1 =head2 guestfs_add_cdrom
3 int guestfs_add_cdrom (guestfs_h *handle,
6 This function adds a virtual CD-ROM disk image to the guest.
8 This is equivalent to the qemu parameter C<-cdrom filename>.
10 Note that this call checks for the existence of C<filename>. This
11 stops you from specifying other types of drive which are supported
12 by qemu such as C<nbd:> and C<http:> URLs. To specify those, use
13 the general C<guestfs_config> call instead.
15 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
17 =head2 guestfs_add_drive
19 int guestfs_add_drive (guestfs_h *handle,
20 const char *filename);
22 This function adds a virtual machine disk image C<filename> to the
23 guest. The first time you call this function, the disk appears as IDE
24 disk 0 (C</dev/sda>) in the guest, the second time as C</dev/sdb>, and
27 You don't necessarily need to be root when using libguestfs. However
28 you obviously do need sufficient permissions to access the filename
29 for whatever operations you want to perform (ie. read access if you
30 just want to read the image or write access if you want to modify the
33 This is equivalent to the qemu parameter C<-drive file=filename>.
35 Note that this call checks for the existence of C<filename>. This
36 stops you from specifying other types of drive which are supported
37 by qemu such as C<nbd:> and C<http:> URLs. To specify those, use
38 the general C<guestfs_config> call instead.
40 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
42 =head2 guestfs_add_drive_ro
44 int guestfs_add_drive_ro (guestfs_h *handle,
45 const char *filename);
47 This adds a drive in snapshot mode, making it effectively
50 Note that writes to the device are allowed, and will be seen for
51 the duration of the guestfs handle, but they are written
52 to a temporary file which is discarded as soon as the guestfs
53 handle is closed. We don't currently have any method to enable
54 changes to be committed, although qemu can support this.
56 This is equivalent to the qemu parameter
57 C<-drive file=filename,snapshot=on>.
59 Note that this call checks for the existence of C<filename>. This
60 stops you from specifying other types of drive which are supported
61 by qemu such as C<nbd:> and C<http:> URLs. To specify those, use
62 the general C<guestfs_config> call instead.
64 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
66 =head2 guestfs_aug_close
68 int guestfs_aug_close (guestfs_h *handle);
70 Close the current Augeas handle and free up any resources
71 used by it. After calling this, you have to call
72 C<guestfs_aug_init> again before you can use any other
75 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
77 =head2 guestfs_aug_defnode
79 struct guestfs_int_bool *guestfs_aug_defnode (guestfs_h *handle,
84 Defines a variable C<name> whose value is the result of
87 If C<expr> evaluates to an empty nodeset, a node is created,
88 equivalent to calling C<guestfs_aug_set> C<expr>, C<value>.
89 C<name> will be the nodeset containing that single node.
91 On success this returns a pair containing the
92 number of nodes in the nodeset, and a boolean flag
93 if a node was created.
95 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_int_bool *>,
96 or NULL if there was an error.
97 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_int_bool> after use>.
99 =head2 guestfs_aug_defvar
101 int guestfs_aug_defvar (guestfs_h *handle,
105 Defines an Augeas variable C<name> whose value is the result
106 of evaluating C<expr>. If C<expr> is NULL, then C<name> is
109 On success this returns the number of nodes in C<expr>, or
110 C<0> if C<expr> evaluates to something which is not a nodeset.
112 On error this function returns -1.
114 =head2 guestfs_aug_get
116 char *guestfs_aug_get (guestfs_h *handle,
119 Look up the value associated with C<path>. If C<path>
120 matches exactly one node, the C<value> is returned.
122 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
123 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
125 =head2 guestfs_aug_init
127 int guestfs_aug_init (guestfs_h *handle,
131 Create a new Augeas handle for editing configuration files.
132 If there was any previous Augeas handle associated with this
133 guestfs session, then it is closed.
135 You must call this before using any other C<guestfs_aug_*>
138 C<root> is the filesystem root. C<root> must not be NULL,
141 The flags are the same as the flags defined in
142 E<lt>augeas.hE<gt>, the logical I<or> of the following
147 =item C<AUG_SAVE_BACKUP> = 1
149 Keep the original file with a C<.augsave> extension.
151 =item C<AUG_SAVE_NEWFILE> = 2
153 Save changes into a file with extension C<.augnew>, and
154 do not overwrite original. Overrides C<AUG_SAVE_BACKUP>.
156 =item C<AUG_TYPE_CHECK> = 4
158 Typecheck lenses (can be expensive).
160 =item C<AUG_NO_STDINC> = 8
162 Do not use standard load path for modules.
164 =item C<AUG_SAVE_NOOP> = 16
166 Make save a no-op, just record what would have been changed.
168 =item C<AUG_NO_LOAD> = 32
170 Do not load the tree in C<guestfs_aug_init>.
174 To close the handle, you can call C<guestfs_aug_close>.
176 To find out more about Augeas, see L<http://augeas.net/>.
178 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
180 =head2 guestfs_aug_insert
182 int guestfs_aug_insert (guestfs_h *handle,
187 Create a new sibling C<label> for C<path>, inserting it into
188 the tree before or after C<path> (depending on the boolean
191 C<path> must match exactly one existing node in the tree, and
192 C<label> must be a label, ie. not contain C</>, C<*> or end
193 with a bracketed index C<[N]>.
