_detail (md)

md_stat (md)

md_stop (md)

mkdir (path)

mkdir_mode (path, mode)

mkdir_p (path)

mkdtemp (tmpl)

mke2fs (device, optargs)

mke2fs_J (fstype, blocksize, device, journal)

mke2fs_JL (fstype, blocksize, device, label)

mke2fs_JU (fstype, blocksize, device, uuid)

mke2journal (blocksize, device)

mke2journal_L (blocksize, label, device)

mke2journal_U (blocksize, uuid, device)

mkfifo (mode, path)

mkfs (fstype, device, optargs)

mkfs_b (fstype, blocksize, device)

mkfs_btrfs (devices, optargs)

mklost_and_found (mountpoint)

mkmountpoint (exemptpath)

mknod (mode, devmajor, devminor, path)

mknod_b (mode, devmajor, devminor, path)

mknod_c (mode, devmajor, devminor, path)

mksquashfs (path, filename, optargs, cancellable)

mkswap (device, optargs)

mkswap_L (label, device)

mkswap_U (uuid, device)

mkswap_file (path)

mktemp (tmpl, optargs)

modprobe (modulename)

mount (mountable, mountpoint)

mount_9p (mounttag, mountpoint, optargs)

mount_local (localmountpoint, optargs)

mount_local_run (cancellable)

mount_loop (file, mountpoint)

mount_options (options, mountable, mountpoint)

mount_ro (mountable, mountpoint)

mount_vfs (options, vfstype, mountable, mountpoint)

mountable_device (mountable)

mountable_subvolume (mountable)

mountpoints ()

mounts ()

mv (src, dest)

nr_devices ()

ntfs_3g_probe (rw, device)

ntfscat_i (device, inode, filename, cancellable)

ntfsclone_in (backupfile, device, cancellable)

ntfsclone_out (device, backupfile, optargs, cancellable)

ntfsfix (device, optargs)

ntfsresize (device, optargs)

ntfsresize_size (device, size)

parse_environment ()

parse_environment_list (environment)

part_add (device, prlogex, startsect, endsect)

part_del (device, partnum)

part_disk (device, parttype)

part_expand_gpt (device)

part_get_bootable (device, partnum)

part_get_disk_guid (device)

part_get_gpt_attributes (device, partnum)

part_get_gpt_guid (device, partnum)

part_get_gpt_type (device, partnum)

part_get_mbr_id (device, partnum)

part_get_mbr_part_type (device, partnum)

part_get_name (device, partnum)

part_get_parttype (device)

part_init (device, parttype)

part_list (device)

part_resize (device, partnum, endsect)

part_set_bootable (device, partnum, bootable)

part_set_disk_guid (device, guid)

part_set_disk_guid_random (device)

part_set_gpt_attributes (device, partnum, attributes)

part_set_gpt_guid (device, partnum, guid)

part_set_gpt_type (device, partnum, guid)

part_set_mbr_id (device, partnum, idbyte)

part_set_name (device, partnum, name)

part_to_dev (partition)

part_to_partnum (partition)

ping_daemon ()

pread (path, count, offset)

pread_device (device, count, offset)

pvchange_uuid (device)

pvchange_uuid_all ()

pvcreate (device)

pvremove (device)

pvresize (device)

pvresize_size (device, size)

pvs ()

pvs_full ()

pvuuid (device)

pwrite (path, content, offset)

pwrite_device (device, content, offset)

read_file (path)

read_lines (path)

readdir (dir, cancellable)

readlink (path)

readlinklist (path, names)

realpath (path)

remount (mountpoint, optargs)

remove_drive (label)

removexattr (xattr, path)

rename (oldpath, newpath)

resize2fs (device)

resize2fs_M (device)

resize2fs_size (device, size)

rm (path)

rm_f (path)

rm_rf (path)

rmdir (path)

rmmountpoint (exemptpath)

rsync (src, dest, optargs)

rsync_in (remote, dest, optargs)

rsync_out (src, remote, optargs)

scrub_device (device)

scrub_file (file)

scrub_freespace (dir)

selinux_relabel (specfile, path, optargs)

set_append (append)

set_attach_method (backend)

set_autosync (autosync)

set_backend (backend)

set_backend_setting (name, val)

set_backend_settings (settings)

set_cachedir (cachedir)

set_direct (direct)

set_e2attrs (file, attrs, optargs)

set_e2generation (file, generation)

set_e2label (device, label)

set_e2uuid (device, uuid)

set_hv (hv)

set_identifier (identifier)

set_label (mountable, label)

set_libvirt_requested_credential (index, cred)

set_libvirt_supported_credentials (creds)

set_memsize (memsize)

set_network (network)

set_path (searchpath)

set_pgroup (pgroup)

set_program (program)

set_qemu (hv)

set_recovery_proc (recoveryproc)

set_selinux (selinux)

set_smp (smp)

set_tmpdir (tmpdir)

set_trace (trace)

set_uuid (device, uuid)

set_uuid_random (device)

set_verbose (verbose)

setcon (context)

setxattr (xattr, val, vallen, path)

sfdisk (device, cyls, heads, sectors, lines)

sfdiskM (device, lines)

sfdisk_N (device, partnum, cyls, heads, sectors, line)

sfdisk_disk_geometry (device)

sfdisk_kernel_geometry (device)

sfdisk_l (device)

sh (command)

sh_lines (command)

shutdown ()

sleep (secs)

stat (path)

statns (path)

statvfs (path)

strings (path)

strings_e (encoding, path)

swapoff_device (device)

swapoff_file (file)

swapoff_label (label)

swapoff_uuid (uuid)

swapon_device (device)

swapon_file (file)

swapon_label (label)

swapon_uuid (uuid)

sync ()

syslinux (device, optargs)

tail (path)

tail_n (nrlines, path)

tar_in (tarfile, directory, optargs, cancellable)

tar_out (directory, tarfile, optargs, cancellable)

tgz_in (tarball, directory, cancellable)

tgz_out (directory, tarball, cancellable)

touch (path)

truncate (path)

truncate_size (path, size)

tune2fs (device, optargs)

tune2fs_l (device)

txz_in (tarball, directory, cancellable)

txz_out (directory, tarball, cancellable)

umask (mask)

umount (pathordevice, optargs)

umount_all ()

umount_local (optargs)

upload (filename, remotefilename, cancellable)

upload_offset (filename, remotefilename, offset, cancellable)

user_cancel ()

utimens (path, atsecs, atnsecs, mtsecs, mtnsecs)

utsname ()

version ()

vfs_label (mountable)

vfs_minimum_size (mountable)

vfs_type (mountable)

vfs_uuid (mountable)

vg_activate (activate, volgroups)

vg_activate_all (activate)

vgchange_uuid (vg)

vgchange_uuid_all ()

vgcreate (volgroup, physvols)

vglvuuids (vgname)

vgmeta (vgname)

vgpvuuids (vgname)

vgremove (vgname)

vgrename (volgroup, newvolgroup)

vgs ()

vgs_full ()

vgscan ()

vguuid (vgname)

wait_ready ()

wc_c (path)

wc_l (path)

wc_w (path)

wipefs (device)

write (path, content)

write_append (path, content)

write_file (path, content, size)

xfs_admin (device, optargs)

xfs_growfs (path, optargs)

xfs_info (pathordevice)

xfs_repair (device, optargs)

yara_destroy ()

yara_load (filename, cancellable)

yara_scan (path, cancellable)

zegrep (regex, path)

zegrepi (regex, path)

zero (device)

zero_device (device)

zero_free_space (directory)

zerofree (device)

zfgrep (pattern, path)

zfgrepi (pattern, path)

zfile (meth, path)

zgrep (regex, path)

zgrepi (regex, path)

Virtual Methods

Inherited:

GObject.Object (7)

Properties

None

Signals

Inherited:

GObject.Object (1)

Name

Short Description

appliance

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

close

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

enter

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

launch-done

library

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

libvirt-auth

progress

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

subprocess-quit

trace

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

warning

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Fields

Inherited:

GObject.Object (1)

Name

Type

Access

Description

parent

GObject.Object

r

Class Details

class Guestfs.Session(**kwargs)
Bases:

GObject.Object

Abstract:

No

Structure:

Guestfs.SessionClass

A libguestfs session, encapsulating a single libguestfs handle.

classmethod new()
Returns:

a new guestfs session object

Return type:

Guestfs.Session

Create a new libguestfs session.

acl_delete_def_file(dir)
Parameters:

dir (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

delete the default POSIX ACL of a directory

This function deletes the default POSIX Access Control List (ACL) attached to directory dir.

This function depends on the feature “acl”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.63.

acl_get_file(path, acltype)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • acltype (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the POSIX ACL attached to a file

This function returns the POSIX Access Control List (ACL) attached to path. The ACL is returned in “long text form” (see acl(5)).

The acltype parameter may be:

access Return the ordinary (access) ACL for any file, directory or other filesystem object.

default Return the default ACL. Normally this only makes sense if path is a directory.

This function depends on the feature “acl”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.63.

acl_set_file(path, acltype, acl)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • acltype (str) –

  • acl (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the POSIX ACL attached to a file

This function sets the POSIX Access Control List (ACL) attached to path.

The acltype parameter may be:

access Set the ordinary (access) ACL for any file, directory or other filesystem object.

default Set the default ACL. Normally this only makes sense if path is a directory.

The acl parameter is the new ACL in either “long text form” or “short text form” (see acl(5)). The new ACL completely replaces any previous ACL on the file. The ACL must contain the full Unix permissions (eg. “u::rwx,g::rx,o::rx”).

If you are specifying individual users or groups, then the mask field is also required (eg. “m::rwx”), followed by the “u:*ID*:…” and/or “g:*ID*:…” field(s). A full ACL string might therefore look like this:

<![CDATA[u::rwx,g::rwx,o::rwx,m::rwx,u:500:py:data::rwx<Guestfs.Session.props.rwx>,g:500:py:data::rwx<Guestfs.Session.props.rwx>]]>

\ Unix permissions / \mask/ \ ACL /

You should use numeric UIDs and GIDs. To map usernames and groupnames to the correct numeric ID in the context of the guest, use the Augeas functions (see Guestfs.Session.aug_init()).

This function depends on the feature “acl”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.63.

add_cdrom(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a CD-ROM disk image to examine

This function adds a virtual CD-ROM disk image to the guest.

The image is added as read-only drive, so this function is equivalent of Guestfs.Session.add_drive_ro().

New in version 0.3.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.add_drive_ro() instead

add_domain(dom, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

add the disk(s) from a named libvirt domain

This function adds the disk(s) attached to the named libvirt domain dom. It works by connecting to libvirt, requesting the domain and domain XML from libvirt, parsing it for disks, and calling guestfs_session_add_drive_opts() on each one.

The number of disks added is returned. This operation is atomic: if an error is returned, then no disks are added.

This function does some minimal checks to make sure the libvirt domain is not running (unless readonly is true). In a future version we will try to acquire the libvirt lock on each disk.

Disks must be accessible locally. This often means that adding disks from a remote libvirt connection (see <ulink url=’https://libvirt.org/remote.html’> http://libvirt.org/remote.html </ulink>) will fail unless those disks are accessible via the same device path locally too.

The optional libvirturi parameter sets the libvirt URI (see <ulink url=’https://libvirt.org/uri.html’> http://libvirt.org/uri.html </ulink>). If this is not set then we connect to the default libvirt URI (or one set through an environment variable, see the libvirt documentation for full details).

The optional live flag is ignored in libguestfs &ge; 1.48.

If the allowuuid flag is true (default is false) then a UUID *may* be passed instead of the domain name. The dom string is treated as a UUID first and looked up, and if that lookup fails then we treat dom as a name as usual.

The optional readonlydisk parameter controls what we do for disks which are marked &lt;readonly/&gt; in the libvirt XML. Possible values are:

readonlydisk = “error” If readonly is false:

The whole call is aborted with an error if any disk with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag is found.

If readonly is true:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are added read-only.

readonlydisk = “read” If readonly is false:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are added read-only. Other disks are added read/write.

If readonly is true:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are added read-only.

readonlydisk = “write” (default) If readonly is false:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are added read/write.

If readonly is true:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are added read-only.

readonlydisk = “ignore” If readonly is true or false:

Disks with the &lt;readonly/&gt; flag are skipped.

If present, the value of logical_block_size attribute of &lt;blockio/&gt; tag in libvirt XML will be passed as blocksize parameter to guestfs_session_add_drive_opts().

The other optional parameters are passed directly through to guestfs_session_add_drive_opts().

New in version 1.7.4.

add_drive(filename, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add an image to examine or modify

This function adds a disk image called filename to the handle. filename may be a regular host file or a host device.

When this function is called before Guestfs.Session.launch() (the usual case) then the first time you call this function, the disk appears in the API as /dev/sda, the second time as /dev/sdb, and so on.

You don’t necessarily need to be root when using libguestfs. However you obviously do need sufficient permissions to access the filename for whatever operations you want to perform (ie. read access if you just want to read the image or write access if you want to modify the image).

This call checks that filename exists.

filename may be the special string “/dev/null”. See “None DISKS” in guestfs(3).

The optional arguments are:

readonly If true then the image is treated as read-only. Writes are still allowed, but they are stored in a temporary snapshot overlay which is discarded at the end. The disk that you add is not modified.

format This forces the image format. If you omit this (or use Guestfs.Session.add_drive() or Guestfs.Session.add_drive_ro()) then the format is automatically detected. Possible formats include raw and qcow2.

Automatic detection of the format opens you up to a potential security hole when dealing with untrusted raw-format images. See CVE-2010-3851 and <ulink url=’https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=642934’> RHBZ&num;642934 </ulink>. Specifying the format closes this security hole.

iface This rarely-used option lets you emulate the behaviour of the deprecated Guestfs.Session.add_drive_with_if() call (q.v.)

name This field used to be passed as a hint for guest inspection, but it is no longer used.

label Give the disk a label. The label should be a unique, short string using *only* ASCII characters “[a-zA-Z]”. As well as its usual name in the API (such as /dev/sda), the drive will also be named /dev/disk/guestfs/*label*.

See “DISK LABELS” in guestfs(3).

protocol The optional protocol argument can be used to select an alternate source protocol.

See also: “REMOTE STORAGE” in guestfs(3).

“protocol = “file”” filename is interpreted as a local file or device. This is the default if the optional protocol parameter is omitted.

“protocol = “ftp”|”ftps”|”http”|”https”|”tftp”” Connect to a remote FTP, HTTP or TFTP server. The server parameter must also be supplied - see below.

See also: “FTP, HTTP AND TFTP” in guestfs(3)

“protocol = “gluster”” Connect to the GlusterFS server. The server parameter must also be supplied - see below.

See also: “GLUSTER” in guestfs(3)

“protocol = “iscsi”” Connect to the iSCSI server. The server parameter must also be supplied - see below. The username parameter may be supplied. See below. The secret parameter may be supplied. See below.

See also: “ISCSI” in guestfs(3).

“protocol = “nbd”” Connect to the Network Block Device server. The server parameter must also be supplied - see below.

See also: “NETWORK BLOCK DEVICE” in guestfs(3).

“protocol = “rbd”” Connect to the Ceph (librbd/RBD) server. The server parameter must also be supplied - see below. The username parameter may be supplied. See below. The secret parameter may be supplied. See below.

See also: “CEPH” in guestfs(3).

“protocol = “sheepdog”” Connect to the Sheepdog server. The server parameter may also be supplied - see below.

See also: “SHEEPDOG” in guestfs(3).

“protocol = “ssh”” Connect to the Secure Shell (ssh) server.

The server parameter must be supplied. The username parameter may be supplied. See below.

See also: “SSH” in guestfs(3).

server For protocols which require access to a remote server, this is a list of server(s).

<![CDATA[Protocol Number of servers required]]>

<![CDATA[——– ————————–]]>

<![CDATA[file List must be empty or param not used at all]]>

<![CDATA[ftp|ftps|http|https|tftp Exactly one]]>

<![CDATA[gluster Exactly one]]>

<![CDATA[iscsi Exactly one]]>

<![CDATA[nbd Exactly one]]>

<![CDATA[rbd Zero or more]]>

<![CDATA[sheepdog Zero or more]]>

<![CDATA[ssh Exactly one]]>

Each list element is a string specifying a server. The string must be in one of the following formats:

<![CDATA[hostname]]>

<![CDATA[hostname:port]]>

<![CDATA[tcp:hostname]]>

<![CDATA[tcp:hostname:py:data::port<Guestfs.Session.props.port>]]>

<![CDATA[unix:/path/to/socket]]>

If the port number is omitted, then the standard port number for the protocol is used (see /etc/services).

username For the ftp, ftps, http, https, iscsi, rbd, ssh and tftp protocols, this specifies the remote username.

If not given, then the local username is used for ssh, and no authentication is attempted for ceph. But note this sometimes may give unexpected results, for example if using the libvirt backend and if the libvirt backend is configured to start the qemu appliance as a special user such as “qemu.qemu”. If in doubt, specify the remote username you want.

secret For the rbd protocol only, this specifies the ‘secret’ to use when connecting to the remote device. It must be base64 encoded.

If not given, then a secret matching the given username will be looked up in the default keychain locations, or if no username is given, then no authentication will be used.

cachemode Choose whether or not libguestfs will obey sync operations (safe but slow) or not (unsafe but fast). The possible values for this string are:

“cachemode = “writeback”” This is the default.

Write operations in the API do not return until a write(2) call has completed in the host [but note this does not imply that anything gets written to disk].

Sync operations in the API, including implicit syncs caused by filesystem journalling, will not return until an fdatasync(2) call has completed in the host, indicating that data has been committed to disk.

“cachemode = “unsafe”” In this mode, there are no guarantees. Libguestfs may cache anything and ignore sync requests. This is suitable only for scratch or temporary disks.

discard Enable or disable discard (a.k.a. trim or unmap) support on this drive. If enabled, operations such as Guestfs.Session.fstrim() will be able to discard / make thin / punch holes in the underlying host file or device.

Possible discard settings are:

“discard = “disable”” Disable discard support. This is the default.

“discard = “enable”” Enable discard support. Fail if discard is not possible.

“discard = “besteffort”” Enable discard support if possible, but don’t fail if it is not supported.

Since not all backends and not all underlying systems support discard, this is a good choice if you want to use discard if possible, but don’t mind if it doesn’t work.

copyonread The boolean parameter copyonread enables copy-on-read support. This only affects disk formats which have backing files, and causes reads to be stored in the overlay layer, speeding up multiple reads of the same area of disk.

The default is false.

blocksize This parameter sets the sector size of the disk. Possible values are 512 (the default if the parameter is omitted) or 4096. Use 4096 when handling an “Advanced Format” disk that uses 4K sector size (<ulink url=’https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Format’> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Format </ulink>).

Only a subset of the backends support this parameter (currently only the libvirt and direct backends do).

New in version 0.3.

add_drive_ro(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a drive in snapshot mode (read-only)

This function is the equivalent of calling guestfs_session_add_drive_opts() with the optional parameter GUESTFS_ADD_DRIVE_OPTS_READONLY set to 1, so the disk is added read-only, with the format being detected automatically.

New in version 1.0.38.

add_drive_ro_with_if(filename, iface)
Parameters:
  • filename (str) –

  • iface (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a drive read-only specifying the QEMU block emulation to use

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.add_drive_ro() but it allows you to specify the QEMU interface emulation to use at run time. Both the direct and the libvirt backends ignore iface.

New in version 1.0.84.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.add_drive() instead

add_drive_scratch(size, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a temporary scratch drive

This command adds a temporary scratch drive to the handle. The size parameter is the virtual size (in bytes). The scratch drive is blank initially (all reads return zeroes until you start writing to it). The drive is deleted when the handle is closed.

The optional arguments name, label and blocksize are passed through to guestfs_session_add_drive_opts().

New in version 1.23.10.

add_drive_with_if(filename, iface)
Parameters:
  • filename (str) –

  • iface (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a drive specifying the QEMU block emulation to use

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.add_drive() but it allows you to specify the QEMU interface emulation to use at run time. Both the direct and the libvirt backends ignore iface.

New in version 1.0.84.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.add_drive() instead

add_libvirt_dom(dom, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

add the disk(s) from a libvirt domain

This function adds the disk(s) attached to the libvirt domain dom. It works by requesting the domain XML from libvirt, parsing it for disks, and calling guestfs_session_add_drive_opts() on each one.

In the C API we declare “void *dom”, but really it has type “virDomainPtr dom”. This is so we don’t need &lt;libvirt.h&gt;.

The number of disks added is returned. This operation is atomic: if an error is returned, then no disks are added.

This function does some minimal checks to make sure the libvirt domain is not running (unless readonly is true). In a future version we will try to acquire the libvirt lock on each disk.

Disks must be accessible locally. This often means that adding disks from a remote libvirt connection (see <ulink url=’https://libvirt.org/remote.html’> http://libvirt.org/remote.html </ulink>) will fail unless those disks are accessible via the same device path locally too.

The optional live flag is ignored in libguestfs &ge; 1.48.

The optional readonlydisk parameter controls what we do for disks which are marked &lt;readonly/&gt; in the libvirt XML. See Guestfs.Session.add_domain() for possible values.

If present, the value of logical_block_size attribute of &lt;blockio/&gt; tag in libvirt XML will be passed as blocksize parameter to guestfs_session_add_drive_opts().

The other optional parameters are passed directly through to guestfs_session_add_drive_opts().

New in version 1.29.14.

aug_clear(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

clear Augeas path

Set the value associated with path to None. This is the same as the augtool(1) clear command.

New in version 1.3.4.

aug_close()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close the current Augeas handle

Close the current Augeas handle and free up any resources used by it. After calling this, you have to call Guestfs.Session.aug_init() again before you can use any other Augeas functions.

New in version 0.7.

aug_defnode(name, expr, val)
Parameters:
  • name (str) –

  • expr (str) –

  • val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a IntBool object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.IntBool

define an Augeas node

Defines a variable name whose value is the result of evaluating expr.

If expr evaluates to an empty nodeset, a node is created, equivalent to calling Guestfs.Session.aug_set() expr, val. name will be the nodeset containing that single node.

On success this returns a pair containing the number of nodes in the nodeset, and a boolean flag if a node was created.

New in version 0.7.

aug_defvar(name, expr)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

define an Augeas variable

Defines an Augeas variable name whose value is the result of evaluating expr. If expr is None, then name is undefined.

On success this returns the number of nodes in expr, or 0 if expr evaluates to something which is not a nodeset.

New in version 0.7.

aug_get(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

look up the value of an Augeas path

Look up the value associated with path. If path matches exactly one node, the value is returned.

New in version 0.7.

aug_init(root, flags)
Parameters:
  • root (str) –

  • flags (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a new Augeas handle

Create a new Augeas handle for editing configuration files. If there was any previous Augeas handle associated with this guestfs session, then it is closed.

You must call this before using any other “guestfs_aug_*” commands.

root is the filesystem root. root must not be None, use / instead.

The flags are the same as the flags defined in <augeas.h>, the logical *or* of the following integers:

AUG_SAVE_BACKUP = 1 Keep the original file with a “.augsave” extension.

AUG_SAVE_NEWFILE = 2 Save changes into a file with extension “.augnew”, and do not overwrite original. Overrides AUG_SAVE_BACKUP.

AUG_TYPE_CHECK = 4 Typecheck lenses.

This option is only useful when debugging Augeas lenses. Use of this option may require additional memory for the libguestfs appliance. You may need to set the LIBGUESTFS_MEMSIZE environment variable or call Guestfs.Session.set_memsize().

AUG_NO_STDINC = 8 Do not use standard load path for modules.

AUG_SAVE_NOOP = 16 Make save a no-op, just record what would have been changed.

AUG_NO_LOAD = 32 Do not load the tree in Guestfs.Session.aug_init().

To close the handle, you can call Guestfs.Session.aug_close().

To find out more about Augeas, see http://augeas.net/.

New in version 0.7.

aug_insert(augpath, label, before)
Parameters:
  • augpath (str) –

  • label (str) –

  • before (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

insert a sibling Augeas node

Create a new sibling label for path, inserting it into the tree before or after path (depending on the boolean flag before).

path must match exactly one existing node in the tree, and label must be a label, ie. not contain /, “*” or end with a bracketed index “[N]”.

New in version 0.7.

aug_label(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the label from an Augeas path expression

The label (name of the last element) of the Augeas path expression augpath is returned. augpath must match exactly one node, else this function returns an error.

New in version 1.23.14.

aug_load()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

load files into the tree

Load files into the tree.

See aug_load in the Augeas documentation for the full gory details.

New in version 0.7.

aug_ls(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list Augeas nodes under augpath

This is just a shortcut for listing Guestfs.Session.aug_match() “path/*” and sorting the resulting nodes into alphabetical order.

New in version 0.8.

aug_match(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return Augeas nodes which match augpath

Returns a list of paths which match the path expression path. The returned paths are sufficiently qualified so that they match exactly one node in the current tree.

New in version 0.7.

aug_mv(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

move Augeas node

Move the node src to dest. src must match exactly one node. dest is overwritten if it exists.

New in version 0.7.

aug_rm(augpath)
Parameters:

augpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

remove an Augeas path

Remove path and all of its children.

On success this returns the number of entries which were removed.

New in version 0.7.

aug_save()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

write all pending Augeas changes to disk

This writes all pending changes to disk.

The flags which were passed to Guestfs.Session.aug_init() affect exactly how files are saved.

New in version 0.7.

aug_set(augpath, val)
Parameters:
  • augpath (str) –

  • val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set Augeas path to value

Set the value associated with augpath to val.

In the Augeas API, it is possible to clear a node by setting the value to None. Due to an oversight in the libguestfs API you cannot do that with this call. Instead you must use the Guestfs.Session.aug_clear() call.

New in version 0.7.

aug_setm(base, sub, val)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

set multiple Augeas nodes

Change multiple Augeas nodes in a single operation. base is an expression matching multiple nodes. sub is a path expression relative to base. All nodes matching base are found, and then for each node, sub is changed to val. sub may also be None in which case the base nodes are modified.

This returns the number of nodes modified.

New in version 1.23.14.

aug_transform(lens, file, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add/remove an Augeas lens transformation

Add an Augeas transformation for the specified lens so it can handle file.

If remove is true (false by default), then the transformation is removed.

New in version 1.35.2.

available(groups)
Parameters:

groups ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

test availability of some parts of the API

This command is used to check the availability of some groups of functionality in the appliance, which not all builds of the libguestfs appliance will be able to provide.

The libguestfs groups, and the functions that those groups correspond to, are listed in “AVAILABILITY” in guestfs(3). You can also fetch this list at runtime by calling Guestfs.Session.available_all_groups().

The argument groups is a list of group names, eg: “[“inotify”, “augeas”]” would check for the availability of the Linux inotify functions and Augeas (configuration file editing) functions.

The command returns no error if *all* requested groups are available.

It fails with an error if one or more of the requested groups is unavailable in the appliance.

If an unknown group name is included in the list of groups then an error is always returned.

*Notes:*

The reason is because we don’t know what groups are supported by the appliance/daemon until it is running and can be queried.

  • If a group of functions is available, this does not necessarily mean that they will work. You still have to check for errors when calling individual API functions even if they are available.

  • It is usually the job of distro packagers to build complete functionality into the libguestfs appliance. Upstream libguestfs, if built from source with all requirements satisfied, will support everything.

  • This call was added in version 1.0.80. In previous versions of libguestfs all you could do would be to speculatively execute a command to find out if the daemon implemented it. See also Guestfs.Session.version().