195 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
197 =head2 guestfs_aug_load
199 int guestfs_aug_load (guestfs_h *handle);
201 Load files into the tree.
203 See C<aug_load> in the Augeas documentation for the full gory
206 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
208 =head2 guestfs_aug_ls
210 char **guestfs_aug_ls (guestfs_h *handle,
213 This is just a shortcut for listing C<guestfs_aug_match>
214 C<path/*> and sorting the resulting nodes into alphabetical order.
216 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
217 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
218 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
220 =head2 guestfs_aug_match
222 char **guestfs_aug_match (guestfs_h *handle,
225 Returns a list of paths which match the path expression C<path>.
226 The returned paths are sufficiently qualified so that they match
227 exactly one node in the current tree.
229 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
230 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
231 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
233 =head2 guestfs_aug_mv
235 int guestfs_aug_mv (guestfs_h *handle,
239 Move the node C<src> to C<dest>. C<src> must match exactly
240 one node. C<dest> is overwritten if it exists.
242 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
244 =head2 guestfs_aug_rm
246 int guestfs_aug_rm (guestfs_h *handle,
249 Remove C<path> and all of its children.
251 On success this returns the number of entries which were removed.
253 On error this function returns -1.
255 =head2 guestfs_aug_save
257 int guestfs_aug_save (guestfs_h *handle);
259 This writes all pending changes to disk.
261 The flags which were passed to C<guestfs_aug_init> affect exactly
264 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
266 =head2 guestfs_aug_set
268 int guestfs_aug_set (guestfs_h *handle,
272 Set the value associated with C<path> to C<value>.
274 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
276 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_flushbufs
278 int guestfs_blockdev_flushbufs (guestfs_h *handle,
281 This tells the kernel to flush internal buffers associated
284 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
286 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
288 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getbsz
290 int guestfs_blockdev_getbsz (guestfs_h *handle,
293 This returns the block size of a device.
295 (Note this is different from both I<size in blocks> and
296 I<filesystem block size>).
298 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
300 On error this function returns -1.
302 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getro
304 int guestfs_blockdev_getro (guestfs_h *handle,
307 Returns a boolean indicating if the block device is read-only
308 (true if read-only, false if not).
310 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
312 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
314 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getsize64
316 int64_t guestfs_blockdev_getsize64 (guestfs_h *handle,
319 This returns the size of the device in bytes.
321 See also C<guestfs_blockdev_getsz>.
323 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
325 On error this function returns -1.
327 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getss
329 int guestfs_blockdev_getss (guestfs_h *handle,
332 This returns the size of sectors on a block device.
333 Usually 512, but can be larger for modern devices.
335 (Note, this is not the size in sectors, use C<guestfs_blockdev_getsz>
338 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
340 On error this function returns -1.
342 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getsz
344 int64_t guestfs_blockdev_getsz (guestfs_h *handle,
347 This returns the size of the device in units of 512-byte sectors
348 (even if the sectorsize isn't 512 bytes ... weird).
350 See also C<guestfs_blockdev_getss> for the real sector size of
351 the device, and C<guestfs_blockdev_getsize64> for the more
352 useful I<size in bytes>.
354 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
356 On error this function returns -1.
358 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_rereadpt
360 int guestfs_blockdev_rereadpt (guestfs_h *handle,
363 Reread the partition table on C<device>.
365 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
367 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
369 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setbsz
371 int guestfs_blockdev_setbsz (guestfs_h *handle,
375 This sets the block size of a device.
377 (Note this is different from both I<size in blocks> and
378 I<filesystem block size>).
380 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
382 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
384 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setro
386 int guestfs_blockdev_setro (guestfs_h *handle,
389 Sets the block device named C<device> to read-only.
391 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
393 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
395 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setrw
397 int guestfs_blockdev_setrw (guestfs_h *handle,
400 Sets the block device named C<device> to read-write.
402 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
404 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
408 char *guestfs_cat (guestfs_h *handle,
411 Return the contents of the file named C<path>.
413 Note that this function cannot correctly handle binary files
414 (specifically, files containing C<\0> character which is treated
415 as end of string). For those you need to use the C<guestfs_download>
416 function which has a more complex interface.
418 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
419 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
421 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
422 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
425 =head2 guestfs_checksum
427 char *guestfs_checksum (guestfs_h *handle,
428 const char *csumtype,
431 This call computes the MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of the
434 The type of checksum to compute is given by the C<csumtype>
435 parameter which must have one of the following values:
441 Compute the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) specified by POSIX
442 for the C<cksum> command.
446 Compute the MD5 hash (using the C<md5sum> program).
450 Compute the SHA1 hash (using the C<sha1sum> program).
454 Compute the SHA224 hash (using the C<sha224sum> program).
458 Compute the SHA256 hash (using the C<sha256sum> program).
462 Compute the SHA384 hash (using the C<sha384sum> program).
466 Compute the SHA512 hash (using the C<sha512sum> program).
470 The checksum is returned as a printable string.
472 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
473 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
477 int guestfs_chmod (guestfs_h *handle,
481 Change the mode (permissions) of C<path> to C<mode>. Only
482 numeric modes are supported.
484 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
488 int guestfs_chown (guestfs_h *handle,
493 Change the file owner to C<owner> and group to C<group>.
495 Only numeric uid and gid are supported. If you want to use
496 names, you will need to locate and parse the password file
497 yourself (Augeas support makes this relatively easy).
499 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
501 =head2 guestfs_command
503 char *guestfs_command (guestfs_h *handle,
504 char * const* const arguments);
506 This call runs a command from the guest filesystem. The
507 filesystem must be mounted, and must contain a compatible
508 operating system (ie. something Linux, with the same
509 or compatible processor architecture).
511 The single parameter is an argv-style list of arguments.
512 The first element is the name of the program to run.
513 Subsequent elements are parameters. The list must be
514 non-empty (ie. must contain a program name).
516 The return value is anything printed to I<stdout> by
519 If the command returns a non-zero exit status, then
520 this function returns an error message. The error message
521 string is the content of I<stderr> from the command.
523 The C<$PATH> environment variable will contain at least
524 C</usr/bin> and C</bin>. If you require a program from
525 another location, you should provide the full path in the
528 Shared libraries and data files required by the program
529 must be available on filesystems which are mounted in the
530 correct places. It is the caller's responsibility to ensure
531 all filesystems that are needed are mounted at the right
534 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
535 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
537 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
538 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
541 =head2 guestfs_command_lines
543 char **guestfs_command_lines (guestfs_h *handle,
544 char * const* const arguments);
546 This is the same as C<guestfs_command>, but splits the
547 result into a list of lines.
549 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
550 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
551 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
553 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
554 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
557 =head2 guestfs_config
559 int guestfs_config (guestfs_h *handle,
560 const char *qemuparam,
561 const char *qemuvalue);
563 This can be used to add arbitrary qemu command line parameters
564 of the form C<-param value>. Actually it's not quite arbitrary - we
565 prevent you from setting some parameters which would interfere with
566 parameters that we use.
568 The first character of C<param> string must be a C<-> (dash).
570 C<value> can be NULL.
572 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
576 int guestfs_cp (guestfs_h *handle,
580 This copies a file from C<src> to C<dest> where C<dest> is
581 either a destination filename or destination directory.
583 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
587 int guestfs_cp_a (guestfs_h *handle,
591 This copies a file or directory from C<src> to C<dest>
592 recursively using the C<cp -a> command.
594 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
598 char *guestfs_debug (guestfs_h *handle,
600 char * const* const extraargs);
602 The C<guestfs_debug> command exposes some internals of
603 C<guestfsd> (the guestfs daemon) that runs inside the
606 There is no comprehensive help for this command. You have
607 to look at the file C<daemon/debug.c> in the libguestfs source
608 to find out what you can do.
610 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
611 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
615 char *guestfs_dmesg (guestfs_h *handle);
617 This returns the kernel messages (C<dmesg> output) from
618 the guest kernel. This is sometimes useful for extended
619 debugging of problems.
621 Another way to get the same information is to enable
622 verbose messages with C<guestfs_set_verbose> or by setting
623 the environment variable C<LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG=1> before
626 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
627 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
629 =head2 guestfs_download
631 int guestfs_download (guestfs_h *handle,
632 const char *remotefilename,
633 const char *filename);
635 Download file C<remotefilename> and save it as C<filename>
636 on the local machine.
638 C<filename> can also be a named pipe.
640 See also C<guestfs_upload>, C<guestfs_cat>.
642 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
644 =head2 guestfs_drop_caches
646 int guestfs_drop_caches (guestfs_h *handle,
649 This instructs the guest kernel to drop its page cache,
650 and/or dentries and inode caches. The parameter C<whattodrop>
651 tells the kernel what precisely to drop, see
652 L<http://linux-mm.org/Drop_Caches>
654 Setting C<whattodrop> to 3 should drop everything.
656 This automatically calls L<sync(2)> before the operation,
657 so that the maximum guest memory is freed.
659 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
661 =head2 guestfs_e2fsck_f
663 int guestfs_e2fsck_f (guestfs_h *handle,
666 This runs C<e2fsck -p -f device>, ie. runs the ext2/ext3
667 filesystem checker on C<device>, noninteractively (C<-p>),
668 even if the filesystem appears to be clean (C<-f>).