See also Guestfs.Session.filesystem_available().

New in version 1.0.80.

available_all_groups()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return a list of all optional groups

This command returns a list of all optional groups that this daemon knows about. Note this returns both supported and unsupported groups. To find out which ones the daemon can actually support you have to call Guestfs.Session.available() / Guestfs.Session.feature_available() on each member of the returned list.

See also Guestfs.Session.available(), Guestfs.Session.feature_available() and “AVAILABILITY” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.3.15.

base64_in(base64file, filename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

upload base64-encoded data to file

This command uploads base64-encoded data from base64file to filename.

New in version 1.3.5.

base64_out(filename, base64file, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download file and encode as base64

This command downloads the contents of filename, writing it out to local file base64file encoded as base64.

New in version 1.3.5.

blkdiscard(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

discard all blocks on a device

This discards all blocks on the block device device, giving the free space back to the host.

This operation requires support in libguestfs, the host filesystem, qemu and the host kernel. If this support isn’t present it may give an error or even appear to run but do nothing. You must also set the discard attribute on the underlying drive (see guestfs_session_add_drive_opts()).

This function depends on the feature “blkdiscard”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.25.44.

blkdiscardzeroes(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return true if discarded blocks are read as zeroes

This call returns true if blocks on device that have been discarded by a call to Guestfs.Session.blkdiscard() are returned as blocks of zero bytes when read the next time.

If it returns false, then it may be that discarded blocks are read as stale or random data.

This function depends on the feature “blkdiscardzeroes”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.25.44.

blkid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

print block device attributes

This command returns block device attributes for device. The following fields are usually present in the returned hash. Other fields may also be present.

UUID The uuid of this device.

LABEL The label of this device.

VERSION The version of blkid command.

TYPE The filesystem type or RAID of this device.

USAGE The usage of this device, for example filesystem or raid.

New in version 1.15.9.

blockdev_flushbufs(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

flush device buffers

This tells the kernel to flush internal buffers associated with device.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_getbsz(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get blocksize of block device

This returns the block size of a device.

Note: this is different from both *size in blocks* and *filesystem block size*. Also this setting is not really used by anything. You should probably not use it for anything. Filesystems have their own idea about what block size to choose.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_getro(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

is block device set to read-only

Returns a boolean indicating if the block device is read-only (true if read-only, false if not).

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_getsize64(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get total size of device in bytes

This returns the size of the device in bytes.

See also Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getsz().

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_getss(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get sectorsize of block device

This returns the size of sectors on a block device. Usually 512, but can be larger for modern devices.

(Note, this is not the size in sectors, use Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getsz() for that).

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_getsz(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get total size of device in 512-byte sectors

This returns the size of the device in units of 512-byte sectors (even if the sectorsize isn’t 512 bytes … weird).

See also Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getss() for the real sector size of the device, and Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getsize64() for the more useful *size in bytes*.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_rereadpt(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

reread partition table

Reread the partition table on device.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_setbsz(device, blocksize)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • blocksize (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set blocksize of block device

This call does nothing and has never done anything because of a bug in blockdev. Do not use it.

If you need to set the filesystem block size, use the blocksize option of Guestfs.Session.mkfs().

New in version 1.9.3.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

blockdev_setra(device, sectors)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • sectors (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set readahead

Set readahead (in 512-byte sectors) for the device.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.29.10.

blockdev_setro(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set block device to read-only

Sets the block device named device to read-only.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

blockdev_setrw(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set block device to read-write

Sets the block device named device to read-write.

This uses the blockdev(8) command.

New in version 1.9.3.

btrfs_balance_cancel(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

cancel a running or paused balance

Cancel a running balance on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_balance_pause(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pause a running balance

Pause a running balance on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_balance_resume(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resume a paused balance

Resume a paused balance on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_balance_status(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a BTRFSBalance object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.BTRFSBalance

show the status of a running or paused balance

Show the status of a running or paused balance on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.26.

btrfs_device_add(devices, fs)
Parameters:
  • devices ([str]) – an array of strings

  • fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add devices to a btrfs filesystem

Add the list of device(s) in devices to the btrfs filesystem mounted at fs. If devices is an empty list, this does nothing.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_device_delete(devices, fs)
Parameters:
  • devices ([str]) – an array of strings

  • fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove devices from a btrfs filesystem

Remove the devices from the btrfs filesystem mounted at fs. If devices is an empty list, this does nothing.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_filesystem_balance(fs)
Parameters:

fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

balance a btrfs filesystem

Balance the chunks in the btrfs filesystem mounted at fs across the underlying devices.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_filesystem_defragment(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

defragment a file or directory

Defragment a file or directory on a btrfs filesystem. compress is one of zlib or lzo.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_filesystem_resize(mountpoint, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize a btrfs filesystem

This command resizes a btrfs filesystem.

Note that unlike other resize calls, the filesystem has to be mounted and the parameter is the mountpoint not the device (this is a requirement of btrfs itself).

The optional parameters are:

size The new size (in bytes) of the filesystem. If omitted, the filesystem is resized to the maximum size.

See also btrfs(8).

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.11.17.

btrfs_filesystem_show(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list devices for btrfs filesystem

Show all the devices where the filesystems in device is spanned over.

If not all the devices for the filesystems are present, then this function fails and the errno is set to ENODEV.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.29.

btrfs_filesystem_sync(fs)
Parameters:

fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

sync a btrfs filesystem

Force sync on the btrfs filesystem mounted at fs.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_fsck(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

check a btrfs filesystem

Used to check a btrfs filesystem, device is the device file where the filesystem is stored.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.43.

btrfs_image(source, image, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an image of a btrfs filesystem

This is used to create an image of a btrfs filesystem. All data will be zeroed, but metadata and the like is preserved.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.32.

btrfs_qgroup_assign(src, dst, path)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a qgroup to a parent qgroup

Add qgroup src to parent qgroup dst. This command can group several qgroups into a parent qgroup to share common limit.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_qgroup_create(qgroupid, subvolume)
Parameters:
  • qgroupid (str) –

  • subvolume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a subvolume quota group

Create a quota group (qgroup) for subvolume at subvolume.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_qgroup_destroy(qgroupid, subvolume)
Parameters:
  • qgroupid (str) –

  • subvolume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

destroy a subvolume quota group

Destroy a quota group.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_qgroup_limit(subvolume, size)
Parameters:
  • subvolume (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

limit the size of a subvolume

Limit the size of the subvolume with path subvolume.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_qgroup_remove(src, dst, path)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a qgroup from its parent qgroup

Remove qgroup src from the parent qgroup dst.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_qgroup_show(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of BTRFSQgroup objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.BTRFSQgroup]

show subvolume quota groups

Show all subvolume quota groups in a btrfs filesystem, including their usages.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_quota_enable(fs, enable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable subvolume quota support

Enable or disable subvolume quota support for filesystem which contains path.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_quota_rescan(fs)
Parameters:

fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

trash all qgroup numbers and scan the metadata again with the current config

Trash all qgroup numbers and scan the metadata again with the current config.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_replace(srcdev, targetdev, mntpoint)
Parameters:
  • srcdev (str) –

  • targetdev (str) –

  • mntpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

replace a btrfs managed device with another device

Replace device of a btrfs filesystem. On a live filesystem, duplicate the data to the target device which is currently stored on the source device. After completion of the operation, the source device is wiped out and removed from the filesystem.

The targetdev needs to be same size or larger than the srcdev. Devices which are currently mounted are never allowed to be used as the targetdev.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.48.

btrfs_rescue_chunk_recover(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

recover the chunk tree of btrfs filesystem

Recover the chunk tree of btrfs filesystem by scanning the devices one by one.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_rescue_super_recover(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

recover bad superblocks from good copies

Recover bad superblocks from good copies.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_scrub_cancel(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

cancel a running scrub

Cancel a running scrub on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_scrub_resume(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resume a previously canceled or interrupted scrub

Resume a previously canceled or interrupted scrub on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_scrub_start(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

read all data from all disks and verify checksums

Reads all the data and metadata on the filesystem, and uses checksums and the duplicate copies from RAID storage to identify and repair any corrupt data.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.22.

btrfs_scrub_status(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a BTRFSScrub object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.BTRFSScrub

show status of running or finished scrub

Show status of running or finished scrub on a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.26.

btrfs_set_seeding(device, seeding)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • seeding (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable the seeding feature of device

Enable or disable the seeding feature of a device that contains a btrfs filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.43.

btrfs_subvolume_create(dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a btrfs subvolume

Create a btrfs subvolume. The dest argument is the destination directory and the name of the subvolume, in the form /path/to/dest/name. The optional parameter qgroupid represents the qgroup which the newly created subvolume will be added to.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_subvolume_delete(subvolume)
Parameters:

subvolume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

delete a btrfs subvolume or snapshot

Delete the named btrfs subvolume or snapshot.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_subvolume_get_default(fs)
Parameters:

fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the default subvolume or snapshot of a filesystem

Get the default subvolume or snapshot of a filesystem mounted at mountpoint.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_subvolume_list(fs)
Parameters:

fs (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of BTRFSSubvolume objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.BTRFSSubvolume]

list btrfs snapshots and subvolumes

List the btrfs snapshots and subvolumes of the btrfs filesystem which is mounted at fs.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_subvolume_set_default(id, fs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set default btrfs subvolume

Set the subvolume of the btrfs filesystem fs which will be mounted by default. See Guestfs.Session.btrfs_subvolume_list() to get a list of subvolumes.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfs_subvolume_show(subvolume)
Parameters:

subvolume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

return detailed information of the subvolume

Return detailed information of the subvolume.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.17.

btrfs_subvolume_snapshot(source, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a btrfs snapshot

Create a snapshot of the btrfs subvolume source. The dest argument is the destination directory and the name of the snapshot, in the form /path/to/dest/name. By default the newly created snapshot is writable, if the value of optional parameter ro is true, then a readonly snapshot is created. The optional parameter qgroupid represents the qgroup which the newly created snapshot will be added to.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.35.

btrfstune_enable_extended_inode_refs(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable extended inode refs

This will Enable extended inode refs.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.29.

btrfstune_enable_skinny_metadata_extent_refs(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable skinny metadata extent refs

This enable skinny metadata extent refs.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.29.

btrfstune_seeding(device, seeding)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • seeding (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable seeding of a btrfs device

Enable seeding of a btrfs device, this will force a fs readonly so that you can use it to build other filesystems.

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.29.

c_pointer()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the C pointer to the guestfs_h handle

In non-C language bindings, this allows you to retrieve the underlying C pointer to the handle (ie. “guestfs_h *”). The purpose of this is to allow other libraries to interwork with libguestfs.

New in version 1.29.17.

canonical_device_name(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return canonical device name

This utility function is useful when displaying device names to the user. It takes a number of irregular device names and returns them in a consistent format:

/dev/hdX /dev/vdX These are returned as /dev/sdX. Note this works for device names and partition names. This is approximately the reverse of the algorithm described in “BLOCK DEVICE NAMING” in guestfs(3).

/dev/mapper/VG-LV /dev/dm-N Converted to /dev/VG/LV form using Guestfs.Session.lvm_canonical_lv_name().

Other strings are returned unmodified.

New in version 1.19.7.

cap_get_file(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the Linux capabilities attached to a file

This function returns the Linux capabilities attached to path. The capabilities set is returned in text form (see cap_to_text(3)).

If no capabilities are attached to a file, an empty string is returned.

This function depends on the feature “linuxcaps”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.63.

cap_set_file(path, cap)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • cap (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the Linux capabilities attached to a file

This function sets the Linux capabilities attached to path. The capabilities set cap should be passed in text form (see cap_from_text(3)).

This function depends on the feature “linuxcaps”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.63.

case_sensitive_path(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return true path on case-insensitive filesystem

This can be used to resolve case insensitive paths on a filesystem which is case sensitive. The use case is to resolve paths which you have read from Windows configuration files or the Windows Registry, to the true path.

The command handles a peculiarity of the Linux ntfs-3g filesystem driver (and probably others), which is that although the underlying filesystem is case-insensitive, the driver exports the filesystem to Linux as case-sensitive.

One consequence of this is that special directories such as C:\windows may appear as /WINDOWS or /windows (or other things) depending on the precise details of how they were created. In Windows itself this would not be a problem.

Bug or feature? You decide: http://www.tuxera.com/community/ntfs-3g-faq/#posixfilenames1

Guestfs.Session.case_sensitive_path() attempts to resolve the true case of each element in the path. It will return a resolved path if either the full path or its parent directory exists. If the parent directory exists but the full path does not, the case of the parent directory will be correctly resolved, and the remainder appended unmodified. For example, if the file “/Windows/System32/netkvm.sys” exists:

Guestfs.Session.case_sensitive_path() (“/windows/system32/netkvm.sys”) “Windows/System32/netkvm.sys”

Guestfs.Session.case_sensitive_path() (“/windows/system32/NoSuchFile”) “Windows/System32/NoSuchFile”

Guestfs.Session.case_sensitive_path() (“/windows/system33/netkvm.sys”) *ERROR*

*Note*: Because of the above behaviour, Guestfs.Session.case_sensitive_path() cannot be used to check for the existence of a file.

*Note*: This function does not handle drive names, backslashes etc.

See also Guestfs.Session.realpath().

New in version 1.0.75.

cat(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

list the contents of a file

Return the contents of the file named path.

Because, in C, this function returns a “str *”, there is no way to differentiate between a “\0” character in a file and end of string. To handle binary files, use the Guestfs.Session.read_file() or Guestfs.Session.download() functions.

New in version 0.4.

checksum(csumtype, path)
Parameters:
  • csumtype (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

compute MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of file

This call computes the MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of the file named path.

The type of checksum to compute is given by the csumtype parameter which must have one of the following values:

crc Compute the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) specified by POSIX for the cksum command.

md5 Compute the MD5 hash (using the md5sum(1) program).

sha1 Compute the SHA1 hash (using the sha1sum(1) program).

sha224 Compute the SHA224 hash (using the sha224sum(1) program).

sha256 Compute the SHA256 hash (using the sha256sum(1) program).

sha384 Compute the SHA384 hash (using the sha384sum(1) program).

sha512 Compute the SHA512 hash (using the sha512sum(1) program).

The checksum is returned as a printable string.

To get the checksum for a device, use Guestfs.Session.checksum_device().

To get the checksums for many files, use Guestfs.Session.checksums_out().

New in version 1.0.2.

checksum_device(csumtype, device)
Parameters:
  • csumtype (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

compute MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of the contents of a device

This call computes the MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of the contents of the device named device. For the types of checksums supported see the Guestfs.Session.checksum() command.

New in version 1.3.2.

checksums_out(csumtype, directory, sumsfile, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

compute MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of files in a directory

This command computes the checksums of all regular files in directory and then emits a list of those checksums to the local output file sumsfile.

This can be used for verifying the integrity of a virtual machine. However to be properly secure you should pay attention to the output of the checksum command (it uses the ones from GNU coreutils). In particular when the filename is not printable, coreutils uses a special backslash syntax. For more information, see the GNU coreutils info file.

New in version 1.3.7.

chmod(mode, path)
Parameters:
  • mode (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

change file mode

Change the mode (permissions) of path to mode. Only numeric modes are supported.

*Note*: When using this command from guestfish, mode by default would be decimal, unless you prefix it with 0 to get octal, ie. use 0700 not 700.

The mode actually set is affected by the umask.

New in version 0.8.

chown(owner, group, path)
Parameters:
  • owner (int) –

  • group (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

change file owner and group

Change the file owner to owner and group to group.

Only numeric uid and gid are supported. If you want to use names, you will need to locate and parse the password file yourself (Augeas support makes this relatively easy).

New in version 0.8.

clear_backend_setting(name)
Parameters:

name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

remove a single per-backend settings string

If there is a backend setting string matching “name” or beginning with “name=”, then that string is removed from the backend settings.

This call returns the number of strings which were removed (which may be 0, 1 or greater than 1).

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3), “BACKEND SETTINGS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.27.2.

clevis_luks_unlock(device, mapname)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • mapname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open an encrypted LUKS block device with Clevis and Tang

This command opens a block device that has been encrypted according to the Linux Unified Key Setup (LUKS) standard, using network-bound disk encryption (NBDE).

device is the encrypted block device.

The appliance will connect to the Tang servers noted in the tree of Clevis pins that is bound to a keyslot of the LUKS header. The Clevis pin tree may comprise sss (redudancy) pins as internal nodes (optionally), and tang pins as leaves. tpm2 pins are not supported. The appliance unlocks the encrypted block device by combining responses from the Tang servers with metadata from the LUKS header; there is no key parameter.

This command will fail if networking has not been enabled for the appliance. Refer to Guestfs.Session.set_network().

The command creates a new block device called /dev/mapper/mapname. Reads and writes to this block device are decrypted from and encrypted to the underlying device respectively. Close the decrypted block device with Guestfs.Session.cryptsetup_close().

mapname cannot be “control” because that name is reserved by device-mapper.

If this block device contains LVM volume groups, then calling Guestfs.Session.lvm_scan() with the activate parameter true will make them visible.

Use Guestfs.Session.list_dm_devices() to list all device mapper devices.

This function depends on the feature “clevisluks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.49.3.

close()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

Close a libguestfs session.

command(arguments)
Parameters:

arguments ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

run a command from the guest filesystem

This call runs a command from the guest filesystem. The filesystem must be mounted, and must contain a compatible operating system (ie. something Linux, with the same or compatible processor architecture).

The single parameter is an argv-style list of arguments. The first element is the name of the program to run. Subsequent elements are parameters. The list must be non-empty (ie. must contain a program name). Note that the command runs directly, and is *not* invoked via the shell (see Guestfs.Session.sh()).

The return value is anything printed to *stdout* by the command.

If the command returns a non-zero exit status, then this function returns an error message. The error message string is the content of *stderr* from the command.

The $PATH environment variable will contain at least /usr/bin and /bin. If you require a program from another location, you should provide the full path in the first parameter.

Shared libraries and data files required by the program must be available on filesystems which are mounted in the correct places. It is the caller’s responsibility to ensure all filesystems that are needed are mounted at the right locations.

New in version 1.9.1.

command_lines(arguments)
Parameters:

arguments ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

run a command, returning lines

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.command(), but splits the result into a list of lines.

See also: Guestfs.Session.sh_lines()

New in version 1.9.1.

compress_device_out(ctype, device, zdevice, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

output compressed device

This command compresses device and writes it out to the local file zdevice.

The ctype and optional level parameters have the same meaning as in Guestfs.Session.compress_out().

New in version 1.13.15.

compress_out(ctype, file, zfile, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

output compressed file

This command compresses file and writes it out to the local file zfile.

The compression program used is controlled by the ctype parameter. Currently this includes: compress, gzip, bzip2, xz or lzop. Some compression types may not be supported by particular builds of libguestfs, in which case you will get an error containing the substring “not supported”.

The optional level parameter controls compression level. The meaning and default for this parameter depends on the compression program being used.

New in version 1.13.15.

config(hvparam, hvvalue)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add hypervisor parameters

This can be used to add arbitrary hypervisor parameters of the form *-param value*. Actually it’s not quite arbitrary - we prevent you from setting some parameters which would interfere with parameters that we use.

The first character of hvparam string must be a @- (dash).

hvvalue can be None.

New in version 0.3.

copy_attributes(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy the attributes of a path (file/directory) to another

Copy the attributes of a path (which can be a file or a directory) to another path.

By default no attribute is copied, so make sure to specify any (or all to copy everything).

The optional arguments specify which attributes can be copied:

mode Copy part of the file mode from source to destination. Only the UNIX permissions and the sticky/setuid/setgid bits can be copied.

xattributes Copy the Linux extended attributes (xattrs) from source to destination. This flag does nothing if the *linuxxattrs* feature is not available (see Guestfs.Session.feature_available()).

ownership Copy the owner uid and the group gid of source to destination.

all Copy all the attributes from source to destination. Enabling it enables all the other flags, if they are not specified already.

New in version 1.25.21.

copy_device_to_device(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy from source device to destination device

The four calls Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device(), Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_file(), Guestfs.Session.copy_file_to_device(), and Guestfs.Session.copy_file_to_file() let you copy from a source (device|file) to a destination (device|file).

Partial copies can be made since you can specify optionally the source offset, destination offset and size to copy. These values are all specified in bytes. If not given, the offsets both default to zero, and the size defaults to copying as much as possible until we hit the end of the source.

The source and destination may be the same object. However overlapping regions may not be copied correctly.

If the destination is a file, it is created if required. If the destination file is not large enough, it is extended.

If the destination is a file and the append flag is not set, then the destination file is truncated. If the append flag is set, then the copy appends to the destination file. The append flag currently cannot be set for devices.

If the sparse flag is true then the call avoids writing blocks that contain only zeroes, which can help in some situations where the backing disk is thin-provisioned. Note that unless the target is already zeroed, using this option will result in incorrect copying.

New in version 1.13.25.

copy_device_to_file(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy from source device to destination file

See Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device() for a general overview of this call.

New in version 1.13.25.

copy_file_to_device(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy from source file to destination device

See Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device() for a general overview of this call.

New in version 1.13.25.

copy_file_to_file(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy from source file to destination file

See Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device() for a general overview of this call.

This is not the function you want for copying files. This is for copying blocks within existing files. See Guestfs.Session.cp(), Guestfs.Session.cp_a() and Guestfs.Session.mv() for general file copying and moving functions.

New in version 1.13.25.

copy_in(localpath, remotedir)
Parameters:
  • localpath (str) –

  • remotedir (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy local files or directories into an image

Guestfs.Session.copy_in() copies local files or directories recursively into the disk image, placing them in the directory called remotedir (which must exist).

Wildcards cannot be used.

New in version 1.29.24.

copy_out(remotepath, localdir)
Parameters:
  • remotepath (str) –

  • localdir (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy remote files or directories out of an image

Guestfs.Session.copy_out() copies remote files or directories recursively out of the disk image, placing them on the host disk in a local directory called localdir (which must exist).

To download to the current directory, use “.” as in:

Guestfs.Session.copy_out() /home .

Wildcards cannot be used.

New in version 1.29.24.

copy_size(src, dest, size)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy size bytes from source to destination using dd

This command copies exactly size bytes from one source device or file src to another destination device or file dest.

Note this will fail if the source is too short or if the destination is not large enough.

New in version 1.0.87.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device() instead

cp(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy a file

This copies a file from src to dest where dest is either a destination filename or destination directory.

New in version 1.0.18.

cp_a(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy a file or directory recursively

This copies a file or directory from src to dest recursively using the “cp -a” command.

New in version 1.0.18.

cp_r(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy a file or directory recursively

This copies a file or directory from src to dest recursively using the “cp -rP” command.

Most users should use Guestfs.Session.cp_a() instead. This command is useful when you don’t want to preserve permissions, because the target filesystem does not support it (primarily when writing to DOS FAT filesystems).

New in version 1.21.38.

cpio_out(directory, cpiofile, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pack directory into cpio file

This command packs the contents of directory and downloads it to local file cpiofile.

The optional format parameter can be used to select the format. Only the following formats are currently permitted:

newc New (SVR4) portable format. This format happens to be compatible with the cpio-like format used by the Linux kernel for initramfs.

This is the default format.

crc New (SVR4) portable format with a checksum.

New in version 1.27.9.

cryptsetup_close(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close an encrypted device

This closes an encrypted device that was created earlier by Guestfs.Session.cryptsetup_open(). The device parameter must be the name of the mapping device (ie. /dev/mapper/mapname) and *not* the name of the underlying block device.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.43.2.

cryptsetup_open(device, key, mapname, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open an encrypted block device

This command opens a block device which has been encrypted according to the Linux Unified Key Setup (LUKS) standard, Windows BitLocker, or some other types.

device is the encrypted block device or partition.

The caller must supply one of the keys associated with the encrypted block device, in the key parameter.

This creates a new block device called /dev/mapper/mapname. Reads and writes to this block device are decrypted from and encrypted to the underlying device respectively.

mapname cannot be “control” because that name is reserved by device-mapper.

If the optional crypttype parameter is not present then libguestfs tries to guess the correct type (for example LUKS or BitLocker). However you can override this by specifying one of the following types:

luks A Linux LUKS device.

bitlk A Windows BitLocker device.

The optional readonly flag, if set to true, creates a read-only mapping.

If this block device contains LVM volume groups, then calling Guestfs.Session.lvm_scan() with the activate parameter true will make them visible.

Use Guestfs.Session.list_dm_devices() to list all device mapper devices.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.43.2.

dd(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

copy from source to destination using dd

This command copies from one source device or file src to another destination device or file dest. Normally you would use this to copy to or from a device or partition, for example to duplicate a filesystem.

If the destination is a device, it must be as large or larger than the source file or device, otherwise the copy will fail. This command cannot do partial copies (see Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device()).

New in version 1.0.80.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.copy_device_to_device() instead

debug(subcmd, extraargs)
Parameters:
  • subcmd (str) –

  • extraargs ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

debugging and internals

The Guestfs.Session.debug() command exposes some internals of guestfsd (the guestfs daemon) that runs inside the hypervisor.

There is no comprehensive help for this command. You have to look at the file daemon/debug.c in the libguestfs source to find out what you can do.

New in version 1.0.11.

debug_drives()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

debug the drives (internal use only)

This returns the internal list of drives. ‘debug’ commands are not part of the formal API and can be removed or changed at any time.

New in version 1.13.22.

debug_upload(filename, tmpname, mode, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

upload a file to the appliance (internal use only)

The Guestfs.Session.debug_upload() command uploads a file to the libguestfs appliance.

There is no comprehensive help for this command. You have to look at the file daemon/debug.c in the libguestfs source to find out what it is for.

New in version 1.3.5.

device_index(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

convert device to index

This function takes a device name (eg. “/dev/sdb”) and returns the index of the device in the list of devices.

Index numbers start from 0. The named device must exist, for example as a string returned from Guestfs.Session.list_devices().

See also Guestfs.Session.list_devices(), Guestfs.Session.part_to_dev(), Guestfs.Session.device_name().

New in version 1.19.7.

device_name(index)
Parameters:

index (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

convert device index to name

This function takes a device index and returns the device name. For example index 0 will return the string “/dev/sda”.

The drive index must have been added to the handle.

See also Guestfs.Session.list_devices(), Guestfs.Session.part_to_dev(), Guestfs.Session.device_index().

New in version 1.49.1.

df()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

report file system disk space usage

This command runs the df(1) command to report disk space used.

This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It is *not* intended that you try to parse the output string. Use Guestfs.Session.statvfs() from programs.

New in version 1.0.54.

df_h()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

report file system disk space usage (human readable)

This command runs the “df -h” command to report disk space used in human-readable format.

This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It is *not* intended that you try to parse the output string. Use Guestfs.Session.statvfs() from programs.

New in version 1.0.54.

disk_create(filename, format, size, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a blank disk image

Create a blank disk image called filename (a host file) with format format (usually raw or qcow2). The size is size bytes.

If used with the optional backingfile parameter, then a snapshot is created on top of the backing file. In this case, size must be passed as @-1. The size of the snapshot is the same as the size of the backing file, which is discovered automatically. You are encouraged to also pass backingformat to describe the format of backingfile.

If filename refers to a block device, then the device is formatted. The size is ignored since block devices have an intrinsic size.

The other optional parameters are:

preallocation If format is raw, then this can be either off (or sparse) or full to create a sparse or fully allocated file respectively. The default is off.

If format is qcow2, then this can be off (or sparse), metadata or full. Preallocating metadata can be faster when doing lots of writes, but uses more space. The default is off.

compat qcow2 only: Pass the string 1.1 to use the advanced qcow2 format supported by qemu &ge; 1.1.

clustersize qcow2 only: Change the qcow2 cluster size. The default is 65536 (bytes) and this setting may be any power of two between 512 and 2097152.

Note that this call does not add the new disk to the handle. You may need to call guestfs_session_add_drive_opts() separately.

New in version 1.25.31.

disk_format(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

detect the disk format of a disk image

Detect and return the format of the disk image called filename. filename can also be a host device, etc. If the format of the image could not be detected, then “unknown” is returned.

Note that detecting the disk format can be insecure under some circumstances. See “CVE-2010-3851” in guestfs(3).

See also: “DISK IMAGE FORMATS” in guestfs(3)

New in version 1.19.38.

disk_has_backing_file(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return whether disk has a backing file

Detect and return whether the disk image filename has a backing file.

Note that detecting disk features can be insecure under some circumstances. See “CVE-2010-3851” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.19.39.

disk_virtual_size(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return virtual size of a disk

Detect and return the virtual size in bytes of the disk image called filename.

Note that detecting disk features can be insecure under some circumstances. See “CVE-2010-3851” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.19.39.

dmesg()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return kernel messages

This returns the kernel messages (dmesg(1) output) from the guest kernel. This is sometimes useful for extended debugging of problems.

Another way to get the same information is to enable verbose messages with Guestfs.Session.set_verbose() or by setting the environment variable “LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG=1” before running the program.

New in version 1.0.18.

download(remotefilename, filename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download a file to the local machine

Download file remotefilename and save it as filename on the local machine.

filename can also be a named pipe.

See also Guestfs.Session.upload(), Guestfs.Session.cat().

New in version 1.0.2.

download_blocks(device, start, stop, filename, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download the given data units from the disk

Download the data units from start address to stop from the disk partition (eg. /dev/sda1) and save them as filename on the local machine.

The use of this API on sparse disk image formats such as QCOW, may result in large zero-filled files downloaded on the host.

The size of a data unit varies across filesystem implementations. On NTFS filesystems data units are referred as clusters while on ExtX ones they are referred as fragments.

If the optional unallocated flag is true (default is false), only the unallocated blocks will be extracted. This is useful to detect hidden data or to retrieve deleted files which data units have not been overwritten yet.

This function depends on the feature “sleuthkit”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.45.

download_inode(device, inode, filename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download a file to the local machine given its inode

Download a file given its inode from the disk partition (eg. /dev/sda1) and save it as filename on the local machine.

It is not required to mount the disk to run this command.

The command is capable of downloading deleted or inaccessible files.

This function depends on the feature “sleuthkit”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.14.

download_offset(remotefilename, filename, offset, size, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download a file to the local machine with offset and size

Download file remotefilename and save it as filename on the local machine.

remotefilename is read for size bytes starting at offset (this region must be within the file or device).

Note that there is no limit on the amount of data that can be downloaded with this call, unlike with Guestfs.Session.pread(), and this call always reads the full amount unless an error occurs.

See also Guestfs.Session.download(), Guestfs.Session.pread().

New in version 1.5.17.

drop_caches(whattodrop)
Parameters:

whattodrop (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

drop kernel page cache, dentries and inodes

This instructs the guest kernel to drop its page cache, and/or dentries and inode caches. The parameter whattodrop tells the kernel what precisely to drop, see http://linux-mm.org/Drop_Caches

Setting whattodrop to 3 should drop everything.

This automatically calls sync(2) before the operation, so that the maximum guest memory is freed.

New in version 1.0.18.

du(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

estimate file space usage

This command runs the “du -s” command to estimate file space usage for path.

path can be a file or a directory. If path is a directory then the estimate includes the contents of the directory and all subdirectories (recursively).

The result is the estimated size in *kilobytes* (ie. units of 1024 bytes).

New in version 1.0.54.

e2fsck(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

check an ext2/ext3 filesystem

This runs the ext2/ext3 filesystem checker on device. It can take the following optional arguments:

correct Automatically repair the file system. This option will cause e2fsck to automatically fix any filesystem problems that can be safely fixed without human intervention.

This option may not be specified at the same time as the forceall option.

forceall Assume an answer of ‘yes’ to all questions; allows e2fsck to be used non-interactively.

This option may not be specified at the same time as the correct option.

New in version 1.15.17.

e2fsck_f(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

check an ext2/ext3 filesystem

This runs “e2fsck -p -f device”, ie. runs the ext2/ext3 filesystem checker on device, noninteractively (*-p*), even if the filesystem appears to be clean (*-f*).

New in version 1.0.29.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.e2fsck() instead

echo_daemon(words)
Parameters:

words ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

echo arguments back to the client

This command concatenates the list of words passed with single spaces between them and returns the resulting string.

You can use this command to test the connection through to the daemon.

See also Guestfs.Session.ping_daemon().

New in version 1.0.69.

egrep(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external egrep(1) program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

egrepi(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “egrep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

equal(file1, file2)
Parameters:
  • file1 (str) –

  • file2 (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if two files have equal contents

This compares the two files file1 and file2 and returns true if their content is exactly equal, or false otherwise.

The external cmp(1) program is used for the comparison.

New in version 1.0.18.

exists(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if file or directory exists

This returns true if and only if there is a file, directory (or anything) with the given path name.

See also Guestfs.Session.is_file(), Guestfs.Session.is_dir(), Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 0.8.

extlinux(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

install the SYSLINUX bootloader on an ext2/3/4 or btrfs filesystem

Install the SYSLINUX bootloader on the device mounted at directory. Unlike Guestfs.Session.syslinux() which requires a FAT filesystem, this can be used on an ext2/3/4 or btrfs filesystem.

The directory parameter can be either a mountpoint, or a directory within the mountpoint.

You also have to mark the partition as “active” (Guestfs.Session.part_set_bootable()) and a Master Boot Record must be installed (eg. using Guestfs.Session.pwrite_device()) on the first sector of the whole disk. The SYSLINUX package comes with some suitable Master Boot Records. See the extlinux(1) man page for further information.

Additional configuration can be supplied to SYSLINUX by placing a file called extlinux.conf on the filesystem under directory. For further information about the contents of this file, see extlinux(1).

See also Guestfs.Session.syslinux().

This function depends on the feature “extlinux”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.27.

f2fs_expand(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

expand a f2fs filesystem

This expands a f2fs filesystem to match the size of the underlying device.

This function depends on the feature “f2fs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.39.3.

fallocate(path, len)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • len (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

preallocate a file in the guest filesystem

This command preallocates a file (containing zero bytes) named path of size len bytes. If the file exists already, it is overwritten.

Do not confuse this with the guestfish-specific alloc command which allocates a file in the host and attaches it as a device.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.fallocate64() instead

fallocate64(path, len)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • len (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

preallocate a file in the guest filesystem

This command preallocates a file (containing zero bytes) named path of size len bytes. If the file exists already, it is overwritten.

Note that this call allocates disk blocks for the file. To create a sparse file use Guestfs.Session.truncate_size() instead.

The deprecated call Guestfs.Session.fallocate() does the same, but owing to an oversight it only allowed 30 bit lengths to be specified, effectively limiting the maximum size of files created through that call to 1GB.

Do not confuse this with the guestfish-specific alloc and sparse commands which create a file in the host and attach it as a device.

New in version 1.3.17.

feature_available(groups)
Parameters:

groups ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test availability of some parts of the API

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.available(), but unlike that call it returns a simple true/false boolean result, instead of throwing an exception if a feature is not found. For other documentation see Guestfs.Session.available().

New in version 1.21.26.

fgrep(pattern, path)
Parameters:
  • pattern (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external fgrep(1) program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

fgrepi(pattern, path)
Parameters:
  • pattern (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “fgrep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

file(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

determine file type

This call uses the standard file(1) command to determine the type or contents of the file.

This call will also transparently look inside various types of compressed file.

The filename is not prepended to the output (like the file command *-b* option).

The output depends on the output of the underlying file(1) command and it can change in future in ways beyond our control. In other words, the output is not guaranteed by the ABI.

See also: file(1), Guestfs.Session.vfs_type(), Guestfs.Session.lstat(), Guestfs.Session.is_file(), Guestfs.Session.is_blockdev() (etc), Guestfs.Session.is_zero().

New in version 1.9.1.

file_architecture(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

detect the architecture of a binary file

This detects the architecture of the binary filename, and returns it if known.

Currently defined architectures are:

“aarch64” 64 bit ARM.

“arm” 32 bit ARM.

“i386” This string is returned for all 32 bit i386, i486, i586, i686 binaries irrespective of the precise processor requirements of the binary.

“ia64” Intel Itanium.

“ppc” 32 bit Power PC.

“ppc64” 64 bit Power PC (big endian).

“ppc64le” 64 bit Power PC (little endian).

“riscv32” “riscv64” “riscv128” RISC-V 32-, 64- or 128-bit variants.

“s390” 31 bit IBM S/390.

“s390x” 64 bit IBM S/390.

“sparc” 32 bit SPARC.

“sparc64” 64 bit SPARC V9 and above.

“x86_64” 64 bit x86-64.

Libguestfs may return other architecture strings in future.

The function works on at least the following types of files:

  • many types of Un*x and Linux binary

  • many types of Un*x and Linux shared library

  • Windows Win32 and Win64 binaries

  • Windows Win32 and Win64 DLLs

Win32 binaries and DLLs return i386.

Win64 binaries and DLLs return x86_64.

  • Linux kernel modules

  • Linux new-style initrd images

  • some non-x86 Linux vmlinuz kernels

What it can’t do currently:

  • static libraries (libfoo.a)

  • Linux old-style initrd as compressed ext2 filesystem (RHEL 3)

  • x86 Linux vmlinuz kernels

x86 vmlinuz images (bzImage format) consist of a mix of 16-, 32- and compressed code, and are horribly hard to unpack. If you want to find the architecture of a kernel, use the architecture of the associated initrd or kernel module(s) instead.

New in version 1.5.3.

filesize(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the size of the file in bytes

This command returns the size of file in bytes.

To get other stats about a file, use Guestfs.Session.stat(), Guestfs.Session.lstat(), Guestfs.Session.is_dir(), Guestfs.Session.is_file() etc. To get the size of block devices, use Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getsize64().

New in version 1.0.82.

filesystem_available(filesystem)
Parameters:

filesystem (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

check if filesystem is available

Check whether libguestfs supports the named filesystem. The argument filesystem is a filesystem name, such as ext3.

You must call Guestfs.Session.launch() before using this command.

This is mainly useful as a negative test. If this returns true, it doesn’t mean that a particular filesystem can be created or mounted, since filesystems can fail for other reasons such as it being a later version of the filesystem, or having incompatible features, or lacking the right mkfs.<*fs*> tool.

See also Guestfs.Session.available(), Guestfs.Session.feature_available(), “AVAILABILITY” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.19.5.

filesystem_walk(device, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of TSKDirent objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.TSKDirent]

walk through the filesystem content

Walk through the internal structures of a disk partition (eg. /dev/sda1) in order to return a list of all the files and directories stored within.

It is not necessary to mount the disk partition to run this command.

All entries in the filesystem are returned. This function can list deleted or unaccessible files. The entries are *not* sorted.

The tsk_dirent structure contains the following fields.

tsk_inode Filesystem reference number of the node. It might be 0 if the node has been deleted.

tsk_type Basic file type information. See below for a detailed list of values.

tsk_size File size in bytes. It might be @-1 if the node has been deleted.

tsk_name The file path relative to its directory.

tsk_flags Bitfield containing extra information regarding the entry. It contains the logical OR of the following values:

0x0001 If set to 1, the file is allocated and visible within the filesystem. Otherwise, the file has been deleted. Under certain circumstances, the function download_inode can be used to recover deleted files.

0x0002 Filesystem such as NTFS and Ext2 or greater, separate the file name from the metadata structure. The bit is set to 1 when the file name is in an unallocated state and the metadata structure is in an allocated one. This generally implies the metadata has been reallocated to a new file. Therefore, information such as file type, file size, timestamps, number of links and symlink target might not correspond with the ones of the original deleted entry.

0x0004 The bit is set to 1 when the file is compressed using filesystem native compression support (NTFS). The API is not able to detect application level compression.

tsk_atime_sec tsk_atime_nsec tsk_mtime_sec tsk_mtime_nsec tsk_ctime_sec tsk_ctime_nsec tsk_crtime_sec tsk_crtime_nsec Respectively, access, modification, last status change and creation time in Unix format in seconds and nanoseconds.

tsk_nlink Number of file names pointing to this entry.

tsk_link If the entry is a symbolic link, this field will contain the path to the target file.

The tsk_type field will contain one of the following characters:

‘b’ Block special

‘c’ Char special

‘d’ Directory

‘f’ FIFO (named pipe)

‘l’ Symbolic link

‘r’ Regular file

‘s’ Socket

‘h’ Shadow inode (Solaris)

‘w’ Whiteout inode (BSD)

‘u’ Unknown file type

This function depends on the feature “libtsk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.39.

fill(c, len, path)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

fill a file with octets

This command creates a new file called path. The initial content of the file is len octets of c, where c must be a number in the range “[0..255]”.

To fill a file with zero bytes (sparsely), it is much more efficient to use Guestfs.Session.truncate_size(). To create a file with a pattern of repeating bytes use Guestfs.Session.fill_pattern().

New in version 1.0.79.

fill_dir(dir, nr)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

fill a directory with empty files

This function, useful for testing filesystems, creates nr empty files in the directory dir with names 00000000 through nr-1 (ie. each file name is 8 digits long padded with zeroes).

New in version 1.19.32.

fill_pattern(pattern, len, path)
Parameters:
  • pattern (str) –

  • len (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

fill a file with a repeating pattern of bytes

This function is like Guestfs.Session.fill() except that it creates a new file of length len containing the repeating pattern of bytes in pattern. The pattern is truncated if necessary to ensure the length of the file is exactly len bytes.

New in version 1.3.12.

find(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

find all files and directories

This command lists out all files and directories, recursively, starting at directory. It is essentially equivalent to running the shell command “find directory -print” but some post-processing happens on the output, described below.

This returns a list of strings *without any prefix*. Thus if the directory structure was:

<![CDATA[/tmp/a]]>

<![CDATA[/tmp/b]]>

<![CDATA[/tmp/c/d]]>

then the returned list from Guestfs.Session.find() /tmp would be 4 elements:

<![CDATA[a]]>

<![CDATA[b]]>

<![CDATA[c]]>

<![CDATA[c/d]]>

If directory is not a directory, then this command returns an error.

The returned list is sorted.

New in version 1.0.27.

find0(directory, files, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

find all files and directories, returning NUL-separated list

This command lists out all files and directories, recursively, starting at directory, placing the resulting list in the external file called files.

This command works the same way as Guestfs.Session.find() with the following exceptions:

  • The resulting list is written to an external file.

  • Items (filenames) in the result are separated by “\0” characters. See find(1) option *-print0*.

  • The result list is not sorted.

New in version 1.0.74.

find_inode(device, inode, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of TSKDirent objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.TSKDirent]

search the entries associated to the given inode

Searches all the entries associated with the given inode.

For each entry, a tsk_dirent structure is returned. See filesystem_walk for more information about tsk_dirent structures.

This function depends on the feature “libtsk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.35.6.

findfs_label(label)
Parameters:

label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

find a filesystem by label

This command searches the filesystems and returns the one which has the given label. An error is returned if no such filesystem can be found.

To find the label of a filesystem, use Guestfs.Session.vfs_label().

New in version 1.5.3.

findfs_uuid(uuid)
Parameters:

uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

find a filesystem by UUID

This command searches the filesystems and returns the one which has the given UUID. An error is returned if no such filesystem can be found.

To find the UUID of a filesystem, use Guestfs.Session.vfs_uuid().

New in version 1.5.3.

fsck(fstype, device)
Parameters:
  • fstype (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

run the filesystem checker

This runs the filesystem checker (fsck) on device which should have filesystem type fstype.

The returned integer is the status. See fsck(8) for the list of status codes from fsck.

Notes:

  • Multiple status codes can be summed together.

  • A non-zero return code can mean “success”, for example if errors have been corrected on the filesystem.

  • Checking or repairing NTFS volumes is not supported (by linux-ntfs).

This command is entirely equivalent to running “fsck -a -t fstype device”.

New in version 1.0.16.

fstrim(mountpoint, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

trim free space in a filesystem

Trim the free space in the filesystem mounted on mountpoint. The filesystem must be mounted read-write.

The filesystem contents are not affected, but any free space in the filesystem is “trimmed”, that is, given back to the host device, thus making disk images more sparse, allowing unused space in qcow2 files to be reused, etc.

This operation requires support in libguestfs, the mounted filesystem, the host filesystem, qemu and the host kernel. If this support isn’t present it may give an error or even appear to run but do nothing.

In the case where the kernel vfs driver does not support trimming, this call will fail with errno set to ENOTSUP. Currently this happens when trying to trim FAT filesystems.

See also Guestfs.Session.zero_free_space(). That is a slightly different operation that turns free space in the filesystem into zeroes. It is valid to call Guestfs.Session.fstrim() either instead of, or after calling Guestfs.Session.zero_free_space().

This function depends on the feature “fstrim”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.6.

get_append()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string. Note that None does not indicate error

Return type:

str

get the additional kernel options

Return the additional kernel options which are added to the libguestfs appliance kernel command line.

If None then no options are added.

New in version 1.0.26.

get_attach_method()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the backend

Return the current backend.

See Guestfs.Session.set_backend() and “BACKEND” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.9.8.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.get_backend() instead

get_autosync()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get autosync mode

Get the autosync flag.

New in version 0.3.

get_backend()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the backend

Return the current backend.

This handle property was previously called the “attach method”.

See Guestfs.Session.set_backend() and “BACKEND” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.21.26.

get_backend_setting(name)
Parameters:

name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get a single per-backend settings string

Find a backend setting string which is either “name” or begins with “name=”. If “name”, this returns the string “1”. If “name=”, this returns the part after the equals sign (which may be an empty string).

If no such setting is found, this function throws an error. The errno (see guestfs_session_last_errno()) will be ESRCH in this case.

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3), “BACKEND SETTINGS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.27.2.

get_backend_settings()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

get per-backend settings

Return the current backend settings.

This call returns all backend settings strings. If you want to find a single backend setting, see Guestfs.Session.get_backend_setting().

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3), “BACKEND SETTINGS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.25.24.

get_cachedir()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the appliance cache directory

Get the directory used by the handle to store the appliance cache.

New in version 1.19.58.

get_direct()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get direct appliance mode flag

Return the direct appliance mode flag.

New in version 1.0.72.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use guestfs_session_internal_get_console_socket() instead

get_e2attrs(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get ext2 file attributes of a file

This returns the file attributes associated with file.

The attributes are a set of bits associated with each inode which affect the behaviour of the file. The attributes are returned as a string of letters (described below). The string may be empty, indicating that no file attributes are set for this file.

These attributes are only present when the file is located on an ext2/3/4 filesystem. Using this call on other filesystem types will result in an error.

The characters (file attributes) in the returned string are currently:

‘A’ When the file is accessed, its atime is not modified.

‘a’ The file is append-only.

‘c’ The file is compressed on-disk.

‘D’ (Directories only.) Changes to this directory are written synchronously to disk.

‘d’ The file is not a candidate for backup (see dump(8)).

‘E’ The file has compression errors.

‘e’ The file is using extents.

‘h’ The file is storing its blocks in units of the filesystem blocksize instead of sectors.

‘I’ (Directories only.) The directory is using hashed trees.

‘i’ The file is immutable. It cannot be modified, deleted or renamed. No link can be created to this file.

‘j’ The file is data-journaled.

‘s’ When the file is deleted, all its blocks will be zeroed.

‘S’ Changes to this file are written synchronously to disk.

‘T’ (Directories only.) This is a hint to the block allocator that subdirectories contained in this directory should be spread across blocks. If not present, the block allocator will try to group subdirectories together.

‘t’ For a file, this disables tail-merging. (Not used by upstream implementations of ext2.)

‘u’ When the file is deleted, its blocks will be saved, allowing the file to be undeleted.

‘X’ The raw contents of the compressed file may be accessed.

‘Z’ The compressed file is dirty.

More file attributes may be added to this list later. Not all file attributes may be set for all kinds of files. For detailed information, consult the chattr(1) man page.

See also Guestfs.Session.set_e2attrs().

Don’t confuse these attributes with extended attributes (see Guestfs.Session.getxattr()).

New in version 1.17.31.

get_e2generation(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get ext2 file generation of a file

This returns the ext2 file generation of a file. The generation (which used to be called the “version”) is a number associated with an inode. This is most commonly used by NFS servers.

The generation is only present when the file is located on an ext2/3/4 filesystem. Using this call on other filesystem types will result in an error.

See Guestfs.Session.set_e2generation().

New in version 1.17.31.

get_e2label(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the ext2/3/4 filesystem label

This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on device.

New in version 1.0.15.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.vfs_label() instead

get_e2uuid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID

This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on device.

New in version 1.0.15.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.vfs_uuid() instead

get_hv()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the hypervisor binary

Return the current hypervisor binary.

This is always non-None. If it wasn’t set already, then this will return the default qemu binary name.

New in version 1.23.17.

get_identifier()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the handle identifier

Get the handle identifier. See Guestfs.Session.set_identifier().

New in version 1.31.14.

get_libvirt_requested_credential_challenge(index)
Parameters:

index (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

challenge of i’th requested credential

Get the challenge (provided by libvirt) for the index'th requested credential. If libvirt did not provide a challenge, this returns the empty string “”.

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

get_libvirt_requested_credential_defresult(index)
Parameters:

index (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

default result of i’th requested credential

Get the default result (provided by libvirt) for the index'th requested credential. If libvirt did not provide a default result, this returns the empty string “”.

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

get_libvirt_requested_credential_prompt(index)
Parameters:

index (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

prompt of i’th requested credential

Get the prompt (provided by libvirt) for the index'th requested credential. If libvirt did not provide a prompt, this returns the empty string “”.

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

get_libvirt_requested_credentials()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

get list of credentials requested by libvirt

This should only be called during the event callback for events of type GUESTFS_EVENT_LIBVIRT_AUTH.

Return the list of credentials requested by libvirt. Possible values are a subset of the strings provided when you called Guestfs.Session.set_libvirt_supported_credentials().

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

get_memsize()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get memory allocated to the hypervisor

This gets the memory size in megabytes allocated to the hypervisor.

If Guestfs.Session.set_memsize() was not called on this handle, and if LIBGUESTFS_MEMSIZE was not set, then this returns the compiled-in default value for memsize.

For more information on the architecture of libguestfs, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.55.

get_network()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get enable network flag

This returns the enable network flag.

New in version 1.5.4.

get_path()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the search path

Return the current search path.

This is always non-None. If it wasn’t set already, then this will return the default path.

New in version 0.3.

get_pgroup()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get process group flag

This returns the process group flag.

New in version 1.11.18.

get_pid()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get PID of hypervisor

Return the process ID of the hypervisor. If there is no hypervisor running, then this will return an error.

This is an internal call used for debugging and testing.

New in version 1.0.56.

get_program()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the program name

Get the program name. See Guestfs.Session.set_program().

New in version 1.21.29.

get_qemu()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the hypervisor binary (usually qemu)

Return the current hypervisor binary (usually qemu).

This is always non-None. If it wasn’t set already, then this will return the default qemu binary name.

New in version 1.0.6.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.get_hv() instead

get_recovery_proc()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get recovery process enabled flag

Return the recovery process enabled flag.

New in version 1.0.77.

get_selinux()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get SELinux enabled flag

This returns the current setting of the selinux flag which is passed to the appliance at boot time. See Guestfs.Session.set_selinux().

For more information on the architecture of libguestfs, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.67.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.selinux_relabel() instead

get_smp()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get number of virtual CPUs in appliance

This returns the number of virtual CPUs assigned to the appliance.

New in version 1.13.15.

get_sockdir()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the temporary directory for sockets and PID files

Get the directory used by the handle to store temporary socket and PID files.

This is different from Guestfs.Session.get_tmpdir(), as we need shorter paths for sockets (due to the limited buffers of filenames for UNIX sockets), and Guestfs.Session.get_tmpdir() may be too long for them. Furthermore, sockets and PID files must be accessible to such background services started by libguestfs that may not have permission to access the temporary directory returned by Guestfs.Session.get_tmpdir().

The environment variable XDG_RUNTIME_DIR controls the default value: If XDG_RUNTIME_DIR is set, then that is the default. Else /tmp is the default.

New in version 1.33.8.

get_state()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the current state

This returns the current state as an opaque integer. This is only useful for printing debug and internal error messages.

For more information on states, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.2.

get_tmpdir()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the temporary directory

Get the directory used by the handle to store temporary files.

New in version 1.19.58.

get_trace()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get command trace enabled flag

Return the command trace flag.

New in version 1.0.69.

get_umask()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the current umask

Return the current umask. By default the umask is 022 unless it has been set by calling Guestfs.Session.umask().

New in version 1.3.4.

get_verbose()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get verbose mode

This returns the verbose messages flag.

New in version 0.3.

getcon()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get SELinux security context

This gets the SELinux security context of the daemon.

See the documentation about SELINUX in guestfs(3), and Guestfs.Session.setcon()

This function depends on the feature “selinux”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.67.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.selinux_relabel() instead

getxattr(path, name)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

get a single extended attribute

Get a single extended attribute from file path named name. This call follows symlinks. If you want to lookup an extended attribute for the symlink itself, use Guestfs.Session.lgetxattr().

Normally it is better to get all extended attributes from a file in one go by calling Guestfs.Session.getxattrs(). However some Linux filesystem implementations are buggy and do not provide a way to list out attributes. For these filesystems (notably ntfs-3g) you have to know the names of the extended attributes you want in advance and call this function.

Extended attribute values are blobs of binary data. If there is no extended attribute named name, this returns an error.

See also: Guestfs.Session.getxattrs(), Guestfs.Session.lgetxattr(), attr(5).

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.7.24.

getxattrs(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of XAttr objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.XAttr]

list extended attributes of a file or directory

This call lists the extended attributes of the file or directory path.

At the system call level, this is a combination of the listxattr(2) and getxattr(2) calls.

See also: Guestfs.Session.lgetxattrs(), attr(5).

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

glob_expand(pattern, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

expand a wildcard path

This command searches for all the pathnames matching pattern according to the wildcard expansion rules used by the shell.

If no paths match, then this returns an empty list (note: not an error).

It is just a wrapper around the C glob(3) function with flags “GLOB_MARK|GLOB_BRACE”. See that manual page for more details.

directoryslash controls whether use the GLOB_MARK flag for glob(3), and it defaults to true. It can be explicitly set as off to return no trailing slashes in filenames of directories.

Notice that there is no equivalent command for expanding a device name (eg. /dev/sd*). Use Guestfs.Session.list_devices(), Guestfs.Session.list_partitions() etc functions instead.

New in version 1.0.50.

grep(regex, path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external grep(1) program and returns the matching lines.

The optional flags are:

extended Use extended regular expressions. This is the same as using the *-E* flag.

fixed Match fixed (don’t use regular expressions). This is the same as using the *-F* flag.

insensitive Match case-insensitive. This is the same as using the *-i* flag.

compressed Use zgrep(1) instead of grep(1). This allows the input to be compress- or gzip-compressed.

New in version 1.0.66.

grepi(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “grep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

grub_install(root, device)
Parameters:
  • root (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

install GRUB 1

This command installs GRUB 1 (the Grand Unified Bootloader) on device, with the root directory being root.