670 This command is only needed because of C<guestfs_resize2fs>
671 (q.v.). Normally you should use C<guestfs_fsck>.
673 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
675 =head2 guestfs_end_busy
677 int guestfs_end_busy (guestfs_h *handle);
679 This sets the state to C<READY>, or if in C<CONFIG> then it leaves the
680 state as is. This is only used when implementing
681 actions using the low-level API.
683 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
685 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
689 int guestfs_equal (guestfs_h *handle,
693 This compares the two files C<file1> and C<file2> and returns
694 true if their content is exactly equal, or false otherwise.
696 The external L<cmp(1)> program is used for the comparison.
698 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
700 =head2 guestfs_exists
702 int guestfs_exists (guestfs_h *handle,
705 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a file, directory
706 (or anything) with the given C<path> name.
708 See also C<guestfs_is_file>, C<guestfs_is_dir>, C<guestfs_stat>.
710 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
714 char *guestfs_file (guestfs_h *handle,
717 This call uses the standard L<file(1)> command to determine
718 the type or contents of the file. This also works on devices,
719 for example to find out whether a partition contains a filesystem.
721 The exact command which runs is C<file -bsL path>. Note in
722 particular that the filename is not prepended to the output
725 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
726 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
730 char **guestfs_find (guestfs_h *handle,
731 const char *directory);
733 This command lists out all files and directories, recursively,
734 starting at C<directory>. It is essentially equivalent to
735 running the shell command C<find directory -print> but some
736 post-processing happens on the output, described below.
738 This returns a list of strings I<without any prefix>. Thus
739 if the directory structure was:
745 then the returned list from C<guestfs_find> C</tmp> would be
753 If C<directory> is not a directory, then this command returns
756 The returned list is sorted.
758 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
759 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
760 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
764 int guestfs_fsck (guestfs_h *handle,
768 This runs the filesystem checker (fsck) on C<device> which
769 should have filesystem type C<fstype>.
771 The returned integer is the status. See L<fsck(8)> for the
772 list of status codes from C<fsck>.
780 Multiple status codes can be summed together.
784 A non-zero return code can mean "success", for example if
785 errors have been corrected on the filesystem.
789 Checking or repairing NTFS volumes is not supported
794 This command is entirely equivalent to running C<fsck -a -t fstype device>.
796 On error this function returns -1.
798 =head2 guestfs_get_append
800 const char *guestfs_get_append (guestfs_h *handle);
802 Return the additional kernel options which are added to the
803 guest kernel command line.
805 If C<NULL> then no options are added.
807 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
808 The string is owned by the guest handle and must I<not> be freed.
810 =head2 guestfs_get_autosync
812 int guestfs_get_autosync (guestfs_h *handle);
814 Get the autosync flag.
816 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
818 =head2 guestfs_get_e2label
820 char *guestfs_get_e2label (guestfs_h *handle,
823 This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on
826 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
827 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
829 =head2 guestfs_get_e2uuid
831 char *guestfs_get_e2uuid (guestfs_h *handle,
834 This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on
837 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
838 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
840 =head2 guestfs_get_path
842 const char *guestfs_get_path (guestfs_h *handle);
844 Return the current search path.
846 This is always non-NULL. If it wasn't set already, then this will
847 return the default path.
849 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
850 The string is owned by the guest handle and must I<not> be freed.
852 =head2 guestfs_get_qemu
854 const char *guestfs_get_qemu (guestfs_h *handle);
856 Return the current qemu binary.
858 This is always non-NULL. If it wasn't set already, then this will
859 return the default qemu binary name.
861 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
862 The string is owned by the guest handle and must I<not> be freed.
864 =head2 guestfs_get_state
866 int guestfs_get_state (guestfs_h *handle);
868 This returns the current state as an opaque integer. This is
869 only useful for printing debug and internal error messages.
871 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
873 On error this function returns -1.
875 =head2 guestfs_get_verbose
877 int guestfs_get_verbose (guestfs_h *handle);
879 This returns the verbose messages flag.
881 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
883 =head2 guestfs_grub_install
885 int guestfs_grub_install (guestfs_h *handle,
889 This command installs GRUB (the Grand Unified Bootloader) on
890 C<device>, with the root directory being C<root>.
892 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
894 =head2 guestfs_hexdump
896 char *guestfs_hexdump (guestfs_h *handle,
899 This runs C<hexdump -C> on the given C<path>. The result is
900 the human-readable, canonical hex dump of the file.
902 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
903 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
905 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
906 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
909 =head2 guestfs_is_busy
911 int guestfs_is_busy (guestfs_h *handle);
913 This returns true iff this handle is busy processing a command
914 (in the C<BUSY> state).
916 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
918 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
920 =head2 guestfs_is_config
922 int guestfs_is_config (guestfs_h *handle);
924 This returns true iff this handle is being configured
925 (in the C<CONFIG> state).