Notes:

  • There is currently no way in the API to install grub2, which is used by most modern Linux guests. It is possible to run the grub2 command from the guest, although see the caveats in “RUNNING COMMANDS” in guestfs(3).

  • This uses grub-install(8) from the host. Unfortunately grub is not always compatible with itself, so this only works in rather narrow circumstances. Careful testing with each guest version is advisable.

  • If grub-install reports the error “No suitable drive was found in the generated device map.” it may be that you need to create a /boot/grub/device.map file first that contains the mapping between grub device names and Linux device names. It is usually sufficient to create a file containing:

(hd0) /dev/vda

replacing /dev/vda with the name of the installation device.

This function depends on the feature “grub”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.17.

head(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return first 10 lines of a file

This command returns up to the first 10 lines of a file as a list of strings.

New in version 1.0.54.

head_n(nrlines, path)
Parameters:
  • nrlines (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return first N lines of a file

If the parameter nrlines is a positive number, this returns the first nrlines lines of the file path.

If the parameter nrlines is a negative number, this returns lines from the file path, excluding the last nrlines lines.

If the parameter nrlines is zero, this returns an empty list.

New in version 1.0.54.

hexdump(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

dump a file in hexadecimal

This runs “hexdump -C” on the given path. The result is the human-readable, canonical hex dump of the file.

New in version 1.0.22.

hivex_close()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close the current hivex handle

Close the current hivex handle.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_commit(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

commit (write) changes back to the hive

Commit (write) changes to the hive.

If the optional filename parameter is null, then the changes are written back to the same hive that was opened. If this is not null then they are written to the alternate filename given and the original hive is left untouched.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_add_child(parent, name)
Parameters:
  • parent (int) –

  • name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

add a child node

Add a child node to parent named name.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_children(nodeh)
Parameters:

nodeh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of HivexNode objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.HivexNode]

return list of nodes which are subkeys of node

Return the list of nodes which are subkeys of nodeh.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_delete_child(nodeh)
Parameters:

nodeh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

delete a node (recursively)

Delete nodeh, recursively if necessary.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_get_child(nodeh, name)
Parameters:
  • nodeh (int) –

  • name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the named child of node

Return the child of nodeh with the name name, if it exists. This can return 0 meaning the name was not found.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_get_value(nodeh, key)
Parameters:
  • nodeh (int) –

  • key (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the named value

Return the value attached to nodeh which has the name key, if it exists. This can return 0 meaning the key was not found.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_name(nodeh)
Parameters:

nodeh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the name of the node

Return the name of nodeh.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_parent(nodeh)
Parameters:

nodeh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the parent of node

Return the parent node of nodeh.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_set_value(nodeh, key, t, val)
Parameters:
  • nodeh (int) –

  • key (str) –

  • t (int) –

  • val (bytes) – an array of binary data

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set or replace a single value in a node

Set or replace a single value under the node nodeh. The key is the name, t is the type, and val is the data.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_node_values(nodeh)
Parameters:

nodeh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of HivexValue objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.HivexValue]

return list of values attached to node

Return the array of (key, datatype, data) tuples attached to nodeh.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_open(filename, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open a Windows Registry hive file

Open the Windows Registry hive file named filename. If there was any previous hivex handle associated with this guestfs session, then it is closed.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_root()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the root node of the hive

Return the root node of the hive.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_value_key(valueh)
Parameters:

valueh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the key field from the (key, datatype, data) tuple

Return the key (name) field of a (key, datatype, data) tuple.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_value_string(valueh)
Parameters:

valueh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the data field as a UTF-8 string

This calls Guestfs.Session.hivex_value_value() (which returns the data field from a hivex value tuple). It then assumes that the field is a UTF-16LE string and converts the result to UTF-8 (or if this is not possible, it returns an error).

This is useful for reading strings out of the Windows registry. However it is not foolproof because the registry is not strongly-typed and fields can contain arbitrary or unexpected data.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.37.22.

hivex_value_type(valueh)
Parameters:

valueh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return the data type from the (key, datatype, data) tuple

Return the data type field from a (key, datatype, data) tuple.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

hivex_value_utf8(valueh)
Parameters:

valueh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the data field as a UTF-8 string

This calls Guestfs.Session.hivex_value_value() (which returns the data field from a hivex value tuple). It then assumes that the field is a UTF-16LE string and converts the result to UTF-8 (or if this is not possible, it returns an error).

This is useful for reading strings out of the Windows registry. However it is not foolproof because the registry is not strongly-typed and fields can contain arbitrary or unexpected data.

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.hivex_value_string() instead

hivex_value_value(valueh)
Parameters:

valueh (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

return the data field from the (key, datatype, data) tuple

Return the data field of a (key, datatype, data) tuple.

This is a wrapper around the hivex(3) call of the same name.

See also: Guestfs.Session.hivex_value_utf8().

This function depends on the feature “hivex”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.35.

initrd_cat(initrdpath, filename)
Parameters:
  • initrdpath (str) –

  • filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

list the contents of a single file in an initrd

This command unpacks the file filename from the initrd file called initrdpath. The filename must be given *without* the initial / character.

For example, in guestfish you could use the following command to examine the boot script (usually called /init) contained in a Linux initrd or initramfs image:

initrd-cat /boot/initrd-&lt;version&gt;.img init

See also Guestfs.Session.initrd_list().

New in version 1.0.84.

initrd_list(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list files in an initrd

This command lists out files contained in an initrd.

The files are listed without any initial / character. The files are listed in the order they appear (not necessarily alphabetical). Directory names are listed as separate items.

Old Linux kernels (2.4 and earlier) used a compressed ext2 filesystem as initrd. We *only* support the newer initramfs format (compressed cpio files).

New in version 1.0.54.

inotify_add_watch(path, mask)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • mask (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

add an inotify watch

Watch path for the events listed in mask.

Note that if path is a directory then events within that directory are watched, but this does *not* happen recursively (in subdirectories).

Note for non-C or non-Linux callers: the inotify events are defined by the Linux kernel ABI and are listed in /usr/include/sys/inotify.h.

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inotify_close()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close the inotify handle

This closes the inotify handle which was previously opened by inotify_init. It removes all watches, throws away any pending events, and deallocates all resources.

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inotify_files()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return list of watched files that had events

This function is a helpful wrapper around Guestfs.Session.inotify_read() which just returns a list of pathnames of objects that were touched. The returned pathnames are sorted and deduplicated.

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inotify_init(maxevents)
Parameters:

maxevents (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an inotify handle

This command creates a new inotify handle. The inotify subsystem can be used to notify events which happen to objects in the guest filesystem.

maxevents is the maximum number of events which will be queued up between calls to Guestfs.Session.inotify_read() or Guestfs.Session.inotify_files(). If this is passed as 0, then the kernel (or previously set) default is used. For Linux 2.6.29 the default was 16384 events. Beyond this limit, the kernel throws away events, but records the fact that it threw them away by setting a flag IN_Q_OVERFLOW in the returned structure list (see Guestfs.Session.inotify_read()).

Before any events are generated, you have to add some watches to the internal watch list. See: Guestfs.Session.inotify_add_watch() and Guestfs.Session.inotify_rm_watch().

Queued up events should be read periodically by calling Guestfs.Session.inotify_read() (or Guestfs.Session.inotify_files() which is just a helpful wrapper around Guestfs.Session.inotify_read()). If you don’t read the events out often enough then you risk the internal queue overflowing.

The handle should be closed after use by calling Guestfs.Session.inotify_close(). This also removes any watches automatically.

See also inotify(7) for an overview of the inotify interface as exposed by the Linux kernel, which is roughly what we expose via libguestfs. Note that there is one global inotify handle per libguestfs instance.

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inotify_read()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of INotifyEvent objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.INotifyEvent]

return list of inotify events

Return the complete queue of events that have happened since the previous read call.

If no events have happened, this returns an empty list.

*Note*: In order to make sure that all events have been read, you must call this function repeatedly until it returns an empty list. The reason is that the call will read events up to the maximum appliance-to-host message size and leave remaining events in the queue.

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inotify_rm_watch(wd)
Parameters:

wd (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove an inotify watch

Remove a previously defined inotify watch. See Guestfs.Session.inotify_add_watch().

This function depends on the feature “inotify”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

inspect_get_arch(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get architecture of inspected operating system

This returns the architecture of the inspected operating system. The possible return values are listed under Guestfs.Session.file_architecture().

If the architecture could not be determined, then the string unknown is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_build_id(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the system build ID

This returns the build ID of the system, or the string “unknown” if the system does not have a build ID.

For Windows, this gets the build number. Although it is returned as a string, it is (so far) always a number. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Microsoft_Windows_versions for some possible values.

For Linux, this returns the BUILD_ID string from /etc/os-release, although this is not often used.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.49.8.

inspect_get_distro(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get distro of inspected operating system

This returns the distro (distribution) of the inspected operating system.

Currently defined distros are:

“alpinelinux” Alpine Linux.

“altlinux” ALT Linux.

“archlinux” Arch Linux.

“buildroot” Buildroot-derived distro, but not one we specifically recognize.

“centos” CentOS.

“cirros” Cirros.

“coreos” CoreOS.

“debian” Debian.

“fedora” Fedora.

“freebsd” FreeBSD.

“freedos” FreeDOS.

“frugalware” Frugalware.

“gentoo” Gentoo.

“kalilinux” Kali Linux.

“kylin” Kylin.

“linuxmint” Linux Mint.

“mageia” Mageia.

“mandriva” Mandriva.

“meego” MeeGo.

“msdos” Microsoft DOS.

“neokylin” NeoKylin.

“netbsd” NetBSD.

“openbsd” OpenBSD.

“openmandriva” OpenMandriva Lx.

“opensuse” OpenSUSE.

“oraclelinux” Oracle Linux.

“pardus” Pardus.

“pldlinux” PLD Linux.

“redhat-based” Some Red Hat-derived distro.

“rhel” Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

“rocky” Rocky Linux.

“scientificlinux” Scientific Linux.

“slackware” Slackware.

“sles” SuSE Linux Enterprise Server or Desktop.

“suse-based” Some openSuSE-derived distro.

“ttylinux” ttylinux.

“ubuntu” Ubuntu.

“unknown” The distro could not be determined.

“voidlinux” Void Linux.

“windows” Windows does not have distributions. This string is returned if the OS type is Windows.

Future versions of libguestfs may return other strings here. The caller should be prepared to handle any string.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_drive_mappings(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

get drive letter mappings

This call is useful for Windows which uses a primitive system of assigning drive letters (like C:\) to partitions. This inspection API examines the Windows Registry to find out how disks/partitions are mapped to drive letters, and returns a hash table as in the example below:

C => /dev/vda2

E => /dev/vdb1

F => /dev/vdc1

Note that keys are drive letters. For Windows, the key is case insensitive and just contains the drive letter, without the customary colon separator character.

In future we may support other operating systems that also used drive letters, but the keys for those might not be case insensitive and might be longer than 1 character. For example in OS-9, hard drives were named h0, h1 etc.

For Windows guests, currently only hard drive mappings are returned. Removable disks (eg. DVD-ROMs) are ignored.

For guests that do not use drive mappings, or if the drive mappings could not be determined, this returns an empty hash table.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details. See also Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_mountpoints(), Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_filesystems().

New in version 1.9.17.

inspect_get_filesystems(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

get filesystems associated with inspected operating system

This returns a list of all the filesystems that we think are associated with this operating system. This includes the root filesystem, other ordinary filesystems, and non-mounted devices like swap partitions.

In the case of a multi-boot virtual machine, it is possible for a filesystem to be shared between operating systems.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details. See also Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_mountpoints().

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_format(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get format of inspected operating system

Before libguestfs 1.38, there was some unreliable support for detecting installer CDs. This API would return:

installed This is an installed operating system.

installer The disk image being inspected is not an installed operating system, but a *bootable* install disk, live CD, or similar.

unknown The format of this disk image is not known.

In libguestfs &ge; 1.38, this only returns installed. Use libosinfo directly to detect installer CDs.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.9.4.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

inspect_get_hostname(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get hostname of the operating system

This function returns the hostname of the operating system as found by inspection of the guest’s configuration files.

If the hostname could not be determined, then the string unknown is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.7.9.

inspect_get_icon(root, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

get the icon corresponding to this operating system

This function returns an icon corresponding to the inspected operating system. The icon is returned as a buffer containing a PNG image (re-encoded to PNG if necessary).

If it was not possible to get an icon this function returns a zero-length (non-None) buffer. *Callers must check for this case*.

Libguestfs will start by looking for a file called /etc/favicon.png or C:\etc\favicon.png and if it has the correct format, the contents of this file will be returned. You can disable favicons by passing the optional favicon boolean as false (default is true).

If finding the favicon fails, then we look in other places in the guest for a suitable icon.

If the optional highquality boolean is true then only high quality icons are returned, which means only icons of high resolution with an alpha channel. The default (false) is to return any icon we can, even if it is of substandard quality.

Notes:

  • Unlike most other inspection API calls, the guest’s disks must be mounted up before you call this, since it needs to read information from the guest filesystem during the call.

  • Security: The icon data comes from the untrusted guest, and should be treated with caution. PNG files have been known to contain exploits. Ensure that libpng (or other relevant libraries) are fully up to date before trying to process or display the icon.

  • The PNG image returned can be any size. It might not be square. Libguestfs tries to return the largest, highest quality icon available. The application must scale the icon to the required size.

  • Extracting icons from Windows guests requires the external wrestool(1) program from the icoutils package, and several programs (bmptopnm(1), pnmtopng(1), pamcut(1)) from the netpbm package. These must be installed separately.

  • Operating system icons are usually trademarks. Seek legal advice before using trademarks in applications.

New in version 1.11.12.

inspect_get_major_version(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get major version of inspected operating system

This returns the major version number of the inspected operating system.

Windows uses a consistent versioning scheme which is *not* reflected in the popular public names used by the operating system. Notably the operating system known as “Windows 7” is really version 6.1 (ie. major = 6, minor = 1). You can find out the real versions corresponding to releases of Windows by consulting Wikipedia or MSDN.

If the version could not be determined, then 0 is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_minor_version(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get minor version of inspected operating system

This returns the minor version number of the inspected operating system.

If the version could not be determined, then 0 is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details. See also Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_major_version().

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_mountpoints(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

get mountpoints of inspected operating system

This returns a hash of where we think the filesystems associated with this operating system should be mounted. Callers should note that this is at best an educated guess made by reading configuration files such as /etc/fstab. *In particular note* that this may return filesystems which are non-existent or not mountable and callers should be prepared to handle or ignore failures if they try to mount them.

Each element in the returned hashtable has a key which is the path of the mountpoint (eg. /boot) and a value which is the filesystem that would be mounted there (eg. /dev/sda1).

Non-mounted devices such as swap devices are *not* returned in this list.

For operating systems like Windows which still use drive letters, this call will only return an entry for the first drive “mounted on” /. For information about the mapping of drive letters to partitions, see Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_drive_mappings().

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details. See also Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_filesystems().

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_osinfo(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get a possible osinfo short ID corresponding to this operating system

This function returns a possible short ID for libosinfo corresponding to the guest.

*Note:* The returned ID is only a guess by libguestfs, and nothing ensures that it actually exists in osinfo-db.

If no ID could not be determined, then the string unknown is returned.

New in version 1.39.1.

inspect_get_package_format(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get package format used by the operating system

This function and Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_package_management() return the package format and package management tool used by the inspected operating system. For example for Fedora these functions would return rpm (package format), and yum or dnf (package management).

This returns the string unknown if we could not determine the package format *or* if the operating system does not have a real packaging system (eg. Windows).

Possible strings include: rpm, deb, ebuild, pisi, pacman, pkgsrc, apk, xbps. Future versions of libguestfs may return other strings.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.7.5.

inspect_get_package_management(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get package management tool used by the operating system

Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_package_format() and this function return the package format and package management tool used by the inspected operating system. For example for Fedora these functions would return rpm (package format), and yum or dnf (package management).

This returns the string unknown if we could not determine the package management tool *or* if the operating system does not have a real packaging system (eg. Windows).

Possible strings include: yum, dnf, up2date, apt (for all Debian derivatives), portage, pisi, pacman, urpmi, zypper, apk, xbps. Future versions of libguestfs may return other strings.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.7.5.

inspect_get_product_name(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get product name of inspected operating system

This returns the product name of the inspected operating system. The product name is generally some freeform string which can be displayed to the user, but should not be parsed by programs.

If the product name could not be determined, then the string unknown is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_product_variant(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get product variant of inspected operating system

This returns the product variant of the inspected operating system.

For Windows guests, this returns the contents of the Registry key “HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion” InstallationType which is usually a string such as Client or Server (other values are possible). This can be used to distinguish consumer and enterprise versions of Windows that have the same version number (for example, Windows 7 and Windows 2008 Server are both version 6.1, but the former is Client and the latter is Server).

For enterprise Linux guests, in future we intend this to return the product variant such as Desktop, Server and so on. But this is not implemented at present.

If the product variant could not be determined, then the string unknown is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details. See also Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_product_name(), Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_major_version().

New in version 1.9.13.

inspect_get_roots()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return list of operating systems found by last inspection

This function is a convenient way to get the list of root devices, as returned from a previous call to Guestfs.Session.inspect_os(), but without redoing the whole inspection process.

This returns an empty list if either no root devices were found or the caller has not called Guestfs.Session.inspect_os().

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.7.3.

inspect_get_type(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get type of inspected operating system

This returns the type of the inspected operating system. Currently defined types are:

“linux” Any Linux-based operating system.

“windows” Any Microsoft Windows operating system.

“freebsd” FreeBSD.

“netbsd” NetBSD.

“openbsd” OpenBSD.

“hurd” GNU/Hurd.

“dos” MS-DOS, FreeDOS and others.

“minix” MINIX.

“unknown” The operating system type could not be determined.

Future versions of libguestfs may return other strings here. The caller should be prepared to handle any string.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.3.

inspect_get_windows_current_control_set(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get Windows CurrentControlSet of inspected operating system

This returns the Windows CurrentControlSet of the inspected guest. The CurrentControlSet is a registry key name such as ControlSet001.

This call assumes that the guest is Windows and that the Registry could be examined by inspection. If this is not the case then an error is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.9.17.

inspect_get_windows_software_hive(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the path of the Windows software hive

This returns the path to the hive (binary Windows Registry file) corresponding to HKLM\SOFTWARE.

This call assumes that the guest is Windows and that the guest has a software hive file with the right name. If this is not the case then an error is returned. This call does not check that the hive is a valid Windows Registry hive.

You can use Guestfs.Session.hivex_open() to read or write to the hive.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.35.26.

inspect_get_windows_system_hive(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the path of the Windows system hive

This returns the path to the hive (binary Windows Registry file) corresponding to HKLM\SYSTEM.

This call assumes that the guest is Windows and that the guest has a system hive file with the right name. If this is not the case then an error is returned. This call does not check that the hive is a valid Windows Registry hive.

You can use Guestfs.Session.hivex_open() to read or write to the hive.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.35.26.

inspect_get_windows_systemroot(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get Windows systemroot of inspected operating system

This returns the Windows systemroot of the inspected guest. The systemroot is a directory path such as /WINDOWS.

This call assumes that the guest is Windows and that the systemroot could be determined by inspection. If this is not the case then an error is returned.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.5.25.

inspect_is_live(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get live flag for install disk

This is deprecated and always returns false.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.9.4.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

inspect_is_multipart(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get multipart flag for install disk

This is deprecated and always returns false.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.9.4.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

inspect_is_netinst(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get netinst (network installer) flag for install disk

This is deprecated and always returns false.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.9.4.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

inspect_list_applications(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of Application objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.Application]

get list of applications installed in the operating system

Return the list of applications installed in the operating system.

*Note:* This call works differently from other parts of the inspection API. You have to call Guestfs.Session.inspect_os(), then Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_mountpoints(), then mount up the disks, before calling this. Listing applications is a significantly more difficult operation which requires access to the full filesystem. Also note that unlike the other “guestfs_inspect_get_*” calls which are just returning data cached in the libguestfs handle, this call actually reads parts of the mounted filesystems during the call.

This returns an empty list if the inspection code was not able to determine the list of applications.

The application structure contains the following fields:

app_name The name of the application. For Linux guests, this is the package name.

app_display_name The display name of the application, sometimes localized to the install language of the guest operating system.

If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”. Callers needing to display something can use app_name instead.

app_epoch For package managers which use epochs, this contains the epoch of the package (an integer). If unavailable, this is returned as 0.

app_version The version string of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_release The release string of the application or package, for package managers that use this. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_install_path The installation path of the application (on operating systems such as Windows which use installation paths). This path is in the format used by the guest operating system, it is not a libguestfs path.

If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_trans_path The install path translated into a libguestfs path. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_publisher The name of the publisher of the application, for package managers that use this. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_url The URL (eg. upstream URL) of the application. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_source_package For packaging systems which support this, the name of the source package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_summary A short (usually one line) description of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app_description A longer description of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.7.8.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.inspect_list_applications2() instead

inspect_list_applications2(root)
Parameters:

root (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of Application2 objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.Application2]

get list of applications installed in the operating system

Return the list of applications installed in the operating system.

*Note:* This call works differently from other parts of the inspection API. You have to call Guestfs.Session.inspect_os(), then Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_mountpoints(), then mount up the disks, before calling this. Listing applications is a significantly more difficult operation which requires access to the full filesystem. Also note that unlike the other “guestfs_inspect_get_*” calls which are just returning data cached in the libguestfs handle, this call actually reads parts of the mounted filesystems during the call.

This returns an empty list if the inspection code was not able to determine the list of applications.

The application structure contains the following fields:

app2_name The name of the application. For Linux guests, this is the package name.

app2_display_name The display name of the application, sometimes localized to the install language of the guest operating system.

If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”. Callers needing to display something can use app2_name instead.

app2_epoch For package managers which use epochs, this contains the epoch of the package (an integer). If unavailable, this is returned as 0.

app2_version The version string of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_release The release string of the application or package, for package managers that use this. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_arch The architecture string of the application or package, for package managers that use this. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_install_path The installation path of the application (on operating systems such as Windows which use installation paths). This path is in the format used by the guest operating system, it is not a libguestfs path.

If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_trans_path The install path translated into a libguestfs path. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_publisher The name of the publisher of the application, for package managers that use this. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_url The URL (eg. upstream URL) of the application. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_source_package For packaging systems which support this, the name of the source package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_summary A short (usually one line) description of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

app2_description A longer description of the application or package. If unavailable this is returned as an empty string “”.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

New in version 1.19.56.

inspect_os()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

inspect disk and return list of operating systems found

This function uses other libguestfs functions and certain heuristics to inspect the disk(s) (usually disks belonging to a virtual machine), looking for operating systems.

The list returned is empty if no operating systems were found.

If one operating system was found, then this returns a list with a single element, which is the name of the root filesystem of this operating system. It is also possible for this function to return a list containing more than one element, indicating a dual-boot or multi-boot virtual machine, with each element being the root filesystem of one of the operating systems.

You can pass the root string(s) returned to other “guestfs_inspect_get_*” functions in order to query further information about each operating system, such as the name and version.

This function uses other libguestfs features such as Guestfs.Session.mount_ro() and Guestfs.Session.umount_all() in order to mount and unmount filesystems and look at the contents. This should be called with no disks currently mounted. The function may also use Augeas, so any existing Augeas handle will be closed.

This function cannot decrypt encrypted disks. The caller must do that first (supplying the necessary keys) if the disk is encrypted.

Please read “INSPECTION” in guestfs(3) for more details.

See also Guestfs.Session.list_filesystems().

New in version 1.5.3.

internal_exit(cancellable)
Parameters:

cancellable (Gio.Cancellable or None) – A Gio.Cancellable object

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

cause the daemon to exit (internal use only)

This function is used internally when testing the appliance.

New in version 1.23.30.

internal_test(str, optstr, strlist, b, integer, integer64, filein, fileout, bufferin, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible parameter type correctly.

It echos the contents of each parameter to stdout (by default) or to a file (if Guestfs.Session.internal_test_set_output() was called).

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_63_optargs(optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle the full range of 63 optargs correctly. (Note that 63 is not an absolute limit and it could be raised by changing the XDR protocol).

It echos the contents of each parameter to stdout (by default) or to a file (if Guestfs.Session.internal_test_set_output() was called).

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_close_output()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible parameter type correctly.

It closes the output file previously opened by Guestfs.Session.internal_test_set_output().

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_only_optargs(optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle no args, some optargs correctly.

It echos the contents of each parameter to stdout (by default) or to a file (if Guestfs.Session.internal_test_set_output() was called).

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rbool(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rboolerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rbufferout(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rbufferouterr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rconstoptstring(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string. Note that None does not indicate error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rconstoptstringerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string. Note that None does not indicate error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rconststring(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rconststringerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rhashtable(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rhashtableerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rint(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rint64(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rint64err()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rinterr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstring(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstringerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstringlist(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstringlisterr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstruct(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a PV object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.PV

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstructerr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a PV object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.PV

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstructlist(val)
Parameters:

val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of PV objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.PV]

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

It converts string val to the return type.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_rstructlisterr()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of PV objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.PV]

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible return type correctly.

This function always returns an error.

You probably don’t want to call this function.

internal_test_set_output(filename)
Parameters:

filename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

internal test function - do not use

This is an internal test function which is used to test whether the automatically generated bindings can handle every possible parameter type correctly.

It sets the output file used by Guestfs.Session.internal_test().

You probably don’t want to call this function.

is_blockdev(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if block device

This returns true if and only if there is a block device with the given path name.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a block device also causes the function to return true.

This call only looks at files within the guest filesystem. Libguestfs partitions and block devices (eg. /dev/sda) cannot be used as the path parameter of this call.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 1.5.10.

is_busy()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

is busy processing a command

This always returns false. This function is deprecated with no replacement. Do not use this function.

For more information on states, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.2.

is_chardev(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if character device

This returns true if and only if there is a character device with the given path name.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a chardev also causes the function to return true.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 1.5.10.

is_config()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

is in configuration state

This returns true iff this handle is being configured (in the CONFIG state).

For more information on states, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.2.

is_dir(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if a directory

This returns true if and only if there is a directory with the given path name. Note that it returns false for other objects like files.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a directory also causes the function to return true.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 0.8.

is_fifo(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if FIFO (named pipe)

This returns true if and only if there is a FIFO (named pipe) with the given path name.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a FIFO also causes the function to return true.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 1.5.10.

is_file(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if a regular file

This returns true if and only if there is a regular file with the given path name. Note that it returns false for other objects like directories.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a file also causes the function to return true.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 0.8.

is_launching()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

is launching subprocess

This returns true iff this handle is launching the subprocess (in the LAUNCHING state).

For more information on states, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.2.

is_lv(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if mountable is a logical volume

This command tests whether mountable is a logical volume, and returns true iff this is the case.

New in version 1.5.3.

is_ready()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

is ready to accept commands

This returns true iff this handle is ready to accept commands (in the READY state).

For more information on states, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.2.

is_socket(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if socket

This returns true if and only if there is a Unix domain socket with the given path name.

If the optional flag followsymlinks is true, then a symlink (or chain of symlinks) that ends with a socket also causes the function to return true.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 1.5.10.

Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if symbolic link

This returns true if and only if there is a symbolic link with the given path name.

See also Guestfs.Session.stat().

New in version 1.5.10.

is_whole_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if a device is a whole device

This returns true if and only if device refers to a whole block device. That is, not a partition or a logical device.

New in version 1.21.9.

is_zero(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if a file contains all zero bytes

This returns true iff the file exists and the file is empty or it contains all zero bytes.

New in version 1.11.8.

is_zero_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

test if a device contains all zero bytes

This returns true iff the device exists and contains all zero bytes.

Note that for large devices this can take a long time to run.

New in version 1.11.8.

isoinfo(isofile)
Parameters:

isofile (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a ISOInfo object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.ISOInfo

get ISO information from primary volume descriptor of ISO file

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.isoinfo_device() except that it works for an ISO file located inside some other mounted filesystem. Note that in the common case where you have added an ISO file as a libguestfs device, you would *not* call this. Instead you would call Guestfs.Session.isoinfo_device().

New in version 1.17.19.

isoinfo_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a ISOInfo object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.ISOInfo

get ISO information from primary volume descriptor of device

device is an ISO device. This returns a struct of information read from the primary volume descriptor (the ISO equivalent of the superblock) of the device.

Usually it is more efficient to use the isoinfo(1) command with the *-d* option on the host to analyze ISO files, instead of going through libguestfs.

For information on the primary volume descriptor fields, see http://wiki.osdev.org/ISO_9660#The_Primary_Volume_Descriptor

New in version 1.17.19.

journal_close()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close the systemd journal

Close the journal handle.

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_get()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of XAttr objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.XAttr]

read the current journal entry

Read the current journal entry. This returns all the fields in the journal as a set of “(attrname, attrval)” pairs. The attrname is the field name (a string).

The attrval is the field value (a binary blob, often but not always a string). Please note that attrval is a byte array, *not* a \0-terminated C string.

The length of data may be truncated to the data threshold (see: Guestfs.Session.journal_set_data_threshold(), Guestfs.Session.journal_get_data_threshold()).

If you set the data threshold to unlimited (0) then this call can read a journal entry of any size, ie. it is not limited by the libguestfs protocol.

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_get_data_threshold()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the data threshold for reading journal entries

Get the current data threshold for reading journal entries. This is a hint to the journal that it may truncate data fields to this size when reading them (note also that it may not truncate them). If this returns 0, then the threshold is unlimited.

See also Guestfs.Session.journal_set_data_threshold().

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_get_realtime_usec()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the timestamp of the current journal entry

Get the realtime (wallclock) timestamp of the current journal entry.

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.27.18.

journal_next()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

move to the next journal entry

Move to the next journal entry. You have to call this at least once after opening the handle before you are able to read data.

The returned boolean tells you if there are any more journal records to read. true means you can read the next record (eg. using Guestfs.Session.journal_get()), and false means you have reached the end of the journal.

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_open(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open the systemd journal

Open the systemd journal located in directory. Any previously opened journal handle is closed.

The contents of the journal can be read using Guestfs.Session.journal_next() and Guestfs.Session.journal_get().

After you have finished using the journal, you should close the handle by calling Guestfs.Session.journal_close().

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_set_data_threshold(threshold)
Parameters:

threshold (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the data threshold for reading journal entries

Set the data threshold for reading journal entries. This is a hint to the journal that it may truncate data fields to this size when reading them (note also that it may not truncate them). If you set this to 0, then the threshold is unlimited.

See also Guestfs.Session.journal_get_data_threshold().

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

journal_skip(skip)
Parameters:

skip (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

skip forwards or backwards in the journal

Skip forwards (“skip &ge; 0”) or backwards (“skip &lt; 0”) in the journal.

The number of entries actually skipped is returned (note “rskip &ge; 0”). If this is not the same as the absolute value of the skip parameter (”|skip|”) you passed in then it means you have reached the end or the start of the journal.

This function depends on the feature “journal”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.23.11.

kill_subprocess()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

kill the hypervisor

This kills the hypervisor.

Do not call this. See: Guestfs.Session.shutdown() instead.

New in version 0.3.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.shutdown() instead

launch()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

launch the backend

You should call this after configuring the handle (eg. adding drives) but before performing any actions.

Do not call Guestfs.Session.launch() twice on the same handle. Although it will not give an error (for historical reasons), the precise behaviour when you do this is not well defined. Handles are very cheap to create, so create a new one for each launch.

New in version 0.3.

lchown(owner, group, path)
Parameters:
  • owner (int) –

  • group (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

change file owner and group

Change the file owner to owner and group to group. This is like Guestfs.Session.chown() but if path is a symlink then the link itself is changed, not the target.

Only numeric uid and gid are supported. If you want to use names, you will need to locate and parse the password file yourself (Augeas support makes this relatively easy).

New in version 1.0.77.

ldmtool_create_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

scan and create Windows dynamic disk volumes

This function scans all block devices looking for Windows dynamic disk volumes and partitions, and creates devices for any that were found.

Call Guestfs.Session.list_ldm_volumes() and Guestfs.Session.list_ldm_partitions() to return all devices.

Note that you don’t normally need to call this explicitly, since it is done automatically at Guestfs.Session.launch() time.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_diskgroup_disks(diskgroup)
Parameters:

diskgroup (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return the disks in a Windows dynamic disk group

Return the disks in a Windows dynamic disk group. The diskgroup parameter should be the GUID of a disk group, one element from the list returned by Guestfs.Session.ldmtool_scan().

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_diskgroup_name(diskgroup)
Parameters:

diskgroup (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the name of a Windows dynamic disk group

Return the name of a Windows dynamic disk group. The diskgroup parameter should be the GUID of a disk group, one element from the list returned by Guestfs.Session.ldmtool_scan().

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_diskgroup_volumes(diskgroup)
Parameters:

diskgroup (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return the volumes in a Windows dynamic disk group

Return the volumes in a Windows dynamic disk group. The diskgroup parameter should be the GUID of a disk group, one element from the list returned by Guestfs.Session.ldmtool_scan().

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_remove_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove all Windows dynamic disk volumes

This is essentially the opposite of Guestfs.Session.ldmtool_create_all(). It removes the device mapper mappings for all Windows dynamic disk volumes

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_scan()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

scan for Windows dynamic disks

This function scans for Windows dynamic disks. It returns a list of identifiers (GUIDs) for all disk groups that were found. These identifiers can be passed to other “guestfs_ldmtool_*” functions.

This function scans all block devices. To scan a subset of block devices, call Guestfs.Session.ldmtool_scan_devices() instead.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_scan_devices(devices)
Parameters:

devices ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

scan for Windows dynamic disks

This function scans for Windows dynamic disks. It returns a list of identifiers (GUIDs) for all disk groups that were found. These identifiers can be passed to other “guestfs_ldmtool_*” functions.

The parameter devices is a list of block devices which are scanned. If this list is empty, all block devices are scanned.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_volume_hint(diskgroup, volume)
Parameters:
  • diskgroup (str) –

  • volume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the hint field of a Windows dynamic disk volume

Return the hint field of the volume named volume in the disk group with GUID diskgroup. This may not be defined, in which case the empty string is returned. The hint field is often, though not always, the name of a Windows drive, eg. “E:”.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_volume_partitions(diskgroup, volume)
Parameters:
  • diskgroup (str) –

  • volume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return the partitions in a Windows dynamic disk volume

Return the list of partitions in the volume named volume in the disk group with GUID diskgroup.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

ldmtool_volume_type(diskgroup, volume)
Parameters:
  • diskgroup (str) –

  • volume (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

return the type of a Windows dynamic disk volume

Return the type of the volume named volume in the disk group with GUID diskgroup.

Possible volume types that can be returned here include: simple, spanned, striped, mirrored, raid5. Other types may also be returned.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

lgetxattr(path, name)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

get a single extended attribute

Get a single extended attribute from file path named name. If path is a symlink, then this call returns an extended attribute from the symlink.

Normally it is better to get all extended attributes from a file in one go by calling Guestfs.Session.getxattrs(). However some Linux filesystem implementations are buggy and do not provide a way to list out attributes. For these filesystems (notably ntfs-3g) you have to know the names of the extended attributes you want in advance and call this function.

Extended attribute values are blobs of binary data. If there is no extended attribute named name, this returns an error.

See also: Guestfs.Session.lgetxattrs(), Guestfs.Session.getxattr(), attr(5).

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.7.24.

lgetxattrs(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of XAttr objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.XAttr]

list extended attributes of a file or directory

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.getxattrs(), but if path is a symbolic link, then it returns the extended attributes of the link itself.

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

list_9p()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list 9p filesystems

This call does nothing and returns an error.

New in version 1.11.12.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

list_devices()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the block devices

List all the block devices.

The full block device names are returned, eg. /dev/sda.

See also Guestfs.Session.list_filesystems().

New in version 0.4.

list_disk_labels()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

mapping of disk labels to devices

If you add drives using the optional label parameter of guestfs_session_add_drive_opts(), you can use this call to map between disk labels, and raw block device and partition names (like /dev/sda and /dev/sda1).

This returns a hashtable, where keys are the disk labels (*without* the /dev/disk/guestfs prefix), and the values are the full raw block device and partition names (eg. /dev/sda and /dev/sda1).

New in version 1.19.49.

list_dm_devices()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list device mapper devices

List all device mapper devices.

The returned list contains /dev/mapper/* devices, eg. ones created by a previous call to Guestfs.Session.luks_open().

Device mapper devices which correspond to logical volumes are *not* returned in this list. Call Guestfs.Session.lvs() if you want to list logical volumes.

New in version 1.11.15.

list_filesystems()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

list filesystems

This inspection command looks for filesystems on partitions, block devices and logical volumes, returning a list of mountables containing filesystems and their type.

The return value is a hash, where the keys are the devices containing filesystems, and the values are the filesystem types. For example:

<![CDATA[“/dev/sda1” => “ntfs”]]>

<![CDATA[“/dev/sda2” => “ext2”]]>

<![CDATA[“/dev/vg_guest/lv_root” => “ext4”]]>

<![CDATA[“/dev/vg_guest/lv_swap” => “swap”]]>

The key is not necessarily a block device. It may also be an opaque ‘mountable’ string which can be passed to Guestfs.Session.mount().

The value can have the special value “unknown”, meaning the content of the device is undetermined or empty. “swap” means a Linux swap partition.

In libguestfs &le; 1.36 this command ran other libguestfs commands, which might have included Guestfs.Session.mount() and Guestfs.Session.umount(), and therefore you had to use this soon after launch and only when nothing else was mounted. This restriction is removed in libguestfs &ge; 1.38.

Not all of the filesystems returned will be mountable. In particular, swap partitions are returned in the list. Also this command does not check that each filesystem found is valid and mountable, and some filesystems might be mountable but require special options. Filesystems may not all belong to a single logical operating system (use Guestfs.Session.inspect_os() to look for OSes).

New in version 1.5.15.

list_ldm_partitions()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list all Windows dynamic disk partitions

This function returns all Windows dynamic disk partitions that were found at launch time. It returns a list of device names.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

list_ldm_volumes()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list all Windows dynamic disk volumes

This function returns all Windows dynamic disk volumes that were found at launch time. It returns a list of device names.

This function depends on the feature “ldm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.20.0.

list_md_devices()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list Linux md (RAID) devices

List all Linux md devices.

New in version 1.15.4.

list_partitions()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the partitions

List all the partitions detected on all block devices.

The full partition device names are returned, eg. /dev/sda1

This does not return logical volumes. For that you will need to call Guestfs.Session.lvs().

See also Guestfs.Session.list_filesystems().

New in version 0.4.

ll(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

list the files in a directory (long format)

List the files in directory (relative to the root directory, there is no cwd) in the format of “ls -la”.

This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It is *not* intended that you try to parse the output string.

New in version 0.4.

llz(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

list the files in a directory (long format with SELinux contexts)

List the files in directory in the format of “ls -laZ”.

This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It is *not* intended that you try to parse the output string.

New in version 1.17.6.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.lgetxattrs() instead

ln(target, linkname)
Parameters:
  • target (str) –

  • linkname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a hard link

This command creates a hard link.

New in version 1.0.66.

ln_f(target, linkname)
Parameters:
  • target (str) –

  • linkname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a hard link

This command creates a hard link, removing the link linkname if it exists already.

New in version 1.0.66.

ln_s(target, linkname)
Parameters:
  • target (str) –

  • linkname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a symbolic link

This command creates a symbolic link using the “ln -s” command.

New in version 1.0.66.

ln_sf(target, linkname)
Parameters:
  • target (str) –

  • linkname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a symbolic link

This command creates a symbolic link using the “ln -sf” command, The *-f* option removes the link (linkname) if it exists already.

New in version 1.0.66.

lremovexattr(xattr, path)
Parameters:
  • xattr (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove extended attribute of a file or directory

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.removexattr(), but if path is a symbolic link, then it removes an extended attribute of the link itself.

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

ls(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the files in a directory

List the files in directory (relative to the root directory, there is no cwd). The “.” and “..” entries are not returned, but hidden files are shown.

New in version 0.4.

ls0(dir, filenames)
Parameters:
  • dir (str) –

  • filenames (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

get list of files in a directory

This specialized command is used to get a listing of the filenames in the directory dir. The list of filenames is written to the local file filenames (on the host).

In the output file, the filenames are separated by “\0” characters.

“.” and “..” are not returned. The filenames are not sorted.

New in version 1.19.32.

lsetxattr(xattr, val, vallen, path)
Parameters:
  • xattr (str) –

  • val (str) –

  • vallen (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set extended attribute of a file or directory

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.setxattr(), but if path is a symbolic link, then it sets an extended attribute of the link itself.

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

lstat(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a Stat object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.Stat

get file information for a symbolic link

Returns file information for the given path.

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.stat() except that if path is a symbolic link, then the link is stat-ed, not the file it refers to.

This is the same as the lstat(2) system call.

New in version 1.9.2.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.lstatns() instead

lstatlist(path, names)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • names ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of Stat objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.Stat]

lstat on multiple files

This call allows you to perform the Guestfs.Session.lstat() operation on multiple files, where all files are in the directory path. names is the list of files from this directory.

On return you get a list of stat structs, with a one-to-one correspondence to the names list. If any name did not exist or could not be lstat’d, then the st_ino field of that structure is set to @-1.

This call is intended for programs that want to efficiently list a directory contents without making many round-trips. See also Guestfs.Session.lxattrlist() for a similarly efficient call for getting extended attributes.

New in version 1.0.77.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.lstatnslist() instead

lstatns(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a StatNS object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.StatNS

get file information for a symbolic link

Returns file information for the given path.

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.statns() except that if path is a symbolic link, then the link is stat-ed, not the file it refers to.

This is the same as the lstat(2) system call.

New in version 1.27.53.

lstatnslist(path, names)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • names ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of StatNS objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.StatNS]

lstat on multiple files

This call allows you to perform the Guestfs.Session.lstatns() operation on multiple files, where all files are in the directory path. names is the list of files from this directory.

On return you get a list of stat structs, with a one-to-one correspondence to the names list. If any name did not exist or could not be lstat’d, then the st_ino field of that structure is set to @-1.

This call is intended for programs that want to efficiently list a directory contents without making many round-trips. See also Guestfs.Session.lxattrlist() for a similarly efficient call for getting extended attributes.

New in version 1.27.53.

luks_add_key(device, key, newkey, keyslot)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • newkey (str) –

  • keyslot (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a key on a LUKS encrypted device

This command adds a new key on LUKS device device. key is any existing key, and is used to access the device. newkey is the new key to add. keyslot is the key slot that will be replaced.

Note that if keyslot already contains a key, then this command will fail. You have to use Guestfs.Session.luks_kill_slot() first to remove that key.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.2.

luks_close(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

close a LUKS device

This closes a LUKS device that was created earlier by Guestfs.Session.luks_open() or Guestfs.Session.luks_open_ro(). The device parameter must be the name of the LUKS mapping device (ie. /dev/mapper/mapname) and *not* the name of the underlying block device.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.1.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.cryptsetup_close() instead

luks_format(device, key, keyslot)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • keyslot (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

format a block device as a LUKS encrypted device

This command erases existing data on device and formats the device as a LUKS encrypted device. key is the initial key, which is added to key slot keyslot. (LUKS supports 8 key slots, numbered 0-7).

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.2.

luks_format_cipher(device, key, keyslot, cipher)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • keyslot (int) –

  • cipher (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

format a block device as a LUKS encrypted device

This command is the same as Guestfs.Session.luks_format() but it also allows you to set the cipher used.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.2.

luks_kill_slot(device, key, keyslot)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • keyslot (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a key from a LUKS encrypted device

This command deletes the key in key slot keyslot from the encrypted LUKS device device. key must be one of the *other* keys.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.2.

luks_open(device, key, mapname)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • mapname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open a LUKS-encrypted block device

This command opens a block device which has been encrypted according to the Linux Unified Key Setup (LUKS) standard.

device is the encrypted block device or partition.

The caller must supply one of the keys associated with the LUKS block device, in the key parameter.

This creates a new block device called /dev/mapper/mapname. Reads and writes to this block device are decrypted from and encrypted to the underlying device respectively.

If this block device contains LVM volume groups, then calling Guestfs.Session.lvm_scan() with the activate parameter true will make them visible.

Use Guestfs.Session.list_dm_devices() to list all device mapper devices.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.1.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.cryptsetup_open() instead

luks_open_ro(device, key, mapname)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • key (str) –

  • mapname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

open a LUKS-encrypted block device read-only

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.luks_open() except that a read-only mapping is created.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.1.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.cryptsetup_open() instead

luks_uuid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the UUID of a LUKS device

This returns the UUID of the LUKS device device.

This function depends on the feature “luks”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.41.9.

lvcreate(logvol, volgroup, mbytes)
Parameters:
  • logvol (str) –

  • volgroup (str) –

  • mbytes (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an LVM logical volume

This creates an LVM logical volume called logvol on the volume group volgroup, with size megabytes.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.8.

lvcreate_free(logvol, volgroup, percent)
Parameters:
  • logvol (str) –

  • volgroup (str) –

  • percent (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an LVM logical volume in % remaining free space

Create an LVM logical volume called /dev/volgroup/logvol, using approximately percent % of the free space remaining in the volume group. Most usefully, when percent is 100 this will create the largest possible LV.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.18.

lvm_canonical_lv_name(lvname)
Parameters:

lvname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get canonical name of an LV

This converts alternative naming schemes for LVs that you might find to the canonical name. For example, /dev/mapper/VG-LV is converted to /dev/VG/LV.

This command returns an error if the lvname parameter does not refer to a logical volume. In this case errno will be set to EINVAL.

See also Guestfs.Session.is_lv(), Guestfs.Session.canonical_device_name().

New in version 1.5.24.

lvm_clear_filter()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

clear LVM device filter

This undoes the effect of Guestfs.Session.lvm_set_filter(). LVM will be able to see every block device.

This command also clears the LVM cache and performs a volume group scan.

New in version 1.5.1.

lvm_remove_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove all LVM LVs, VGs and PVs

This command removes all LVM logical volumes, volume groups and physical volumes.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.8.

lvm_scan(activate)
Parameters:

activate (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

scan for LVM physical volumes, volume groups and logical volumes

This scans all block devices and rebuilds the list of LVM physical volumes, volume groups and logical volumes.

If the activate parameter is true then newly found volume groups and logical volumes are activated, meaning the LV /dev/VG/LV devices become visible.

When a libguestfs handle is launched it scans for existing devices, so you do not normally need to use this API. However it is useful when you have added a new device or deleted an existing device (such as when the Guestfs.Session.luks_open() API is used).

New in version 1.39.8.

lvm_set_filter(devices)
Parameters:

devices ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set LVM device filter

This sets the LVM device filter so that LVM will only be able to “see” the block devices in the list devices, and will ignore all other attached block devices.

Where disk image(s) contain duplicate PVs or VGs, this command is useful to get LVM to ignore the duplicates, otherwise LVM can get confused. Note also there are two types of duplication possible: either cloned PVs/VGs which have identical UUIDs; or VGs that are not cloned but just happen to have the same name. In normal operation you cannot create this situation, but you can do it outside LVM, eg. by cloning disk images or by bit twiddling inside the LVM metadata.

This command also clears the LVM cache and performs a volume group scan.

You can filter whole block devices or individual partitions.

You cannot use this if any VG is currently in use (eg. contains a mounted filesystem), even if you are not filtering out that VG.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.5.1.

lvremove(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove an LVM logical volume

Remove an LVM logical volume device, where device is the path to the LV, such as /dev/VG/LV.

You can also remove all LVs in a volume group by specifying the VG name, /dev/VG.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.13.

lvrename(logvol, newlogvol)
Parameters:
  • logvol (str) –

  • newlogvol (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

rename an LVM logical volume

Rename a logical volume logvol with the new name newlogvol.

New in version 1.0.83.

lvresize(device, mbytes)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • mbytes (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an LVM logical volume

This resizes (expands or shrinks) an existing LVM logical volume to mbytes. When reducing, data in the reduced part is lost.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.27.

lvresize_free(lv, percent)
Parameters:
  • lv (str) –

  • percent (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

expand an LV to fill free space

This expands an existing logical volume lv so that it fills pc % of the remaining free space in the volume group. Commonly you would call this with pc = 100 which expands the logical volume as much as possible, using all remaining free space in the volume group.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.3.

lvs()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the LVM logical volumes (LVs)

List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent of the lvs(8) command.

This returns a list of the logical volume device names (eg. /dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00).

See also Guestfs.Session.lvs_full(), Guestfs.Session.list_filesystems().

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

lvs_full()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of LV objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.LV]

list the LVM logical volumes (LVs)

List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent of the lvs(8) command. The “full” version includes all fields.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

lvuuid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the UUID of a logical volume

This command returns the UUID of the LVM LV device.

New in version 1.0.87.

lxattrlist(path, names)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • names ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of XAttr objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.XAttr]

lgetxattr on multiple files

This call allows you to get the extended attributes of multiple files, where all files are in the directory path. names is the list of files from this directory.

On return you get a flat list of xattr structs which must be interpreted sequentially. The first xattr struct always has a zero-length attrname. attrval in this struct is zero-length to indicate there was an error doing Guestfs.Session.lgetxattr() for this file, *or* is a C string which is a decimal number (the number of following attributes for this file, which could be “0”). Then after the first xattr struct are the zero or more attributes for the first named file. This repeats for the second and subsequent files.

This call is intended for programs that want to efficiently list a directory contents without making many round-trips. See also Guestfs.Session.lstatlist() for a similarly efficient call for getting standard stats.

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.77.

max_disks()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

maximum number of disks that may be added

Return the maximum number of disks that may be added to a handle (eg. by guestfs_session_add_drive_opts() and similar calls).

This function was added in libguestfs 1.19.7. In previous versions of libguestfs the limit was 25.

See “MAXIMUM NUMBER OF DISKS” in guestfs(3) for additional information on this topic.

New in version 1.19.7.

md_create(name, devices, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a Linux md (RAID) device

Create a Linux md (RAID) device named name on the devices in the list devices.

The optional parameters are:

missingbitmap A bitmap of missing devices. If a bit is set it means that a missing device is added to the array. The least significant bit corresponds to the first device in the array.

As examples:

If “devices = [“/dev/sda”]” and “missingbitmap = 0x1” then the resulting array would be “[<missing>, “/dev/sda”]”.

If “devices = [“/dev/sda”]” and “missingbitmap = 0x2” then the resulting array would be “[“/dev/sda”, <missing>]”.

This defaults to 0 (no missing devices).

The length of devices + the number of bits set in missingbitmap must equal nrdevices + spare.

nrdevices The number of active RAID devices.

If not set, this defaults to the length of devices plus the number of bits set in missingbitmap.

spare The number of spare devices.

If not set, this defaults to 0.

chunk The chunk size in bytes.

The chunk parameter does not make sense, and should not be specified, when level is raid1 (which is the default; see below).

level The RAID level, which can be one of: linear, raid0, 0, stripe, raid1, 1, mirror, raid4, 4, raid5, 5, raid6, 6, raid10, 10. Some of these are synonymous, and more levels may be added in future.

If not set, this defaults to raid1.

This function depends on the feature “mdadm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.15.6.

md_detail(md)
Parameters:

md (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

obtain metadata for an MD device

This command exposes the output of “mdadm -DY <md>”. The following fields are usually present in the returned hash. Other fields may also be present.

level The raid level of the MD device.

devices The number of underlying devices in the MD device.

metadata The metadata version used.

uuid The UUID of the MD device.

name The name of the MD device.

This function depends on the feature “mdadm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.15.6.

md_stat(md)
Parameters:

md (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of MDStat objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.MDStat]

get underlying devices from an MD device

This call returns a list of the underlying devices which make up the single software RAID array device md.

To get a list of software RAID devices, call Guestfs.Session.list_md_devices().

Each structure returned corresponds to one device along with additional status information:

mdstat_device The name of the underlying device.

mdstat_index The index of this device within the array.

mdstat_flags Flags associated with this device. This is a string containing (in no specific order) zero or more of the following flags:

W write-mostly

F device is faulty

S device is a RAID spare

R replacement

This function depends on the feature “mdadm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.21.

md_stop(md)
Parameters:

md (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

stop a Linux md (RAID) device

This command deactivates the MD array named md. The device is stopped, but it is not destroyed or zeroed.

This function depends on the feature “mdadm”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.15.6.

mkdir(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a directory

Create a directory named path.

New in version 0.8.

mkdir_mode(path, mode)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • mode (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a directory with a particular mode

This command creates a directory, setting the initial permissions of the directory to mode.

For common Linux filesystems, the actual mode which is set will be “mode & ~umask & 01777”. Non-native-Linux filesystems may interpret the mode in other ways.

See also Guestfs.Session.mkdir(), Guestfs.Session.umask()

New in version 1.0.77.

mkdir_p(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a directory and parents

Create a directory named path, creating any parent directories as necessary. This is like the “mkdir -p” shell command.

New in version 0.8.

mkdtemp(tmpl)
Parameters:

tmpl (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

create a temporary directory

This command creates a temporary directory. The tmpl parameter should be a full pathname for the temporary directory name with the final six characters being “XXXXXX”.

For example: “/tmp/myprogXXXXXX” or “/Temp/myprogXXXXXX”, the second one being suitable for Windows filesystems.

The name of the temporary directory that was created is returned.

The temporary directory is created with mode 0700 and is owned by root.

The caller is responsible for deleting the temporary directory and its contents after use.

See also: mkdtemp(3)

New in version 1.0.54.

mke2fs(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an ext2/ext3/ext4 filesystem on device

mke2fs is used to create an ext2, ext3, or ext4 filesystem on device.

The optional blockscount is the size of the filesystem in blocks. If omitted it defaults to the size of device. Note if the filesystem is too small to contain a journal, mke2fs will silently create an ext2 filesystem instead.

New in version 1.19.44.

mke2fs_J(fstype, blocksize, device, journal)
Parameters:
  • fstype (str) –

  • blocksize (int) –

  • device (str) –

  • journal (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 filesystem with external journal

This creates an ext2/3/4 filesystem on device with an external journal on journal. It is equivalent to the command:

mke2fs -t fstype -b blocksize -J device=&lt;journal&gt; &lt;device&gt;

See also Guestfs.Session.mke2journal().

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mke2fs_JL(fstype, blocksize, device, label)
Parameters:
  • fstype (str) –

  • blocksize (int) –

  • device (str) –

  • label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 filesystem with external journal

This creates an ext2/3/4 filesystem on device with an external journal on the journal labeled label.

See also Guestfs.Session.mke2journal_L().

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mke2fs_JU(fstype, blocksize, device, uuid)
Parameters:
  • fstype (str) –

  • blocksize (int) –

  • device (str) –

  • uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 filesystem with external journal

This creates an ext2/3/4 filesystem on device with an external journal on the journal with UUID uuid.