927 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
929 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
931 =head2 guestfs_is_dir
933 int guestfs_is_dir (guestfs_h *handle,
936 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a directory
937 with the given C<path> name. Note that it returns false for
938 other objects like files.
940 See also C<guestfs_stat>.
942 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
944 =head2 guestfs_is_file
946 int guestfs_is_file (guestfs_h *handle,
949 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a file
950 with the given C<path> name. Note that it returns false for
951 other objects like directories.
953 See also C<guestfs_stat>.
955 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
957 =head2 guestfs_is_launching
959 int guestfs_is_launching (guestfs_h *handle);
961 This returns true iff this handle is launching the subprocess
962 (in the C<LAUNCHING> state).
964 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
966 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
968 =head2 guestfs_is_ready
970 int guestfs_is_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
972 This returns true iff this handle is ready to accept commands
973 (in the C<READY> state).
975 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
977 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
979 =head2 guestfs_kill_subprocess
981 int guestfs_kill_subprocess (guestfs_h *handle);
983 This kills the qemu subprocess. You should never need to call this.
985 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
987 =head2 guestfs_launch
989 int guestfs_launch (guestfs_h *handle);
991 Internally libguestfs is implemented by running a virtual machine
994 You should call this after configuring the handle
995 (eg. adding drives) but before performing any actions.
997 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
999 =head2 guestfs_list_devices
1001 char **guestfs_list_devices (guestfs_h *handle);
1003 List all the block devices.
1005 The full block device names are returned, eg. C</dev/sda>
1007 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1008 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1009 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1011 =head2 guestfs_list_partitions
1013 char **guestfs_list_partitions (guestfs_h *handle);
1015 List all the partitions detected on all block devices.
1017 The full partition device names are returned, eg. C</dev/sda1>
1019 This does not return logical volumes. For that you will need to
1020 call C<guestfs_lvs>.
1022 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1023 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1024 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1028 char *guestfs_ll (guestfs_h *handle,
1029 const char *directory);
1031 List the files in C<directory> (relative to the root directory,
1032 there is no cwd) in the format of 'ls -la'.
1034 This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It
1035 is I<not> intended that you try to parse the output string.
1037 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
1038 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
1042 char **guestfs_ls (guestfs_h *handle,
1043 const char *directory);
1045 List the files in C<directory> (relative to the root directory,
1046 there is no cwd). The '.' and '..' entries are not returned, but
1047 hidden files are shown.
1049 This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. Programs
1050 should probably use C<guestfs_readdir> instead.
1052 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1053 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1054 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1056 =head2 guestfs_lstat
1058 struct guestfs_stat *guestfs_lstat (guestfs_h *handle,
1061 Returns file information for the given C<path>.
1063 This is the same as C<guestfs_stat> except that if C<path>
1064 is a symbolic link, then the link is stat-ed, not the file it
1067 This is the same as the C<lstat(2)> system call.
1069 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_stat *>
1070 (see L<stat(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1071 or NULL if there was an error.
1072 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
1074 =head2 guestfs_lvcreate
1076 int guestfs_lvcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
1078 const char *volgroup,
1081 This creates an LVM volume group called C<logvol>
1082 on the volume group C<volgroup>, with C<size> megabytes.
1084 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1086 =head2 guestfs_lvm_remove_all
1088 int guestfs_lvm_remove_all (guestfs_h *handle);
1090 This command removes all LVM logical volumes, volume groups
1091 and physical volumes.
1093 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1095 B<This command is dangerous. Without careful use you
1096 can easily destroy all your data>.
1098 =head2 guestfs_lvremove
1100 int guestfs_lvremove (guestfs_h *handle,
1101 const char *device);
1103 Remove an LVM logical volume C<device>, where C<device> is
1104 the path to the LV, such as C</dev/VG/LV>.
1106 You can also remove all LVs in a volume group by specifying
1107 the VG name, C</dev/VG>.
1109 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1111 =head2 guestfs_lvresize
1113 int guestfs_lvresize (guestfs_h *handle,
1117 This resizes (expands or shrinks) an existing LVM logical
1118 volume to C<mbytes>. When reducing, data in the reduced part
1121 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1125 char **guestfs_lvs (guestfs_h *handle);
1127 List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1128 of the L<lvs(8)> command.
1130 This returns a list of the logical volume device names
1131 (eg. C</dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00>).
1133 See also C<guestfs_lvs_full>.
1135 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1136 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1137 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1139 =head2 guestfs_lvs_full
1141 struct guestfs_lvm_lv_list *guestfs_lvs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
1143 List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1144 of the L<lvs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
1146 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_lv_list *>
1147 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1148 or NULL if there was an error.
1149 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_lv_list> after use>.
1151 =head2 guestfs_mkdir
1153 int guestfs_mkdir (guestfs_h *handle,
1156 Create a directory named C<path>.
1158 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1160 =head2 guestfs_mkdir_p
1162 int guestfs_mkdir_p (guestfs_h *handle,
1165 Create a directory named C<path>, creating any parent directories
1166 as necessary. This is like the C<mkdir -p> shell command.
1168 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1172 int guestfs_mkfs (guestfs_h *handle,
1174 const char *device);
1176 This creates a filesystem on C<device> (usually a partition
1177 or LVM logical volume). The filesystem type is C<fstype>, for
1180 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1182 =head2 guestfs_mount
1184 int guestfs_mount (guestfs_h *handle,
1186 const char *mountpoint);
1188 Mount a guest disk at a position in the filesystem. Block devices
1189 are named C</dev/sda>, C</dev/sdb> and so on, as they were added to
1190 the guest. If those block devices contain partitions, they will have
1191 the usual names (eg. C</dev/sda1>). Also LVM C</dev/VG/LV>-style
1194 The rules are the same as for L<mount(2)>: A filesystem must
1195 first be mounted on C</> before others can be mounted. Other
1196 filesystems can only be mounted on directories which already
1199 The mounted filesystem is writable, if we have sufficient permissions
1200 on the underlying device.
1202 The filesystem options C<sync> and C<noatime> are set with this
1203 call, in order to improve reliability.
1205 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1207 =head2 guestfs_mount_options
1209 int guestfs_mount_options (guestfs_h *handle,
1210 const char *options,
1212 const char *mountpoint);
1214 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1215 allows you to set the mount options as for the
1216 L<mount(8)> I<-o> flag.
1218 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1220 =head2 guestfs_mount_ro
1222 int guestfs_mount_ro (guestfs_h *handle,
1224 const char *mountpoint);
1226 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1227 mounts the filesystem with the read-only (I<-o ro>) flag.
1229 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1231 =head2 guestfs_mount_vfs
1233 int guestfs_mount_vfs (guestfs_h *handle,
1234 const char *options,
1235 const char *vfstype,
1237 const char *mountpoint);
1239 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1240 allows you to set both the mount options and the vfstype
1241 as for the L<mount(8)> I<-o> and I<-t> flags.
1243 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1245 =head2 guestfs_mounts
1247 char **guestfs_mounts (guestfs_h *handle);
1249 This returns the list of currently mounted filesystems. It returns
1250 the list of devices (eg. C</dev/sda1>, C</dev/VG/LV>).
1252 Some internal mounts are not shown.
1254 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1255 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1256 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1260 int guestfs_mv (guestfs_h *handle,
1264 This moves a file from C<src> to C<dest> where C<dest> is
1265 either a destination filename or destination directory.
1267 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1269 =head2 guestfs_ping_daemon
1271 int guestfs_ping_daemon (guestfs_h *handle);
1273 This is a test probe into the guestfs daemon running inside
1274 the qemu subprocess. Calling this function checks that the
1275 daemon responds to the ping message, without affecting the daemon
1276 or attached block device(s) in any other way.
1278 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1280 =head2 guestfs_pvcreate
1282 int guestfs_pvcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
1283 const char *device);
1285 This creates an LVM physical volume on the named C<device>,
1286 where C<device> should usually be a partition name such
1289 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1291 =head2 guestfs_pvremove
1293 int guestfs_pvremove (guestfs_h *handle,
1294 const char *device);
1296 This wipes a physical volume C<device> so that LVM will no longer
1299 The implementation uses the C<pvremove> command which refuses to
1300 wipe physical volumes that contain any volume groups, so you have
1301 to remove those first.
1303 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1305 =head2 guestfs_pvresize
1307 int guestfs_pvresize (guestfs_h *handle,
1308 const char *device);
1310 This resizes (expands or shrinks) an existing LVM physical
1311 volume to match the new size of the underlying device.
1313 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1317 char **guestfs_pvs (guestfs_h *handle);
1319 List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1320 of the L<pvs(8)> command.
1322 This returns a list of just the device names that contain
1323 PVs (eg. C</dev/sda2>).
1325 See also C<guestfs_pvs_full>.
1327 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1328 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1329 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1331 =head2 guestfs_pvs_full
1333 struct guestfs_lvm_pv_list *guestfs_pvs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
1335 List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1336 of the L<pvs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
1338 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_pv_list *>
1339 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1340 or NULL if there was an error.
1341 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_pv_list> after use>.
1343 =head2 guestfs_read_lines
1345 char **guestfs_read_lines (guestfs_h *handle,
1348 Return the contents of the file named C<path>.
1350 The file contents are returned as a list of lines. Trailing
1351 C<LF> and C<CRLF> character sequences are I<not> returned.
1353 Note that this function cannot correctly handle binary files
1354 (specifically, files containing C<\0> character which is treated
1355 as end of line). For those you need to use the C<guestfs_read_file>
1356 function which has a more complex interface.