See also Guestfs.Session.mke2journal_U().

This function depends on the feature “linuxfsuuid”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mke2journal(blocksize, device)
Parameters:
  • blocksize (int) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 external journal

This creates an ext2 external journal on device. It is equivalent to the command:

mke2fs -O journal_dev -b blocksize device

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mke2journal_L(blocksize, label, device)
Parameters:
  • blocksize (int) –

  • label (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 external journal with label

This creates an ext2 external journal on device with label label.

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mke2journal_U(blocksize, uuid, device)
Parameters:
  • blocksize (int) –

  • uuid (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make ext2/3/4 external journal with UUID

This creates an ext2 external journal on device with UUID uuid.

This function depends on the feature “linuxfsuuid”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mke2fs() instead

mkfifo(mode, path)
Parameters:
  • mode (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make FIFO (named pipe)

This call creates a FIFO (named pipe) called path with mode mode. It is just a convenient wrapper around Guestfs.Session.mknod().

Unlike with Guestfs.Session.mknod(), mode must contain only permissions bits.

The mode actually set is affected by the umask.

This function depends on the feature “mknod”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.55.

mkfs(fstype, device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make a filesystem

This function creates a filesystem on device. The filesystem type is fstype, for example ext3.

The optional arguments are:

blocksize The filesystem block size. Supported block sizes depend on the filesystem type, but typically they are 1024, 2048 or 4096 for Linux ext2/3 filesystems.

For VFAT and NTFS the blocksize parameter is treated as the requested cluster size.

For UFS block sizes, please see mkfs.ufs(8).

features This passes the *-O* parameter to the external mkfs program.

For certain filesystem types, this allows extra filesystem features to be selected. See mke2fs(8) and mkfs.ufs(8) for more details.

You cannot use this optional parameter with the gfs or gfs2 filesystem type.

inode This passes the *-I* parameter to the external mke2fs(8) program which sets the inode size (only for ext2/3/4 filesystems at present).

sectorsize This passes the *-S* parameter to external mkfs.ufs(8) program, which sets sector size for ufs filesystem.

New in version 0.8.

mkfs_b(fstype, blocksize, device)
Parameters:
  • fstype (str) –

  • blocksize (int) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make a filesystem with block size

This call is similar to Guestfs.Session.mkfs(), but it allows you to control the block size of the resulting filesystem. Supported block sizes depend on the filesystem type, but typically they are 1024, 2048 or 4096 only.

For VFAT and NTFS the blocksize parameter is treated as the requested cluster size.

New in version 1.0.68.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mkfs() instead

mkfs_btrfs(devices, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a btrfs filesystem

Create a btrfs filesystem, allowing all configurables to be set. For more information on the optional arguments, see mkfs.btrfs(8).

Since btrfs filesystems can span multiple devices, this takes a non-empty list of devices.

To create general filesystems, use Guestfs.Session.mkfs().

This function depends on the feature “btrfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.25.

mklost_and_found(mountpoint)
Parameters:

mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make lost+found directory on an ext2/3/4 filesystem

Make the “lost+found” directory, normally in the root directory of an ext2/3/4 filesystem. mountpoint is the directory under which we try to create the “lost+found” directory.

New in version 1.19.56.

mkmountpoint(exemptpath)
Parameters:

exemptpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a mountpoint

Guestfs.Session.mkmountpoint() and Guestfs.Session.rmmountpoint() are specialized calls that can be used to create extra mountpoints before mounting the first filesystem.

These calls are *only* necessary in some very limited circumstances, mainly the case where you want to mount a mix of unrelated and/or read-only filesystems together.

For example, live CDs often contain a “Russian doll” nest of filesystems, an ISO outer layer, with a squashfs image inside, with an ext2/3 image inside that. You can unpack this as follows in guestfish:

add-ro Fedora-11-i686-Live.iso

<![CDATA[run]]>

mkmountpoint /cd

mkmountpoint /sqsh

mkmountpoint /ext3fs

mount /dev/sda /cd

mount-loop /cd/LiveOS/squashfs.img /sqsh

mount-loop /sqsh/LiveOS/ext3fs.img /ext3fs

The inner filesystem is now unpacked under the /ext3fs mountpoint.

Guestfs.Session.mkmountpoint() is not compatible with Guestfs.Session.umount_all(). You may get unexpected errors if you try to mix these calls. It is safest to manually unmount filesystems and remove mountpoints after use.

Guestfs.Session.umount_all() unmounts filesystems by sorting the paths longest first, so for this to work for manual mountpoints, you must ensure that the innermost mountpoints have the longest pathnames, as in the example code above.

For more details see http://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=599503

Autosync [see Guestfs.Session.set_autosync(), this is set by default on handles] can cause Guestfs.Session.umount_all() to be called when the handle is closed which can also trigger these issues.

New in version 1.0.62.

mknod(mode, devmajor, devminor, path)
Parameters:
  • mode (int) –

  • devmajor (int) –

  • devminor (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make block, character or FIFO devices

This call creates block or character special devices, or named pipes (FIFOs).

The mode parameter should be the mode, using the standard constants. devmajor and devminor are the device major and minor numbers, only used when creating block and character special devices.

Note that, just like mknod(2), the mode must be bitwise OR’d with S_IFBLK, S_IFCHR, S_IFIFO or S_IFSOCK (otherwise this call just creates a regular file). These constants are available in the standard Linux header files, or you can use Guestfs.Session.mknod_b(), Guestfs.Session.mknod_c() or Guestfs.Session.mkfifo() which are wrappers around this command which bitwise OR in the appropriate constant for you.

The mode actually set is affected by the umask.

This function depends on the feature “mknod”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.55.

mknod_b(mode, devmajor, devminor, path)
Parameters:
  • mode (int) –

  • devmajor (int) –

  • devminor (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make block device node

This call creates a block device node called path with mode mode and device major/minor devmajor and devminor. It is just a convenient wrapper around Guestfs.Session.mknod().

Unlike with Guestfs.Session.mknod(), mode must contain only permissions bits.

The mode actually set is affected by the umask.

This function depends on the feature “mknod”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.55.

mknod_c(mode, devmajor, devminor, path)
Parameters:
  • mode (int) –

  • devmajor (int) –

  • devminor (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make str device node

This call creates a str device node called path with mode mode and device major/minor devmajor and devminor. It is just a convenient wrapper around Guestfs.Session.mknod().

Unlike with Guestfs.Session.mknod(), mode must contain only permissions bits.

The mode actually set is affected by the umask.

This function depends on the feature “mknod”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.55.

mksquashfs(path, filename, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a squashfs filesystem

Create a squashfs filesystem for the specified path.

The optional compress flag controls compression. If not given, then the output compressed using gzip. Otherwise one of the following strings may be given to select the compression type of the squashfs: gzip, lzma, lzo, lz4, xz.

The other optional arguments are:

excludes A list of wildcards. Files are excluded if they match any of the wildcards.

Please note that this API may fail when used to compress directories with large files, such as the resulting squashfs will be over 3GB big.

This function depends on the feature “squashfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.35.25.

mkswap(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a swap partition

Create a Linux swap partition on device.

The option arguments label and uuid allow you to set the label and/or UUID of the new swap partition.

New in version 1.0.55.

mkswap_L(label, device)
Parameters:
  • label (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a swap partition with a label

Create a swap partition on device with label label.

Note that you cannot attach a swap label to a block device (eg. /dev/sda), just to a partition. This appears to be a limitation of the kernel or swap tools.

New in version 1.0.55.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mkswap() instead

mkswap_U(uuid, device)
Parameters:
  • uuid (str) –

  • device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a swap partition with an explicit UUID

Create a swap partition on device with UUID uuid.

This function depends on the feature “linuxfsuuid”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.55.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.mkswap() instead

mkswap_file(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a swap file

Create a swap file.

This command just writes a swap file signature to an existing file. To create the file itself, use something like Guestfs.Session.fallocate().

New in version 1.0.66.

mktemp(tmpl, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

create a temporary file

This command creates a temporary file. The tmpl parameter should be a full pathname for the temporary directory name with the final six characters being “XXXXXX”.

For example: “/tmp/myprogXXXXXX” or “/Temp/myprogXXXXXX”, the second one being suitable for Windows filesystems.

The name of the temporary file that was created is returned.

The temporary file is created with mode 0600 and is owned by root.

The caller is responsible for deleting the temporary file after use.

If the optional suffix parameter is given, then the suffix (eg. “.txt”) is appended to the temporary name.

See also: Guestfs.Session.mkdtemp().

New in version 1.19.53.

modprobe(modulename)
Parameters:

modulename (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

load a kernel module

This loads a kernel module in the appliance.

This function depends on the feature “linuxmodules”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.68.

mount(mountable, mountpoint)
Parameters:
  • mountable (str) –

  • mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount a guest disk at a position in the filesystem

Mount a guest disk at a position in the filesystem. Block devices are named /dev/sda, /dev/sdb and so on, as they were added to the guest. If those block devices contain partitions, they will have the usual names (eg. /dev/sda1). Also LVM /dev/VG/LV-style names can be used, or ‘mountable’ strings returned by Guestfs.Session.list_filesystems() or Guestfs.Session.inspect_get_mountpoints().

The rules are the same as for mount(2): A filesystem must first be mounted on / before others can be mounted. Other filesystems can only be mounted on directories which already exist.

The mounted filesystem is writable, if we have sufficient permissions on the underlying device.

Before libguestfs 1.13.16, this call implicitly added the options sync and noatime. The sync option greatly slowed writes and caused many problems for users. If your program might need to work with older versions of libguestfs, use Guestfs.Session.mount_options() instead (using an empty string for the first parameter if you don’t want any options).

New in version 0.3.

mount_9p(mounttag, mountpoint, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount 9p filesystem

This call does nothing and returns an error.

New in version 1.11.12.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

mount_local(localmountpoint, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount on the local filesystem

This call exports the libguestfs-accessible filesystem to a local mountpoint (directory) called localmountpoint. Ordinary reads and writes to files and directories under localmountpoint are redirected through libguestfs.

If the optional readonly flag is set to true, then writes to the filesystem return error EROFS.

options is a comma-separated list of mount options. See guestmount(1) for some useful options.

cachetimeout sets the timeout (in seconds) for cached directory entries. The default is 60 seconds. See guestmount(1) for further information.

If debugcalls is set to true, then additional debugging information is generated for every FUSE call.

When Guestfs.Session.mount_local() returns, the filesystem is ready, but is not processing requests (access to it will block). You have to call Guestfs.Session.mount_local_run() to run the main loop.

See “MOUNT LOCAL” in guestfs(3) for full documentation.

New in version 1.17.22.

mount_local_run(cancellable)
Parameters:

cancellable (Gio.Cancellable or None) – A Gio.Cancellable object

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

run main loop of mount on the local filesystem

Run the main loop which translates kernel calls to libguestfs calls.

This should only be called after Guestfs.Session.mount_local() returns successfully. The call will not return until the filesystem is unmounted.

Note you must *not* make concurrent libguestfs calls on the same handle from another thread.

You may call this from a different thread than the one which called Guestfs.Session.mount_local(), subject to the usual rules for threads and libguestfs (see “MULTIPLE HANDLES AND MULTIPLE THREADS” in guestfs(3)).

See “MOUNT LOCAL” in guestfs(3) for full documentation.

New in version 1.17.22.

mount_loop(file, mountpoint)
Parameters:
  • file (str) –

  • mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount a file using the loop device

This command lets you mount file (a filesystem image in a file) on a mount point. It is entirely equivalent to the command “mount -o loop file mountpoint”.

New in version 1.0.54.

mount_options(options, mountable, mountpoint)
Parameters:
  • options (str) –

  • mountable (str) –

  • mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount a guest disk with mount options

This is the same as the Guestfs.Session.mount() command, but it allows you to set the mount options as for the mount(8) *-o* flag.

If the options parameter is an empty string, then no options are passed (all options default to whatever the filesystem uses).

New in version 1.0.10.

mount_ro(mountable, mountpoint)
Parameters:
  • mountable (str) –

  • mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount a guest disk, read-only

This is the same as the Guestfs.Session.mount() command, but it mounts the filesystem with the read-only (*-o ro*) flag.

New in version 1.0.10.

mount_vfs(options, vfstype, mountable, mountpoint)
Parameters:
  • options (str) –

  • vfstype (str) –

  • mountable (str) –

  • mountpoint (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

mount a guest disk with mount options and vfstype

This is the same as the Guestfs.Session.mount() command, but it allows you to set both the mount options and the vfstype as for the mount(8) *-o* and *-t* flags.

New in version 1.0.10.

mountable_device(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

extract the device part of a mountable

Returns the device name of a mountable. In quite a lot of cases, the mountable is the device name.

However this doesn’t apply for btrfs subvolumes, where the mountable is a combination of both the device name and the subvolume path (see also Guestfs.Session.mountable_subvolume() to extract the subvolume path of the mountable if any).

New in version 1.33.15.

mountable_subvolume(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

extract the subvolume part of a mountable

Returns the subvolume path of a mountable. Btrfs subvolumes mountables are a combination of both the device name and the subvolume path (see also Guestfs.Session.mountable_device() to extract the device of the mountable).

If the mountable does not represent a btrfs subvolume, then this function fails and the errno is set to EINVAL.

New in version 1.33.15.

mountpoints()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

show mountpoints

This call is similar to Guestfs.Session.mounts(). That call returns a list of devices. This one returns a hash table (map) of device name to directory where the device is mounted.

New in version 1.0.62.

mounts()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

show mounted filesystems

This returns the list of currently mounted filesystems. It returns the list of devices (eg. /dev/sda1, /dev/VG/LV).

Some internal mounts are not shown.

See also: Guestfs.Session.mountpoints()

New in version 0.8.

mv(src, dest)
Parameters:
  • src (str) –

  • dest (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

move a file

This moves a file from src to dest where dest is either a destination filename or destination directory.

See also: Guestfs.Session.rename().

New in version 1.0.18.

nr_devices()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return number of whole block devices (disks) added

This returns the number of whole block devices that were added. This is the same as the number of devices that would be returned if you called Guestfs.Session.list_devices().

To find out the maximum number of devices that could be added, call Guestfs.Session.max_disks().

New in version 1.19.15.

ntfs_3g_probe(rw, device)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

probe NTFS volume

This command runs the ntfs-3g.probe(8) command which probes an NTFS device for mountability. (Not all NTFS volumes can be mounted read-write, and some cannot be mounted at all).

rw is a boolean flag. Set it to true if you want to test if the volume can be mounted read-write. Set it to false if you want to test if the volume can be mounted read-only.

The return value is an integer which 0 if the operation would succeed, or some non-zero value documented in the ntfs-3g.probe(8) manual page.

This function depends on the feature “ntfs3g”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.43.

ntfscat_i(device, inode, filename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

download a file to the local machine given its inode

Download a file given its inode from a NTFS filesystem and save it as filename on the local machine.

This allows to download some otherwise inaccessible files such as the ones within the $Extend folder.

The filesystem from which to extract the file must be unmounted, otherwise the call will fail.

New in version 1.33.14.

ntfsclone_in(backupfile, device, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

restore NTFS from backup file

Restore the backupfile (from a previous call to Guestfs.Session.ntfsclone_out()) to device, overwriting any existing contents of this device.

This function depends on the feature “ntfs3g”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.9.

ntfsclone_out(device, backupfile, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

save NTFS to backup file

Stream the NTFS filesystem device to the local file backupfile. The format used for the backup file is a special format used by the ntfsclone(8) tool.

If the optional metadataonly flag is true, then *only* the metadata is saved, losing all the user data (this is useful for diagnosing some filesystem problems).

The optional rescue, ignorefscheck, preservetimestamps and force flags have precise meanings detailed in the ntfsclone(8) man page.

Use Guestfs.Session.ntfsclone_in() to restore the file back to a libguestfs device.

This function depends on the feature “ntfs3g”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.9.

ntfsfix(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

fix common errors and force Windows to check NTFS

This command repairs some fundamental NTFS inconsistencies, resets the NTFS journal file, and schedules an NTFS consistency check for the first boot into Windows.

This is *not* an equivalent of Windows chkdsk. It does *not* scan the filesystem for inconsistencies.

The optional clearbadsectors flag clears the list of bad sectors. This is useful after cloning a disk with bad sectors to a new disk.

This function depends on the feature “ntfs3g”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.9.

ntfsresize(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an NTFS filesystem

This command resizes an NTFS filesystem, expanding or shrinking it to the size of the underlying device.

The optional parameters are:

size The new size (in bytes) of the filesystem. If omitted, the filesystem is resized to fit the container (eg. partition).

force If this option is true, then force the resize of the filesystem even if the filesystem is marked as requiring a consistency check.

After the resize operation, the filesystem is always marked as requiring a consistency check (for safety). You have to boot into Windows to perform this check and clear this condition. If you *don’t* set the force option then it is not possible to call Guestfs.Session.ntfsresize() multiple times on a single filesystem without booting into Windows between each resize.

See also ntfsresize(8).

This function depends on the feature “ntfsprogs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.2.

ntfsresize_size(device, size)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an NTFS filesystem (with size)

This command is the same as Guestfs.Session.ntfsresize() except that it allows you to specify the new size (in bytes) explicitly.

This function depends on the feature “ntfsprogs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.14.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.ntfsresize() instead

parse_environment()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

parse the environment and set handle flags accordingly

Parse the program’s environment and set flags in the handle accordingly. For example if “LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG=1” then the ‘verbose’ flag is set in the handle.

*Most programs do not need to call this*. It is done implicitly when you call guestfs_session_create().

See “ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES” in guestfs(3) for a list of environment variables that can affect libguestfs handles. See also “guestfs_create_flags” in guestfs(3), and Guestfs.Session.parse_environment_list().

New in version 1.19.53.

parse_environment_list(environment)
Parameters:

environment ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

parse the environment and set handle flags accordingly

Parse the list of strings in the argument environment and set flags in the handle accordingly. For example if “LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG=1” is a string in the list, then the ‘verbose’ flag is set in the handle.

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.parse_environment() except that it parses an explicit list of strings instead of the program’s environment.

New in version 1.19.53.

part_add(device, prlogex, startsect, endsect)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • prlogex (str) –

  • startsect (int) –

  • endsect (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add a partition to the device

This command adds a partition to device. If there is no partition table on the device, call Guestfs.Session.part_init() first.

The prlogex parameter is the type of partition. Normally you should pass p or primary here, but MBR partition tables also support l (or logical) and e (or extended) partition types.

startsect and endsect are the start and end of the partition in *sectors*. endsect may be negative, which means it counts backwards from the end of the disk (@-1 is the last sector).

Creating a partition which covers the whole disk is not so easy. Use Guestfs.Session.part_disk() to do that.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_del(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

delete a partition

This command deletes the partition numbered partnum on device.

Note that in the case of MBR partitioning, deleting an extended partition also deletes any logical partitions it contains.

New in version 1.3.2.

part_disk(device, parttype)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • parttype (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

partition whole disk with a single primary partition

This command is simply a combination of Guestfs.Session.part_init() followed by Guestfs.Session.part_add() to create a single primary partition covering the whole disk.

parttype is the partition table type, usually mbr or gpt, but other possible values are described in Guestfs.Session.part_init().

New in version 1.0.78.

part_expand_gpt(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

move backup GPT header to the end of the disk

Move backup GPT data structures to the end of the disk. This is useful in case of in-place image expand since disk space after backup GPT header is not usable. This is equivalent to “sgdisk -e”.

See also sgdisk(8).

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.2.

part_get_bootable(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

return true if a partition is bootable

This command returns true if the partition partnum on device has the bootable flag set.

See also Guestfs.Session.part_set_bootable().

New in version 1.3.2.

part_get_disk_guid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the GUID of a GPT-partitioned disk

Return the disk identifier (GUID) of a GPT-partitioned device. Behaviour is undefined for other partition types.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.2.

part_get_gpt_attributes(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the attribute flags of a GPT partition

Return the attribute flags of numbered GPT partition partnum. An error is returned for MBR partitions.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.1.

part_get_gpt_guid(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the GUID of a GPT partition

Return the GUID of numbered GPT partition partnum.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.25.

part_get_gpt_type(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the type GUID of a GPT partition

Return the type GUID of numbered GPT partition partnum. For MBR partitions, return an appropriate GUID corresponding to the MBR type. Behaviour is undefined for other partition types.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.1.

part_get_mbr_id(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get the MBR type byte (ID byte) from a partition

Returns the MBR type byte (also known as the ID byte) from the numbered partition partnum.

Note that only MBR (old DOS-style) partitions have type bytes. You will get undefined results for other partition table types (see Guestfs.Session.part_get_parttype()).

New in version 1.3.2.

part_get_mbr_part_type(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the MBR partition type

This returns the partition type of an MBR partition numbered partnum on device device.

It returns primary, logical, or extended.

New in version 1.29.32.

part_get_name(device, partnum)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get partition name

This gets the partition name on partition numbered partnum on device device. Note that partitions are numbered from 1.

The partition name can only be read on certain types of partition table. This works on gpt but not on mbr partitions.

New in version 1.25.33.

part_get_parttype(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the partition table type

This command examines the partition table on device and returns the partition table type (format) being used.

Common return values include: msdos (a DOS/Windows style MBR partition table), gpt (a GPT/EFI-style partition table). Other values are possible, although unusual. See Guestfs.Session.part_init() for a full list.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_init(device, parttype)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • parttype (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an empty partition table

This creates an empty partition table on device of one of the partition types listed below. Usually parttype should be either msdos or gpt (for large disks).

Initially there are no partitions. Following this, you should call Guestfs.Session.part_add() for each partition required.

Possible values for parttype are:

efi gpt Intel EFI / GPT partition table.

This is recommended for >= 2 TB partitions that will be accessed from Linux and Intel-based Mac OS X. It also has limited backwards compatibility with the mbr format.

mbr msdos The standard PC “Master Boot Record” (MBR) format used by MS-DOS and Windows. This partition type will only work for device sizes up to 2 TB. For large disks we recommend using gpt.

Other partition table types that may work but are not supported include:

aix AIX disk labels.

amiga rdb Amiga “Rigid Disk Block” format.

bsd BSD disk labels.

dasd DASD, used on IBM mainframes.

dvh MIPS/SGI volumes.

mac Old Mac partition format. Modern Macs use gpt.

pc98 NEC PC-98 format, common in Japan apparently.

sun Sun disk labels.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_list(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of Partition objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.Partition]

list partitions on a device

This command parses the partition table on device and returns the list of partitions found.

The fields in the returned structure are:

part_num Partition number, counting from 1.

part_start Start of the partition *in bytes*. To get sectors you have to divide by the device’s sector size, see Guestfs.Session.blockdev_getss().

part_end End of the partition in bytes.

part_size Size of the partition in bytes.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_resize(device, partnum, endsect)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • endsect (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize a partition

This command resizes the partition numbered partnum on device by moving the end position.

Note that this does not modify any filesystem present in the partition. If you wish to do this, you will need to use filesystem resizing commands like Guestfs.Session.resize2fs().

When growing a partition you will want to grow the filesystem afterwards, but when shrinking, you need to shrink the filesystem before the partition.

New in version 1.37.20.

part_set_bootable(device, partnum, bootable)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • bootable (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

make a partition bootable

This sets the bootable flag on partition numbered partnum on device device. Note that partitions are numbered from 1.

The bootable flag is used by some operating systems (notably Windows) to determine which partition to boot from. It is by no means universally recognized.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_set_disk_guid(device, guid)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • guid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the GUID of a GPT-partitioned disk

Set the disk identifier (GUID) of a GPT-partitioned device to guid. Return an error if the partition table of device isn’t GPT, or if guid is not a valid GUID.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.2.

part_set_disk_guid_random(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the GUID of a GPT-partitioned disk to random value

Set the disk identifier (GUID) of a GPT-partitioned device to a randomly generated value. Return an error if the partition table of device isn’t GPT.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.2.

part_set_gpt_attributes(device, partnum, attributes)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • attributes (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the attribute flags of a GPT partition

Set the attribute flags of numbered GPT partition partnum to attributes. Return an error if the partition table of device isn’t GPT.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUID_Partition_Table#Partition_entries for a useful list of partition attributes.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.1.

part_set_gpt_guid(device, partnum, guid)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • guid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the GUID of a GPT partition

Set the GUID of numbered GPT partition partnum to guid. Return an error if the partition table of device isn’t GPT, or if guid is not a valid GUID.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.29.25.

part_set_gpt_type(device, partnum, guid)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • guid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the type GUID of a GPT partition

Set the type GUID of numbered GPT partition partnum to guid. Return an error if the partition table of device isn’t GPT, or if guid is not a valid GUID.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GUID_Partition_Table#Partition_type_GUIDs for a useful list of type GUIDs.

This function depends on the feature “gdisk”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.1.

part_set_mbr_id(device, partnum, idbyte)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • idbyte (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the MBR type byte (ID byte) of a partition

Sets the MBR type byte (also known as the ID byte) of the numbered partition partnum to idbyte. Note that the type bytes quoted in most documentation are in fact hexadecimal numbers, but usually documented without any leading “0x” which might be confusing.

Note that only MBR (old DOS-style) partitions have type bytes. You will get undefined results for other partition table types (see Guestfs.Session.part_get_parttype()).

New in version 1.3.2.

part_set_name(device, partnum, name)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • name (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set partition name

This sets the partition name on partition numbered partnum on device device. Note that partitions are numbered from 1.

The partition name can only be set on certain types of partition table. This works on gpt but not on mbr partitions.

New in version 1.0.78.

part_to_dev(partition)
Parameters:

partition (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

convert partition name to device name

This function takes a partition name (eg. “/dev/sdb1”) and removes the partition number, returning the device name (eg. “/dev/sdb”).

The named partition must exist, for example as a string returned from Guestfs.Session.list_partitions().

See also Guestfs.Session.part_to_partnum(), Guestfs.Session.device_index().

New in version 1.5.15.

part_to_partnum(partition)
Parameters:

partition (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

convert partition name to partition number

This function takes a partition name (eg. “/dev/sdb1”) and returns the partition number (eg. 1).

The named partition must exist, for example as a string returned from Guestfs.Session.list_partitions().

See also Guestfs.Session.part_to_dev().

New in version 1.13.25.

ping_daemon()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

ping the guest daemon

This is a test probe into the guestfs daemon running inside the libguestfs appliance. Calling this function checks that the daemon responds to the ping message, without affecting the daemon or attached block device(s) in any other way.

New in version 1.0.18.

pread(path, count, offset)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • count (int) –

  • offset (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

read part of a file

This command lets you read part of a file. It reads count bytes of the file, starting at offset, from file path.

This may read fewer bytes than requested. For further details see the pread(2) system call.

See also Guestfs.Session.pwrite(), Guestfs.Session.pread_device().

New in version 1.0.77.

pread_device(device, count, offset)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • count (int) –

  • offset (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

read part of a device

This command lets you read part of a block device. It reads count bytes of device, starting at offset.

This may read fewer bytes than requested. For further details see the pread(2) system call.

See also Guestfs.Session.pread().

New in version 1.5.21.

pvchange_uuid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

generate a new random UUID for a physical volume

Generate a new random UUID for the physical volume device.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.26.

pvchange_uuid_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

generate new random UUIDs for all physical volumes

Generate new random UUIDs for all physical volumes.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.26.

pvcreate(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an LVM physical volume

This creates an LVM physical volume on the named device, where device should usually be a partition name such as /dev/sda1.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.8.

pvremove(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove an LVM physical volume

This wipes a physical volume device so that LVM will no longer recognise it.