1358 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1359 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1360 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1362 =head2 guestfs_resize2fs
1364 int guestfs_resize2fs (guestfs_h *handle,
1365 const char *device);
1367 This resizes an ext2 or ext3 filesystem to match the size of
1368 the underlying device.
1370 I<Note:> It is sometimes required that you run C<guestfs_e2fsck_f>
1371 on the C<device> before calling this command. For unknown reasons
1372 C<resize2fs> sometimes gives an error about this and sometimes not.
1373 In any case, it is always safe to call C<guestfs_e2fsck_f> before
1374 calling this function.
1376 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1380 int guestfs_rm (guestfs_h *handle,
1383 Remove the single file C<path>.
1385 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1387 =head2 guestfs_rm_rf
1389 int guestfs_rm_rf (guestfs_h *handle,
1392 Remove the file or directory C<path>, recursively removing the
1393 contents if its a directory. This is like the C<rm -rf> shell
1396 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1398 =head2 guestfs_rmdir
1400 int guestfs_rmdir (guestfs_h *handle,
1403 Remove the single directory C<path>.
1405 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1407 =head2 guestfs_set_append
1409 int guestfs_set_append (guestfs_h *handle,
1410 const char *append);
1412 This function is used to add additional options to the
1413 guest kernel command line.
1415 The default is C<NULL> unless overridden by setting
1416 C<LIBGUESTFS_APPEND> environment variable.
1418 Setting C<append> to C<NULL> means I<no> additional options
1419 are passed (libguestfs always adds a few of its own).
1421 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1423 =head2 guestfs_set_autosync
1425 int guestfs_set_autosync (guestfs_h *handle,
1428 If C<autosync> is true, this enables autosync. Libguestfs will make a
1429 best effort attempt to run C<guestfs_umount_all> followed by
1430 C<guestfs_sync> when the handle is closed
1431 (also if the program exits without closing handles).
1433 This is disabled by default (except in guestfish where it is
1434 enabled by default).
1436 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1438 =head2 guestfs_set_busy
1440 int guestfs_set_busy (guestfs_h *handle);
1442 This sets the state to C<BUSY>. This is only used when implementing
1443 actions using the low-level API.
1445 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
1447 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1449 =head2 guestfs_set_e2label
1451 int guestfs_set_e2label (guestfs_h *handle,
1455 This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on
1456 C<device> to C<label>. Filesystem labels are limited to
1459 You can use either C<guestfs_tune2fs_l> or C<guestfs_get_e2label>
1460 to return the existing label on a filesystem.
1462 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1464 =head2 guestfs_set_e2uuid
1466 int guestfs_set_e2uuid (guestfs_h *handle,
1470 This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on
1471 C<device> to C<uuid>. The format of the UUID and alternatives
1472 such as C<clear>, C<random> and C<time> are described in the
1473 L<tune2fs(8)> manpage.
1475 You can use either C<guestfs_tune2fs_l> or C<guestfs_get_e2uuid>
1476 to return the existing UUID of a filesystem.
1478 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1480 =head2 guestfs_set_path
1482 int guestfs_set_path (guestfs_h *handle,
1485 Set the path that libguestfs searches for kernel and initrd.img.
1487 The default is C<$libdir/guestfs> unless overridden by setting
1488 C<LIBGUESTFS_PATH> environment variable.
1490 Setting C<path> to C<NULL> restores the default path.
1492 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1494 =head2 guestfs_set_qemu
1496 int guestfs_set_qemu (guestfs_h *handle,
1499 Set the qemu binary that we will use.
1501 The default is chosen when the library was compiled by the
1504 You can also override this by setting the C<LIBGUESTFS_QEMU>
1505 environment variable.
1507 Setting C<qemu> to C<NULL> restores the default qemu binary.
1509 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1511 =head2 guestfs_set_ready
1513 int guestfs_set_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
1515 This sets the state to C<READY>. This is only used when implementing
1516 actions using the low-level API.
1518 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
1520 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1522 =head2 guestfs_set_verbose
1524 int guestfs_set_verbose (guestfs_h *handle,
1527 If C<verbose> is true, this turns on verbose messages (to C<stderr>).
1529 Verbose messages are disabled unless the environment variable
1530 C<LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG> is defined and set to C<1>.
1532 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1534 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk
1536 int guestfs_sfdisk (guestfs_h *handle,
1541 char * const* const lines);
1543 This is a direct interface to the L<sfdisk(8)> program for creating
1544 partitions on block devices.
1546 C<device> should be a block device, for example C</dev/sda>.
1548 C<cyls>, C<heads> and C<sectors> are the number of cylinders, heads
1549 and sectors on the device, which are passed directly to sfdisk as
1550 the I<-C>, I<-H> and I<-S> parameters. If you pass C<0> for any
1551 of these, then the corresponding parameter is omitted. Usually for
1552 'large' disks, you can just pass C<0> for these, but for small
1553 (floppy-sized) disks, sfdisk (or rather, the kernel) cannot work
1554 out the right geometry and you will need to tell it.