The implementation uses the pvremove(8) command which refuses to wipe physical volumes that contain any volume groups, so you have to remove those first.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.13.

pvresize(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an LVM physical volume

This resizes (expands or shrinks) an existing LVM physical volume to match the new size of the underlying device.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.26.

pvresize_size(device, size)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an LVM physical volume (with size)

This command is the same as Guestfs.Session.pvresize() except that it allows you to specify the new size (in bytes) explicitly.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.14.

pvs()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the LVM physical volumes (PVs)

List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent of the pvs(8) command.

This returns a list of just the device names that contain PVs (eg. /dev/sda2).

See also Guestfs.Session.pvs_full().

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

pvs_full()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of PV objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.PV]

list the LVM physical volumes (PVs)

List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent of the pvs(8) command. The “full” version includes all fields.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

pvuuid(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the UUID of a physical volume

This command returns the UUID of the LVM PV device.

New in version 1.0.87.

pwrite(path, content, offset)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • content (bytes) – an array of binary data

  • offset (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

write to part of a file

This command writes to part of a file. It writes the data buffer content to the file path starting at offset offset.

This command implements the pwrite(2) system call, and like that system call it may not write the full data requested. The return value is the number of bytes that were actually written to the file. This could even be 0, although short writes are unlikely for regular files in ordinary circumstances.

See also Guestfs.Session.pread(), Guestfs.Session.pwrite_device().

New in version 1.3.14.

pwrite_device(device, content, offset)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • content (bytes) – an array of binary data

  • offset (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

write to part of a device

This command writes to part of a device. It writes the data buffer content to device starting at offset offset.

This command implements the pwrite(2) system call, and like that system call it may not write the full data requested (although short writes to disk devices and partitions are probably impossible with standard Linux kernels).

See also Guestfs.Session.pwrite().

New in version 1.5.20.

read_file(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

read a file

This calls returns the contents of the file path as a buffer.

Unlike Guestfs.Session.cat(), this function can correctly handle files that contain embedded ASCII NUL characters.

New in version 1.0.63.

read_lines(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

read file as lines

Return the contents of the file named path.

The file contents are returned as a list of lines. Trailing LF and CRLF character sequences are *not* returned.

Note that this function cannot correctly handle binary files (specifically, files containing “\0” character which is treated as end of string). For those you need to use the Guestfs.Session.read_file() function and split the buffer into lines yourself.

New in version 0.7.

readdir(dir, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of Dirent objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.Dirent]

read directories entries

This returns the list of directory entries in directory dir.

All entries in the directory are returned, including “.” and “..”. The entries are *not* sorted, but returned in the same order as the underlying filesystem.

Also this call returns basic file type information about each file. The ftyp field will contain one of the following characters:

‘b’ Block special

‘c’ Char special

‘d’ Directory

‘f’ FIFO (named pipe)

‘l’ Symbolic link

‘r’ Regular file

‘s’ Socket

‘u’ Unknown file type

‘?’ The readdir(3) call returned a d_type field with an unexpected value

This function is primarily intended for use by programs. To get a simple list of names, use Guestfs.Session.ls(). To get a printable directory for human consumption, use Guestfs.Session.ll().

New in version 1.0.55.

Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

read the target of a symbolic link

This command reads the target of a symbolic link.

New in version 1.0.66.

Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • names ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

readlink on multiple files

This call allows you to do a readlink operation on multiple files, where all files are in the directory path. names is the list of files from this directory.

On return you get a list of strings, with a one-to-one correspondence to the names list. Each string is the value of the symbolic link.

If the readlink(2) operation fails on any name, then the corresponding result string is the empty string “”. However the whole operation is completed even if there were readlink(2) errors, and so you can call this function with names where you don’t know if they are symbolic links already (albeit slightly less efficient).

This call is intended for programs that want to efficiently list a directory contents without making many round-trips.

New in version 1.0.77.

realpath(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

canonicalized absolute pathname

Return the canonicalized absolute pathname of path. The returned path has no “.”, “..” or symbolic link path elements.

New in version 1.0.66.

remount(mountpoint, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remount a filesystem with different options

This call allows you to change the rw (readonly/read-write) flag on an already mounted filesystem at mountpoint, converting a readonly filesystem to be read-write, or vice-versa.

Note that at the moment you must supply the “optional” rw parameter. In future we may allow other flags to be adjusted.

New in version 1.23.2.

remove_drive(label)
Parameters:

label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a disk image

This call does nothing and returns an error.

New in version 1.19.49.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

removexattr(xattr, path)
Parameters:
  • xattr (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove extended attribute of a file or directory

This call removes the extended attribute named xattr of the file path.

See also: Guestfs.Session.lremovexattr(), attr(5).

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

rename(oldpath, newpath)
Parameters:
  • oldpath (str) –

  • newpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

rename a file on the same filesystem

Rename a file to a new place on the same filesystem. This is the same as the Linux rename(2) system call. In most cases you are better to use Guestfs.Session.mv() instead.

New in version 1.21.5.

resize2fs(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem

This resizes an ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem to match the size of the underlying device.

See also “RESIZE2FS ERRORS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.27.

resize2fs_M(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem to the minimum size

This command is the same as Guestfs.Session.resize2fs(), but the filesystem is resized to its minimum size. This works like the *-M* option to the resize2fs(8) command.

To get the resulting size of the filesystem you should call Guestfs.Session.tune2fs_l() and read the “Block size” and “Block count” values. These two numbers, multiplied together, give the resulting size of the minimal filesystem in bytes.

See also “RESIZE2FS ERRORS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.9.4.

resize2fs_size(device, size)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

resize an ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem (with size)

This command is the same as Guestfs.Session.resize2fs() except that it allows you to specify the new size (in bytes) explicitly.

See also “RESIZE2FS ERRORS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.3.14.

rm(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a file

Remove the single file path.

New in version 0.8.

rm_f(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a file ignoring errors

Remove the file path.

If the file doesn’t exist, that error is ignored. (Other errors, eg. I/O errors or bad paths, are not ignored)

This call cannot remove directories. Use Guestfs.Session.rmdir() to remove an empty directory, or Guestfs.Session.rm_rf() to remove directories recursively.

New in version 1.19.42.

rm_rf(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a file or directory recursively

Remove the file or directory path, recursively removing the contents if its a directory. This is like the “rm -rf” shell command.

New in version 0.8.

rmdir(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a directory

Remove the single directory path.

New in version 0.8.

rmmountpoint(exemptpath)
Parameters:

exemptpath (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove a mountpoint

This call removes a mountpoint that was previously created with Guestfs.Session.mkmountpoint(). See Guestfs.Session.mkmountpoint() for full details.

New in version 1.0.62.

rsync(src, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

synchronize the contents of two directories

This call may be used to copy or synchronize two directories under the same libguestfs handle. This uses the rsync(1) program which uses a fast algorithm that avoids copying files unnecessarily.

src and dest are the source and destination directories. Files are copied from src to dest.

The optional arguments are:

archive Turns on archive mode. This is the same as passing the *–archive* flag to rsync.

deletedest Delete files at the destination that do not exist at the source.

This function depends on the feature “rsync”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.29.

rsync_in(remote, dest, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

synchronize host or remote filesystem with filesystem

This call may be used to copy or synchronize the filesystem on the host or on a remote computer with the filesystem within libguestfs. This uses the rsync(1) program which uses a fast algorithm that avoids copying files unnecessarily.

This call only works if the network is enabled. See Guestfs.Session.set_network() or the *–network* option to various tools like guestfish(1).

Files are copied from the remote server and directory specified by remote to the destination directory dest.

The format of the remote server string is defined by rsync(1). Note that there is no way to supply a password or passphrase so the target must be set up not to require one.

The optional arguments are the same as those of Guestfs.Session.rsync().

This function depends on the feature “rsync”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.29.

rsync_out(src, remote, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

synchronize filesystem with host or remote filesystem

This call may be used to copy or synchronize the filesystem within libguestfs with a filesystem on the host or on a remote computer. This uses the rsync(1) program which uses a fast algorithm that avoids copying files unnecessarily.

This call only works if the network is enabled. See Guestfs.Session.set_network() or the *–network* option to various tools like guestfish(1).

Files are copied from the source directory src to the remote server and directory specified by remote.

The format of the remote server string is defined by rsync(1). Note that there is no way to supply a password or passphrase so the target must be set up not to require one.

The optional arguments are the same as those of Guestfs.Session.rsync().

Globbing does not happen on the src parameter. In programs which use the API directly you have to expand wildcards yourself (see Guestfs.Session.glob_expand()). In guestfish you can use the glob command (see “glob” in guestfish(1)), for example:

<![CDATA[><fs>]>

This function depends on the feature “rsync”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.29.

scrub_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

scrub (securely wipe) a device

This command writes patterns over device to make data retrieval more difficult.

It is an interface to the scrub(1) program. See that manual page for more details.

This function depends on the feature “scrub”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.52.

scrub_file(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

scrub (securely wipe) a file

This command writes patterns over a file to make data retrieval more difficult.

The file is *removed* after scrubbing.

It is an interface to the scrub(1) program. See that manual page for more details.

This function depends on the feature “scrub”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.52.

scrub_freespace(dir)
Parameters:

dir (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

scrub (securely wipe) free space

This command creates the directory dir and then fills it with files until the filesystem is full, and scrubs the files as for Guestfs.Session.scrub_file(), and deletes them. The intention is to scrub any free space on the partition containing dir.

It is an interface to the scrub(1) program. See that manual page for more details.

This function depends on the feature “scrub”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.52.

selinux_relabel(specfile, path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

relabel parts of the filesystem

SELinux relabel parts of the filesystem.

The specfile parameter controls the policy spec file used. You have to parse “/etc/selinux/config” to find the correct SELinux policy and then pass the spec file, usually: “/etc/selinux/” + *selinuxtype* + “/contexts/files/file_contexts”.

The required path parameter is the top level directory where relabelling starts. Normally you should pass path as “/” to relabel the whole guest filesystem.

The optional force boolean controls whether the context is reset for customizable files, and also whether the user, role and range parts of the file context is changed.

This function depends on the feature “selinuxrelabel”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.33.43.

set_append(append)
Parameters:

append (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

add options to kernel command line

This function is used to add additional options to the libguestfs appliance kernel command line.

The default is None unless overridden by setting LIBGUESTFS_APPEND environment variable.

Setting append to None means *no* additional options are passed (libguestfs always adds a few of its own).

New in version 1.0.26.

set_attach_method(backend)
Parameters:

backend (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the backend

Set the method that libguestfs uses to connect to the backend guestfsd daemon.

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.9.8.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.set_backend() instead

set_autosync(autosync)
Parameters:

autosync (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set autosync mode

If autosync is true, this enables autosync. Libguestfs will make a best effort attempt to make filesystems consistent and synchronized when the handle is closed (also if the program exits without closing handles).

This is enabled by default (since libguestfs 1.5.24, previously it was disabled by default).

New in version 0.3.

set_backend(backend)
Parameters:

backend (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the backend

Set the method that libguestfs uses to connect to the backend guestfsd daemon.

This handle property was previously called the “attach method”.

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.21.26.

set_backend_setting(name, val)
Parameters:
  • name (str) –

  • val (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set a single per-backend settings string

Append “name=value” to the backend settings string list. However if a string already exists matching “name” or beginning with “name=”, then that setting is replaced.

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3), “BACKEND SETTINGS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.27.2.

set_backend_settings(settings)
Parameters:

settings ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

replace per-backend settings strings

Set a list of zero or more settings which are passed through to the current backend. Each setting is a string which is interpreted in a backend-specific way, or ignored if not understood by the backend.

The default value is an empty list, unless the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_BACKEND_SETTINGS was set when the handle was created. This environment variable contains a colon-separated list of settings.

This call replaces all backend settings. If you want to replace a single backend setting, see Guestfs.Session.set_backend_setting(). If you want to clear a single backend setting, see Guestfs.Session.clear_backend_setting().

See “BACKEND” in guestfs(3), “BACKEND SETTINGS” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.25.24.

set_cachedir(cachedir)
Parameters:

cachedir (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the appliance cache directory

Set the directory used by the handle to store the appliance cache, when using a supermin appliance. The appliance is cached and shared between all handles which have the same effective user ID.

The environment variables LIBGUESTFS_CACHEDIR and TMPDIR control the default value: If LIBGUESTFS_CACHEDIR is set, then that is the default. Else if TMPDIR is set, then that is the default. Else /var/tmp is the default.

New in version 1.19.58.

set_direct(direct)
Parameters:

direct (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable direct appliance mode

If the direct appliance mode flag is enabled, then stdin and stdout are passed directly through to the appliance once it is launched.

One consequence of this is that log messages aren’t caught by the library and handled by guestfs_session_set_log_message_callback(), but go straight to stdout.

You probably don’t want to use this unless you know what you are doing.

The default is disabled.

New in version 1.0.72.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use guestfs_session_internal_get_console_socket() instead

set_e2attrs(file, attrs, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set ext2 file attributes of a file

This sets or clears the file attributes attrs associated with the inode file.

attrs is a string of characters representing file attributes. See Guestfs.Session.get_e2attrs() for a list of possible attributes. Not all attributes can be changed.

If optional boolean clear is not present or false, then the attrs listed are set in the inode.

If clear is true, then the attrs listed are cleared in the inode.

In both cases, other attributes not present in the attrs string are left unchanged.

These attributes are only present when the file is located on an ext2/3/4 filesystem. Using this call on other filesystem types will result in an error.

New in version 1.17.31.

set_e2generation(file, generation)
Parameters:
  • file (str) –

  • generation (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set ext2 file generation of a file

This sets the ext2 file generation of a file.

See Guestfs.Session.get_e2generation().

New in version 1.17.31.

set_e2label(device, label)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the ext2/3/4 filesystem label

This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on device to label. Filesystem labels are limited to 16 characters.

You can use either Guestfs.Session.tune2fs_l() or Guestfs.Session.get_e2label() to return the existing label on a filesystem.

New in version 1.0.15.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.set_label() instead

set_e2uuid(device, uuid)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID

This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on device to uuid. The format of the UUID and alternatives such as clear, random and time are described in the tune2fs(8) manpage.

You can use Guestfs.Session.vfs_uuid() to return the existing UUID of a filesystem.

New in version 1.0.15.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.set_uuid() instead

set_hv(hv)
Parameters:

hv (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the hypervisor binary

Set the hypervisor binary that we will use. The hypervisor depends on the backend, but is usually the location of the qemu/KVM hypervisor.

The default is chosen when the library was compiled by the configure script.

You can also override this by setting the LIBGUESTFS_HV environment variable.

Note that you should call this function as early as possible after creating the handle. This is because some pre-launch operations depend on testing qemu features (by running “qemu -help”). If the qemu binary changes, we don’t retest features, and so you might see inconsistent results. Using the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_HV is safest of all since that picks the qemu binary at the same time as the handle is created.

New in version 1.23.17.

set_identifier(identifier)
Parameters:

identifier (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the handle identifier

This is an informative string which the caller may optionally set in the handle. It is printed in various places, allowing the current handle to be identified in debugging output.

One important place is when tracing is enabled. If the identifier string is not an empty string, then trace messages change from this:

libguestfs: trace: get_tmpdir

libguestfs: trace: get_tmpdir = “/tmp”

to this:

libguestfs: trace: ID: get_tmpdir

libguestfs: trace: ID: get_tmpdir = “/tmp”

where ID is the identifier string set by this call.

The identifier must only contain alphanumeric ASCII characters, underscore and minus sign. The default is the empty string.

See also Guestfs.Session.set_program(), Guestfs.Session.set_trace(), Guestfs.Session.get_identifier().

New in version 1.31.14.

set_label(mountable, label)
Parameters:
  • mountable (str) –

  • label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set filesystem label

Set the filesystem label on mountable to label.

Only some filesystem types support labels, and libguestfs supports setting labels on only a subset of these.

ext2, ext3, ext4 Labels are limited to 16 bytes.

NTFS Labels are limited to 128 unicode characters.

XFS The label is limited to 12 bytes. The filesystem must not be mounted when trying to set the label.

btrfs The label is limited to 255 bytes and some characters are not allowed. Setting the label on a btrfs subvolume will set the label on its parent filesystem. The filesystem must not be mounted when trying to set the label.

fat The label is limited to 11 bytes.

swap The label is limited to 16 bytes.

If there is no support for changing the label for the type of the specified filesystem, set_label will fail and set errno as ENOTSUP.

To read the label on a filesystem, call Guestfs.Session.vfs_label().

New in version 1.17.9.

set_libvirt_requested_credential(index, cred)
Parameters:
  • index (int) –

  • cred (bytes) – an array of binary data

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pass requested credential back to libvirt

After requesting the index'th credential from the user, call this function to pass the answer back to libvirt.

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

set_libvirt_supported_credentials(creds)
Parameters:

creds ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set libvirt credentials supported by calling program

Call this function before setting an event handler for GUESTFS_EVENT_LIBVIRT_AUTH, to supply the list of credential types that the program knows how to process.

The creds list must be a non-empty list of strings. Possible strings are:

username authname language cnonce passphrase echoprompt noechoprompt realm external

See libvirt documentation for the meaning of these credential types.

See “LIBVIRT AUTHENTICATION” in guestfs(3) for documentation and example code.

New in version 1.19.52.

set_memsize(memsize)
Parameters:

memsize (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set memory allocated to the hypervisor

This sets the memory size in megabytes allocated to the hypervisor. This only has any effect if called before Guestfs.Session.launch().

You can also change this by setting the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_MEMSIZE before the handle is created.

For more information on the architecture of libguestfs, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.55.

set_network(network)
Parameters:

network (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set enable network flag

If network is true, then the network is enabled in the libguestfs appliance. The default is false.

This affects whether commands are able to access the network (see “RUNNING COMMANDS” in guestfs(3)).

You must call this before calling Guestfs.Session.launch(), otherwise it has no effect.

New in version 1.5.4.

set_path(searchpath)
Parameters:

searchpath (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the search path

Set the path that libguestfs searches for kernel and initrd.img.

The default is “$libdir/guestfs” unless overridden by setting LIBGUESTFS_PATH environment variable.

Setting path to None restores the default path.

New in version 0.3.

set_pgroup(pgroup)
Parameters:

pgroup (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set process group flag

If pgroup is true, child processes are placed into their own process group.

The practical upshot of this is that signals like SIGINT (from users pressing “^C”) won’t be received by the child process.

The default for this flag is false, because usually you want “^C” to kill the subprocess. Guestfish sets this flag to true when used interactively, so that “^C” can cancel long-running commands gracefully (see Guestfs.Session.user_cancel()).

New in version 1.11.18.

set_program(program)
Parameters:

program (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the program name

Set the program name. This is an informative string which the main program may optionally set in the handle.

When the handle is created, the program name in the handle is set to the basename from “argv[0]”. The program name can never be None.

New in version 1.21.29.

set_qemu(hv)
Parameters:

hv (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the hypervisor binary (usually qemu)

Set the hypervisor binary (usually qemu) that we will use.

The default is chosen when the library was compiled by the configure script.

You can also override this by setting the LIBGUESTFS_HV environment variable.

Setting hv to None restores the default qemu binary.

Note that you should call this function as early as possible after creating the handle. This is because some pre-launch operations depend on testing qemu features (by running “qemu -help”). If the qemu binary changes, we don’t retest features, and so you might see inconsistent results. Using the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_HV is safest of all since that picks the qemu binary at the same time as the handle is created.

New in version 1.0.6.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.set_hv() instead

set_recovery_proc(recoveryproc)
Parameters:

recoveryproc (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable the recovery process

If this is called with the parameter false then Guestfs.Session.launch() does not create a recovery process. The purpose of the recovery process is to stop runaway hypervisor processes in the case where the main program aborts abruptly.

This only has any effect if called before Guestfs.Session.launch(), and the default is true.

About the only time when you would want to disable this is if the main process will fork itself into the background (“daemonize” itself). In this case the recovery process thinks that the main program has disappeared and so kills the hypervisor, which is not very helpful.

New in version 1.0.77.

set_selinux(selinux)
Parameters:

selinux (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set SELinux enabled or disabled at appliance boot

This sets the selinux flag that is passed to the appliance at boot time. The default is “selinux=0” (disabled).

Note that if SELinux is enabled, it is always in Permissive mode (“enforcing=0”).

For more information on the architecture of libguestfs, see guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.67.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.selinux_relabel() instead

set_smp(smp)
Parameters:

smp (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set number of virtual CPUs in appliance

Change the number of virtual CPUs assigned to the appliance. The default is 1. Increasing this may improve performance, though often it has no effect.

This function must be called before Guestfs.Session.launch().

New in version 1.13.15.

set_tmpdir(tmpdir)
Parameters:

tmpdir (str or None) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the temporary directory

Set the directory used by the handle to store temporary files.

The environment variables LIBGUESTFS_TMPDIR and TMPDIR control the default value: If LIBGUESTFS_TMPDIR is set, then that is the default. Else if TMPDIR is set, then that is the default. Else /tmp is the default.

New in version 1.19.58.

set_trace(trace)
Parameters:

trace (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable or disable command traces

If the command trace flag is set to 1, then libguestfs calls, parameters and return values are traced.

If you want to trace C API calls into libguestfs (and other libraries) then possibly a better way is to use the external ltrace(1) command.

Command traces are disabled unless the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_TRACE is defined and set to 1.

Trace messages are normally sent to stderr, unless you register a callback to send them somewhere else (see guestfs_session_set_event_callback()).

New in version 1.0.69.

set_uuid(device, uuid)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set the filesystem UUID

Set the filesystem UUID on device to uuid. If this fails and the errno is ENOTSUP, means that there is no support for changing the UUID for the type of the specified filesystem.

Only some filesystem types support setting UUIDs.

To read the UUID on a filesystem, call Guestfs.Session.vfs_uuid().

New in version 1.23.10.

set_uuid_random(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set a random UUID for the filesystem

Set the filesystem UUID on device to a random UUID. If this fails and the errno is ENOTSUP, means that there is no support for changing the UUID for the type of the specified filesystem.

Only some filesystem types support setting UUIDs.

To read the UUID on a filesystem, call Guestfs.Session.vfs_uuid().

New in version 1.29.50.

set_verbose(verbose)
Parameters:

verbose (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set verbose mode

If verbose is true, this turns on verbose messages.

Verbose messages are disabled unless the environment variable LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG is defined and set to 1.

Verbose messages are normally sent to stderr, unless you register a callback to send them somewhere else (see guestfs_session_set_event_callback()).

New in version 0.3.

setcon(context)
Parameters:

context (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set SELinux security context

This sets the SELinux security context of the daemon to the string context.

See the documentation about SELINUX in guestfs(3).

This function depends on the feature “selinux”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.67.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.selinux_relabel() instead

setxattr(xattr, val, vallen, path)
Parameters:
  • xattr (str) –

  • val (str) –

  • vallen (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set extended attribute of a file or directory

This call sets the extended attribute named xattr of the file path to the value val (of length vallen). The value is arbitrary 8 bit data.

See also: Guestfs.Session.lsetxattr(), attr(5).

This function depends on the feature “linuxxattrs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.59.

sfdisk(device, cyls, heads, sectors, lines)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • cyls (int) –

  • heads (int) –

  • sectors (int) –

  • lines ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create partitions on a block device

This is a direct interface to the sfdisk(8) program for creating partitions on block devices.

device should be a block device, for example /dev/sda.

cyls, heads and sectors are the number of cylinders, heads and sectors on the device, which are passed directly to sfdisk(8) as the *-C*, *-H* and *-S* parameters. If you pass 0 for any of these, then the corresponding parameter is omitted. Usually for ‘large’ disks, you can just pass 0 for these, but for small (floppy-sized) disks, sfdisk(8) (or rather, the kernel) cannot work out the right geometry and you will need to tell it.

lines is a list of lines that we feed to sfdisk(8). For more information refer to the sfdisk(8) manpage.

To create a single partition occupying the whole disk, you would pass lines as a single element list, when the single element being the string “,” (comma).

See also: Guestfs.Session.sfdisk_l(), Guestfs.Session.sfdisk_N(), Guestfs.Session.part_init()

New in version 0.8.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.part_add() instead

sfdiskM(device, lines)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • lines ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create partitions on a block device

This is a simplified interface to the Guestfs.Session.sfdisk() command, where partition sizes are specified in megabytes only (rounded to the nearest cylinder) and you don’t need to specify the cyls, heads and sectors parameters which were rarely if ever used anyway.

See also: Guestfs.Session.sfdisk(), the sfdisk(8) manpage and Guestfs.Session.part_disk()

New in version 1.0.55.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.part_add() instead

sfdisk_N(device, partnum, cyls, heads, sectors, line)
Parameters:
  • device (str) –

  • partnum (int) –

  • cyls (int) –

  • heads (int) –

  • sectors (int) –

  • line (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

modify a single partition on a block device

This runs sfdisk(8) option to modify just the single partition n (note: n counts from 1).

For other parameters, see Guestfs.Session.sfdisk(). You should usually pass 0 for the cyls/heads/sectors parameters.

See also: Guestfs.Session.part_add()

New in version 1.0.26.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.part_add() instead

sfdisk_disk_geometry(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

display the disk geometry from the partition table

This displays the disk geometry of device read from the partition table. Especially in the case where the underlying block device has been resized, this can be different from the kernel’s idea of the geometry (see Guestfs.Session.sfdisk_kernel_geometry()).

The result is in human-readable format, and not designed to be parsed.

New in version 1.0.26.

sfdisk_kernel_geometry(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

display the kernel geometry

This displays the kernel’s idea of the geometry of device.

The result is in human-readable format, and not designed to be parsed.

New in version 1.0.26.

sfdisk_l(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

display the partition table

This displays the partition table on device, in the human-readable output of the sfdisk(8) command. It is not intended to be parsed.

See also: Guestfs.Session.part_list()

New in version 1.0.26.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.part_list() instead

sh(command)
Parameters:

command (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

run a command via the shell

This call runs a command from the guest filesystem via the guest’s /bin/sh.

This is like Guestfs.Session.command(), but passes the command to:

/bin/sh -c “command”

Depending on the guest’s shell, this usually results in wildcards being expanded, shell expressions being interpolated and so on.

All the provisos about Guestfs.Session.command() apply to this call.

New in version 1.0.50.

sh_lines(command)
Parameters:

command (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

run a command via the shell returning lines

This is the same as Guestfs.Session.sh(), but splits the result into a list of lines.

See also: Guestfs.Session.command_lines()

New in version 1.0.50.

shutdown()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

shutdown the hypervisor

This is the opposite of Guestfs.Session.launch(). It performs an orderly shutdown of the backend process(es). If the autosync flag is set (which is the default) then the disk image is synchronized.

If the subprocess exits with an error then this function will return an error, which should *not* be ignored (it may indicate that the disk image could not be written out properly).

It is safe to call this multiple times. Extra calls are ignored.

This call does *not* close or free up the handle. You still need to call Guestfs.Session.close() afterwards.

Guestfs.Session.close() will call this if you don’t do it explicitly, but note that any errors are ignored in that case.

New in version 1.19.16.

sleep(secs)
Parameters:

secs (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

sleep for some seconds

Sleep for secs seconds.

New in version 1.0.41.

stat(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a Stat object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.Stat

get file information

Returns file information for the given path.

This is the same as the stat(2) system call.

New in version 1.9.2.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.statns() instead

statns(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a StatNS object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.StatNS

get file information

Returns file information for the given path.

This is the same as the stat(2) system call.

New in version 1.27.53.

statvfs(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a StatVFS object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.StatVFS

get file system statistics

Returns file system statistics for any mounted file system. path should be a file or directory in the mounted file system (typically it is the mount point itself, but it doesn’t need to be).

This is the same as the statvfs(2) system call.

New in version 1.9.2.

strings(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

print the printable strings in a file

This runs the strings(1) command on a file and returns the list of printable strings found.

The strings command has, in the past, had problems with parsing untrusted files. These are mitigated in the current version of libguestfs, but see “CVE-2014-8484” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.22.

strings_e(encoding, path)
Parameters:
  • encoding (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

print the printable strings in a file

This is like the Guestfs.Session.strings() command, but allows you to specify the encoding of strings that are looked for in the source file path.

Allowed encodings are:

s Single 7-bit-byte characters like ASCII and the ASCII-compatible parts of ISO-8859-X (this is what Guestfs.Session.strings() uses).

S Single 8-bit-byte characters.

b 16-bit big endian strings such as those encoded in UTF-16BE or UCS-2BE.

l (lower case letter L) 16-bit little endian such as UTF-16LE and UCS-2LE. This is useful for examining binaries in Windows guests.

B 32-bit big endian such as UCS-4BE.

L 32-bit little endian such as UCS-4LE.

The returned strings are transcoded to UTF-8.

The strings command has, in the past, had problems with parsing untrusted files. These are mitigated in the current version of libguestfs, but see “CVE-2014-8484” in guestfs(3).

New in version 1.0.22.

swapoff_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

disable swap on device

This command disables the libguestfs appliance swap device or partition named device. See Guestfs.Session.swapon_device().

New in version 1.0.66.

swapoff_file(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

disable swap on file

This command disables the libguestfs appliance swap on file.

New in version 1.0.66.

swapoff_label(label)
Parameters:

label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

disable swap on labeled swap partition

This command disables the libguestfs appliance swap on labeled swap partition.

New in version 1.0.66.

swapoff_uuid(uuid)
Parameters:

uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

disable swap on swap partition by UUID

This command disables the libguestfs appliance swap partition with the given UUID.

This function depends on the feature “linuxfsuuid”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

swapon_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable swap on device

This command enables the libguestfs appliance to use the swap device or partition named device. The increased memory is made available for all commands, for example those run using Guestfs.Session.command() or Guestfs.Session.sh().

Note that you should not swap to existing guest swap partitions unless you know what you are doing. They may contain hibernation information, or other information that the guest doesn’t want you to trash. You also risk leaking information about the host to the guest this way. Instead, attach a new host device to the guest and swap on that.

New in version 1.0.66.

swapon_file(file)
Parameters:

file (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable swap on file

This command enables swap to a file. See Guestfs.Session.swapon_device() for other notes.

New in version 1.0.66.

swapon_label(label)
Parameters:

label (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable swap on labeled swap partition

This command enables swap to a labeled swap partition. See Guestfs.Session.swapon_device() for other notes.

New in version 1.0.66.

swapon_uuid(uuid)
Parameters:

uuid (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

enable swap on swap partition by UUID

This command enables swap to a swap partition with the given UUID. See Guestfs.Session.swapon_device() for other notes.

This function depends on the feature “linuxfsuuid”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.66.

sync()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

sync disks, writes are flushed through to the disk image

This syncs the disk, so that any writes are flushed through to the underlying disk image.

You should always call this if you have modified a disk image, before closing the handle.

New in version 0.3.

syslinux(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

install the SYSLINUX bootloader

Install the SYSLINUX bootloader on device.

The device parameter must be either a whole disk formatted as a FAT filesystem, or a partition formatted as a FAT filesystem. In the latter case, the partition should be marked as “active” (Guestfs.Session.part_set_bootable()) and a Master Boot Record must be installed (eg. using Guestfs.Session.pwrite_device()) on the first sector of the whole disk. The SYSLINUX package comes with some suitable Master Boot Records. See the syslinux(1) man page for further information.

The optional arguments are:

directory Install SYSLINUX in the named subdirectory, instead of in the root directory of the FAT filesystem.

Additional configuration can be supplied to SYSLINUX by placing a file called syslinux.cfg on the FAT filesystem, either in the root directory, or under directory if that optional argument is being used. For further information about the contents of this file, see syslinux(1).

See also Guestfs.Session.extlinux().

This function depends on the feature “syslinux”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.21.27.

tail(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return last 10 lines of a file

This command returns up to the last 10 lines of a file as a list of strings.

New in version 1.0.54.

tail_n(nrlines, path)
Parameters:
  • nrlines (int) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return last N lines of a file

If the parameter nrlines is a positive number, this returns the last nrlines lines of the file path.

If the parameter nrlines is a negative number, this returns lines from the file path, starting with the @-nrlines’th line.

If the parameter nrlines is zero, this returns an empty list.

New in version 1.0.54.

tar_in(tarfile, directory, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unpack tarfile to directory

This command uploads and unpacks local file tarfile into directory.

The optional compress flag controls compression. If not given, then the input should be an uncompressed tar file. Otherwise one of the following strings may be given to select the compression type of the input file: compress, gzip, bzip2, xz, lzop, lzma, zstd. (Note that not all builds of libguestfs will support all of these compression types).

The other optional arguments are:

xattrs If set to true, extended attributes are restored from the tar file.

selinux If set to true, SELinux contexts are restored from the tar file.

acls If set to true, POSIX ACLs are restored from the tar file.

New in version 1.0.3.

tar_out(directory, tarfile, optargs, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pack directory into tarfile

This command packs the contents of directory and downloads it to local file tarfile.

The optional compress flag controls compression. If not given, then the output will be an uncompressed tar file. Otherwise one of the following strings may be given to select the compression type of the output file: compress, gzip, bzip2, xz, lzop, lzma, zstd. (Note that not all builds of libguestfs will support all of these compression types).

The other optional arguments are:

excludes A list of wildcards. Files are excluded if they match any of the wildcards.

numericowner If set to true, the output tar file will contain UID/GID numbers instead of user/group names.

xattrs If set to true, extended attributes are saved in the output tar.

selinux If set to true, SELinux contexts are saved in the output tar.

acls If set to true, POSIX ACLs are saved in the output tar.

New in version 1.0.3.

tgz_in(tarball, directory, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unpack compressed tarball to directory

This command uploads and unpacks local file tarball (a *gzip compressed* tar file) into directory.

New in version 1.0.3.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.tar_in() instead

tgz_out(directory, tarball, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pack directory into compressed tarball

This command packs the contents of directory and downloads it to local file tarball.

New in version 1.0.3.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.tar_out() instead

touch(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

update file timestamps or create a new file

Touch acts like the touch(1) command. It can be used to update the timestamps on a file, or, if the file does not exist, to create a new zero-length file.

This command only works on regular files, and will fail on other file types such as directories, symbolic links, block special etc.

New in version 0.3.

truncate(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

truncate a file to zero size

This command truncates path to a zero-length file. The file must exist already.

New in version 1.0.77.

truncate_size(path, size)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

truncate a file to a particular size

This command truncates path to size size bytes. The file must exist already.

If the current file size is less than size then the file is extended to the required size with zero bytes. This creates a sparse file (ie. disk blocks are not allocated for the file until you write to it). To create a non-sparse file of zeroes, use Guestfs.Session.fallocate64() instead.

New in version 1.0.77.

tune2fs(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

adjust ext2/ext3/ext4 filesystem parameters

This call allows you to adjust various filesystem parameters of an ext2/ext3/ext4 filesystem called device.

The optional parameters are:

force Force tune2fs to complete the operation even in the face of errors. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-f option.

maxmountcount Set the number of mounts after which the filesystem is checked by e2fsck(8). If this is 0 then the number of mounts is disregarded. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-c option.

mountcount Set the number of times the filesystem has been mounted. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-C option.

errorbehavior Change the behavior of the kernel code when errors are detected. Possible values currently are: continue, remount-ro, panic. In practice these options don’t really make any difference, particularly for write errors.

This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-e option.

group Set the group which can use reserved filesystem blocks. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-g option except that it can only be specified as a number.

intervalbetweenchecks Adjust the maximal time between two filesystem checks (in seconds). If the option is passed as 0 then time-dependent checking is disabled.

This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-i option.

reservedblockspercentage Set the percentage of the filesystem which may only be allocated by privileged processes. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-m option.

lastmounteddirectory Set the last mounted directory. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-M option.

reservedblockscount Set the number of reserved filesystem blocks. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-r option. user Set the user who can use the reserved filesystem blocks. This is the same as the tune2fs(8) @-u option except that it can only be specified as a number.

To get the current values of filesystem parameters, see Guestfs.Session.tune2fs_l(). For precise details of how tune2fs works, see the tune2fs(8) man page.

New in version 1.15.4.

tune2fs_l(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a GLib.HashTable of results, or None on error

Return type:

{str: str}

get ext2/ext3/ext4 superblock details

This returns the contents of the ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem superblock on device.

It is the same as running “tune2fs -l device”. See tune2fs(8) manpage for more details. The list of fields returned isn’t clearly defined, and depends on both the version of tune2fs that libguestfs was built against, and the filesystem itself.

New in version 1.9.2.

txz_in(tarball, directory, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unpack compressed tarball to directory

This command uploads and unpacks local file tarball (an *xz compressed* tar file) into directory.

This function depends on the feature “xz”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.2.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.tar_in() instead

txz_out(directory, tarball, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

pack directory into compressed tarball

This command packs the contents of directory and downloads it to local file tarball (as an xz compressed tar archive).

This function depends on the feature “xz”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.3.2.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.tar_out() instead

umask(mask)
Parameters:

mask (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

set file mode creation mask (umask)

This function sets the mask used for creating new files and device nodes to “mask & 0777”.

Typical umask values would be 022 which creates new files with permissions like “-rw-r–r–” or “-rwxr-xr-x”, and 002 which creates new files with permissions like “-rw-rw-r–” or “-rwxrwxr-x”.

The default umask is 022. This is important because it means that directories and device nodes will be created with 0644 or 0755 mode even if you specify 0777.

See also Guestfs.Session.get_umask(), umask(2), Guestfs.Session.mknod(), Guestfs.Session.mkdir().

This call returns the previous umask.

New in version 1.0.55.

umount(pathordevice, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unmount a filesystem

This unmounts the given filesystem. The filesystem may be specified either by its mountpoint (path) or the device which contains the filesystem.

New in version 0.8.

umount_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unmount all filesystems

This unmounts all mounted filesystems.

Some internal mounts are not unmounted by this call.

New in version 0.8.

umount_local(optargs)
Parameters:

optargs (Guestfs.UmountLocal or None) – a Guestfs.UmountLocal containing optional arguments

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

unmount a locally mounted filesystem

If libguestfs is exporting the filesystem on a local mountpoint, then this unmounts it.

See “MOUNT LOCAL” in guestfs(3) for full documentation.

New in version 1.17.22.

upload(filename, remotefilename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

upload a file from the local machine

Upload local file filename to remotefilename on the filesystem.

filename can also be a named pipe.

See also Guestfs.Session.download().

New in version 1.0.2.

upload_offset(filename, remotefilename, offset, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

upload a file from the local machine with offset

Upload local file filename to remotefilename on the filesystem.

remotefilename is overwritten starting at the byte offset specified. The intention is to overwrite parts of existing files or devices, although if a non-existent file is specified then it is created with a “hole” before offset. The size of the data written is implicit in the size of the source filename.

Note that there is no limit on the amount of data that can be uploaded with this call, unlike with Guestfs.Session.pwrite(), and this call always writes the full amount unless an error occurs.

See also Guestfs.Session.upload(), Guestfs.Session.pwrite().

New in version 1.5.17.

user_cancel()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

cancel the current upload or download operation

This function cancels the current upload or download operation.

Unlike most other libguestfs calls, this function is signal safe and thread safe. You can call it from a signal handler or from another thread, without needing to do any locking.

The transfer that was in progress (if there is one) will stop shortly afterwards, and will return an error. The errno (see “guestfs_last_errno”) is set to EINTR, so you can test for this to find out if the operation was cancelled or failed because of another error.

No cleanup is performed: for example, if a file was being uploaded then after cancellation there may be a partially uploaded file. It is the caller’s responsibility to clean up if necessary.

There are two common places that you might call Guestfs.Session.user_cancel():

In an interactive text-based program, you might call it from a SIGINT signal handler so that pressing “^C” cancels the current operation. (You also need to call Guestfs.Session.set_pgroup() so that child processes don’t receive the “^C” signal).

In a graphical program, when the main thread is displaying a progress bar with a cancel button, wire up the cancel button to call this function.

New in version 1.11.18.

utimens(path, atsecs, atnsecs, mtsecs, mtnsecs)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • atsecs (int) –

  • atnsecs (int) –

  • mtsecs (int) –

  • mtnsecs (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

set timestamp of a file with nanosecond precision

This command sets the timestamps of a file with nanosecond precision.

atsecs, atnsecs are the last access time (atime) in secs and nanoseconds from the epoch.

mtsecs, mtnsecs are the last modification time (mtime) in secs and nanoseconds from the epoch.

If the *nsecs field contains the special value @-1 then the corresponding timestamp is set to the current time. (The *secs field is ignored in this case).

If the *nsecs field contains the special value @-2 then the corresponding timestamp is left unchanged. (The *secs field is ignored in this case).

New in version 1.0.77.

utsname()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a UTSName object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.UTSName

appliance kernel version

This returns the kernel version of the appliance, where this is available. This information is only useful for debugging. Nothing in the returned structure is defined by the API.

New in version 1.19.27.

version()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a Version object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.Version

get the library version number

Return the libguestfs version number that the program is linked against.

Note that because of dynamic linking this is not necessarily the version of libguestfs that you compiled against. You can compile the program, and then at runtime dynamically link against a completely different libguestfs.so library.

This call was added in version 1.0.58. In previous versions of libguestfs there was no way to get the version number. From C code you can use dynamic linker functions to find out if this symbol exists (if it doesn’t, then it’s an earlier version).

The call returns a structure with four elements. The first three (major, minor and release) are numbers and correspond to the usual version triplet. The fourth element (extra) is a string and is normally empty, but may be used for distro-specific information.

To construct the original version string: “$major.$minor.$release$extra”

See also: “LIBGUESTFS VERSION NUMBERS” in guestfs(3).

*Note:* Don’t use this call to test for availability of features. In enterprise distributions we backport features from later versions into earlier versions, making this an unreliable way to test for features. Use Guestfs.Session.available() or Guestfs.Session.feature_available() instead.

New in version 1.0.58.

vfs_label(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the filesystem label

This returns the label of the filesystem on mountable.

If the filesystem is unlabeled, this returns the empty string.

To find a filesystem from the label, use Guestfs.Session.findfs_label().

New in version 1.3.18.

vfs_minimum_size(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

get minimum filesystem size

Get the minimum size of filesystem in bytes. This is the minimum possible size for filesystem shrinking.

If getting minimum size of specified filesystem is not supported, this will fail and set errno as ENOTSUP.

See also ntfsresize(8), resize2fs(8), btrfs(8), xfs_info(8).

New in version 1.31.18.

vfs_type(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the Linux VFS type corresponding to a mounted device

This command gets the filesystem type corresponding to the filesystem on mountable.

For most filesystems, the result is the name of the Linux VFS module which would be used to mount this filesystem if you mounted it without specifying the filesystem type. For example a string such as ext3 or ntfs.

New in version 1.0.75.

vfs_uuid(mountable)
Parameters:

mountable (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the filesystem UUID

This returns the filesystem UUID of the filesystem on mountable.

If the filesystem does not have a UUID, this returns the empty string.

To find a filesystem from the UUID, use Guestfs.Session.findfs_uuid().

New in version 1.3.18.

vg_activate(activate, volgroups)
Parameters:
  • activate (bool) –

  • volgroups ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

activate or deactivate some volume groups

This command activates or (if activate is false) deactivates all logical volumes in the listed volume groups volgroups.

This command is the same as running “vgchange -a y|n volgroups…”

Note that if volgroups is an empty list then all volume groups are activated or deactivated.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.26.

vg_activate_all(activate)
Parameters:

activate (bool) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

activate or deactivate all volume groups

This command activates or (if activate is false) deactivates all logical volumes in all volume groups.

This command is the same as running “vgchange -a y|n”

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.26.

vgchange_uuid(vg)
Parameters:

vg (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

generate a new random UUID for a volume group

Generate a new random UUID for the volume group vg.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.26.

vgchange_uuid_all()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

generate new random UUIDs for all volume groups

Generate new random UUIDs for all volume groups.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.26.

vgcreate(volgroup, physvols)
Parameters:
  • volgroup (str) –

  • physvols ([str]) – an array of strings

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create an LVM volume group

This creates an LVM volume group called volgroup from the non-empty list of physical volumes physvols.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.8.

vglvuuids(vgname)
Parameters:

vgname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

get the LV UUIDs of all LVs in the volume group

Given a VG called vgname, this returns the UUIDs of all the logical volumes created in this volume group.

You can use this along with Guestfs.Session.lvs() and Guestfs.Session.lvuuid() calls to associate logical volumes and volume groups.

See also Guestfs.Session.vgpvuuids().

New in version 1.0.87.

vgmeta(vgname)
Parameters:

vgname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of binary data, or None on error

Return type:

bytes

get volume group metadata

vgname is an LVM volume group. This command examines the volume group and returns its metadata.

Note that the metadata is an internal structure used by LVM, subject to change at any time, and is provided for information only.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.20.

vgpvuuids(vgname)
Parameters:

vgname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

get the PV UUIDs containing the volume group

Given a VG called vgname, this returns the UUIDs of all the physical volumes that this volume group resides on.

You can use this along with Guestfs.Session.pvs() and Guestfs.Session.pvuuid() calls to associate physical volumes and volume groups.

See also Guestfs.Session.vglvuuids().

New in version 1.0.87.

vgremove(vgname)
Parameters:

vgname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

remove an LVM volume group

Remove an LVM volume group vgname, (for example VG).

This also forcibly removes all logical volumes in the volume group (if any).

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.13.

vgrename(volgroup, newvolgroup)
Parameters:
  • volgroup (str) –

  • newvolgroup (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

rename an LVM volume group

Rename a volume group volgroup with the new name newvolgroup.

New in version 1.0.83.

vgs()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

list the LVM volume groups (VGs)

List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent of the vgs(8) command.

This returns a list of just the volume group names that were detected (eg. VolGroup00).

See also Guestfs.Session.vgs_full().

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

vgs_full()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of VG objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.VG]

list the LVM volume groups (VGs)

List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent of the vgs(8) command. The “full” version includes all fields.

This function depends on the feature “lvm2”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 0.4.

vgscan()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

rescan for LVM physical volumes, volume groups and logical volumes

This rescans all block devices and rebuilds the list of LVM physical volumes, volume groups and logical volumes.

New in version 1.3.2.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.lvm_scan() instead

vguuid(vgname)
Parameters:

vgname (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

get the UUID of a volume group

This command returns the UUID of the LVM VG named vgname.

New in version 1.0.87.

wait_ready()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

wait until the hypervisor launches (no op)

This function is a no op.

In versions of the API < 1.0.71 you had to call this function just after calling Guestfs.Session.launch() to wait for the launch to complete. However this is no longer necessary because Guestfs.Session.launch() now does the waiting.

If you see any calls to this function in code then you can just remove them, unless you want to retain compatibility with older versions of the API.

New in version 0.3.

Deprecated since version ???: There is no documented replacement

wc_c(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

count characters in a file

This command counts the characters in a file, using the “wc -c” external command.

New in version 1.0.54.

wc_l(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

count lines in a file

This command counts the lines in a file, using the “wc -l” external command.

New in version 1.0.54.

wc_w(path)
Parameters:

path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

count words in a file

This command counts the words in a file, using the “wc -w” external command.

New in version 1.0.54.

wipefs(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

wipe a filesystem signature from a device

This command erases filesystem or RAID signatures from the specified device to make the filesystem invisible to libblkid.

This does not erase the filesystem itself nor any other data from the device.

Compare with Guestfs.Session.zero() which zeroes the first few blocks of a device.

This function depends on the feature “wipefs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.17.6.

write(path, content)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • content (bytes) – an array of binary data

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a new file

This call creates a file called path. The content of the file is the string content (which can contain any 8 bit data).

See also Guestfs.Session.write_append().

New in version 1.3.14.

write_append(path, content)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • content (bytes) – an array of binary data

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

append content to end of file

This call appends content to the end of file path. If path does not exist, then a new file is created.

See also Guestfs.Session.write().

New in version 1.11.18.

write_file(path, content, size)
Parameters:
  • path (str) –

  • content (str) –

  • size (int) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

create a file

This call creates a file called path. The contents of the file is the string content (which can contain any 8 bit data), with length size.

As a special case, if size is 0 then the length is calculated using strlen (so in this case the content cannot contain embedded ASCII NULs).

*NB.* Owing to a bug, writing content containing ASCII NUL characters does *not* work, even if the length is specified.

New in version 0.8.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.write() instead

xfs_admin(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

change parameters of an XFS filesystem

Change the parameters of the XFS filesystem on device.

Devices that are mounted cannot be modified. Administrators must unmount filesystems before this call can modify parameters.

Some of the parameters of a mounted filesystem can be examined and modified using the Guestfs.Session.xfs_info() and Guestfs.Session.xfs_growfs() calls.

Beginning with XFS version 5, it is no longer possible to modify the lazy-counters setting (ie. lazycounter parameter has no effect).

This function depends on the feature “xfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.33.

xfs_growfs(path, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

expand an existing XFS filesystem

Grow the XFS filesystem mounted at path.

The returned struct contains geometry information. Missing fields are returned as @-1 (for numeric fields) or empty string.

This function depends on the feature “xfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.28.

xfs_info(pathordevice)
Parameters:

pathordevice (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

a XFSInfo object, or None on error

Return type:

Guestfs.XFSInfo

get geometry of XFS filesystem

pathordevice is a mounted XFS filesystem or a device containing an XFS filesystem. This command returns the geometry of the filesystem.

The returned struct contains geometry information. Missing fields are returned as @-1 (for numeric fields) or empty string.

This function depends on the feature “xfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.21.

xfs_repair(device, optargs)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned value, or -1 on error

Return type:

int

repair an XFS filesystem

Repair corrupt or damaged XFS filesystem on device.

The filesystem is specified using the device argument which should be the device name of the disk partition or volume containing the filesystem. If given the name of a block device, xfs_repair will attempt to find the raw device associated with the specified block device and will use the raw device instead.

Regardless, the filesystem to be repaired must be unmounted, otherwise, the resulting filesystem may be inconsistent or corrupt.

The returned status indicates whether filesystem corruption was detected (returns 1) or was not detected (returns 0).

This function depends on the feature “xfs”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.19.36.

yara_destroy()
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

destroy previously loaded yara rules

Destroy previously loaded Yara rules in order to free libguestfs resources.

This function depends on the feature “libyara”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.37.13.

yara_load(filename, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

load yara rules within libguestfs

Upload a set of Yara rules from local file filename.

Yara rules allow to categorize files based on textual or binary patterns within their content. See Guestfs.Session.yara_scan() to see how to scan files with the loaded rules.

Rules can be in binary format, as when compiled with yarac command, or in source code format. In the latter case, the rules will be first compiled and then loaded.

Rules in source code format cannot include external files. In such cases, it is recommended to compile them first.

Previously loaded rules will be destroyed.

This function depends on the feature “libyara”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.37.13.

yara_scan(path, cancellable)
Parameters:
Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of YaraDetection objects, or None on error

Return type:

[Guestfs.YaraDetection]

scan a file with the loaded yara rules

Scan a file with the previously loaded Yara rules.

For each matching rule, a yara_detection structure is returned.

The yara_detection structure contains the following fields.

yara_name Path of the file matching a Yara rule.

yara_rule Identifier of the Yara rule which matched against the given file.

This function depends on the feature “libyara”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.37.13.

zegrep(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external zegrep program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

zegrepi(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “zegrep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

zero(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

write zeroes to the device

This command writes zeroes over the first few blocks of device.

How many blocks are zeroed isn’t specified (but it’s *not* enough to securely wipe the device). It should be sufficient to remove any partition tables, filesystem superblocks and so on.

If blocks are already zero, then this command avoids writing zeroes. This prevents the underlying device from becoming non-sparse or growing unnecessarily.

See also: Guestfs.Session.zero_device(), Guestfs.Session.scrub_device(), Guestfs.Session.is_zero_device()

New in version 1.0.16.

zero_device(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

write zeroes to an entire device

This command writes zeroes over the entire device. Compare with Guestfs.Session.zero() which just zeroes the first few blocks of a device.

If blocks are already zero, then this command avoids writing zeroes. This prevents the underlying device from becoming non-sparse or growing unnecessarily.

New in version 1.3.1.

zero_free_space(directory)
Parameters:

directory (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

zero free space in a filesystem

Zero the free space in the filesystem mounted on directory. The filesystem must be mounted read-write.

The filesystem contents are not affected, but any free space in the filesystem is freed.

Free space is not “trimmed”. You may want to call Guestfs.Session.fstrim() either as an alternative to this, or after calling this, depending on your requirements.

New in version 1.17.18.

zerofree(device)
Parameters:

device (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

true on success, false on error

Return type:

bool

zero unused inodes and disk blocks on ext2/3 filesystem

This runs the *zerofree* program on device. This program claims to zero unused inodes and disk blocks on an ext2/3 filesystem, thus making it possible to compress the filesystem more effectively.

You should not run this program if the filesystem is mounted.

It is possible that using this program can damage the filesystem or data on the filesystem.

This function depends on the feature “zerofree”. See also Guestfs.Session.feature_available().

New in version 1.0.26.

zfgrep(pattern, path)
Parameters:
  • pattern (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external zfgrep program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

zfgrepi(pattern, path)
Parameters:
  • pattern (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “zfgrep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

zfile(meth, path)
Parameters:
  • meth (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

the returned string, or None on error

Return type:

str

determine file type inside a compressed file

This command runs file(1) after first decompressing path using meth.

meth must be one of gzip, compress or bzip2.

Since 1.0.63, use Guestfs.Session.file() instead which can now process compressed files.

New in version 1.0.59.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.file() instead

zgrep(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external zgrep(1) program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

zgrepi(regex, path)
Parameters:
  • regex (str) –

  • path (str) –

Raises:

GLib.Error

Returns:

an array of returned strings, or None on error

Return type:

[str]

return lines matching a pattern

This calls the external “zgrep -i” program and returns the matching lines.

New in version 1.0.66.

Deprecated since version ???: In new code, use Guestfs.Session.grep() instead

Signal Details

Guestfs.Session.signals.appliance(session, params)
Signal Name:

appliance

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.close(session, params)
Signal Name:

close

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.enter(session, params)
Signal Name:

enter

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.launch_done(session, object)
Signal Name:

launch-done

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:
Guestfs.Session.signals.library(session, params)
Signal Name:

library

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.libvirt_auth(session, object)
Signal Name:

libvirt-auth

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:
Guestfs.Session.signals.progress(session, params)
Signal Name:

progress

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.subprocess_quit(session, object)
Signal Name:

subprocess-quit

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:
Guestfs.Session.signals.trace(session, params)
Signal Name:

trace

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.

Guestfs.Session.signals.warning(session, params)
Signal Name:

warning

Flags:

RUN_LAST

Parameters:

See “SETTING CALLBACKS TO HANDLE EVENTS” in guestfs(3) for more details about this event.