1556 C<lines> is a list of lines that we feed to C<sfdisk>. For more
1557 information refer to the L<sfdisk(8)> manpage.
1559 To create a single partition occupying the whole disk, you would
1560 pass C<lines> as a single element list, when the single element being
1561 the string C<,> (comma).
1563 See also: C<guestfs_sfdisk_l>, C<guestfs_sfdisk_N>
1565 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1567 B<This command is dangerous. Without careful use you
1568 can easily destroy all your data>.
1570 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk_N
1572 int guestfs_sfdisk_N (guestfs_h *handle,
1580 This runs L<sfdisk(8)> option to modify just the single
1581 partition C<n> (note: C<n> counts from 1).
1583 For other parameters, see C<guestfs_sfdisk>. You should usually
1584 pass C<0> for the cyls/heads/sectors parameters.
1586 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1588 B<This command is dangerous. Without careful use you
1589 can easily destroy all your data>.
1591 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk_disk_geometry
1593 char *guestfs_sfdisk_disk_geometry (guestfs_h *handle,
1594 const char *device);
1596 This displays the disk geometry of C<device> read from the
1597 partition table. Especially in the case where the underlying
1598 block device has been resized, this can be different from the
1599 kernel's idea of the geometry (see C<guestfs_sfdisk_kernel_geometry>).
1601 The result is in human-readable format, and not designed to
1604 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
1605 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
1607 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk_kernel_geometry
1609 char *guestfs_sfdisk_kernel_geometry (guestfs_h *handle,
1610 const char *device);
1612 This displays the kernel's idea of the geometry of C<device>.
1614 The result is in human-readable format, and not designed to
1617 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
1618 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
1620 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk_l
1622 char *guestfs_sfdisk_l (guestfs_h *handle,
1623 const char *device);
1625 This displays the partition table on C<device>, in the
1626 human-readable output of the L<sfdisk(8)> command. It is
1627 not intended to be parsed.
1629 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
1630 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
1632 =head2 guestfs_sleep
1634 int guestfs_sleep (guestfs_h *handle,
1637 Sleep for C<secs> seconds.
1639 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1643 struct guestfs_stat *guestfs_stat (guestfs_h *handle,
1646 Returns file information for the given C<path>.
1648 This is the same as the C<stat(2)> system call.
1650 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_stat *>
1651 (see L<stat(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1652 or NULL if there was an error.
1653 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
1655 =head2 guestfs_statvfs
1657 struct guestfs_statvfs *guestfs_statvfs (guestfs_h *handle,
1660 Returns file system statistics for any mounted file system.
1661 C<path> should be a file or directory in the mounted file system
1662 (typically it is the mount point itself, but it doesn't need to be).
1664 This is the same as the C<statvfs(2)> system call.
1666 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_statvfs *>
1667 (see L<statvfs(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1668 or NULL if there was an error.
1669 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
1671 =head2 guestfs_strings
1673 char **guestfs_strings (guestfs_h *handle,
1676 This runs the L<strings(1)> command on a file and returns
1677 the list of printable strings found.
1679 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1680 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1681 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1683 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
1684 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
1687 =head2 guestfs_strings_e
1689 char **guestfs_strings_e (guestfs_h *handle,
1690 const char *encoding,
1693 This is like the C<guestfs_strings> command, but allows you to
1694 specify the encoding.
1696 See the L<strings(1)> manpage for the full list of encodings.
1698 Commonly useful encodings are C<l> (lower case L) which will
1699 show strings inside Windows/x86 files.
1701 The returned strings are transcoded to UTF-8.
1703 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1704 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1705 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1707 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
1708 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
1713 int guestfs_sync (guestfs_h *handle);
1715 This syncs the disk, so that any writes are flushed through to the
1716 underlying disk image.
1718 You should always call this if you have modified a disk image, before
1721 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1723 =head2 guestfs_tar_in
1725 int guestfs_tar_in (guestfs_h *handle,
1726 const char *tarfile,
1727 const char *directory);
1729 This command uploads and unpacks local file C<tarfile> (an
1730 I<uncompressed> tar file) into C<directory>.
1732 To upload a compressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tgz_in>.
1734 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1736 =head2 guestfs_tar_out
1738 int guestfs_tar_out (guestfs_h *handle,
1739 const char *directory,
1740 const char *tarfile);
1742 This command packs the contents of C<directory> and downloads
1743 it to local file C<tarfile>.
1745 To download a compressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tgz_out>.
1747 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1749 =head2 guestfs_tgz_in
1751 int guestfs_tgz_in (guestfs_h *handle,
1752 const char *tarball,
1753 const char *directory);
1755 This command uploads and unpacks local file C<tarball> (a
1756 I<gzip compressed> tar file) into C<directory>.
1758 To upload an uncompressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tar_in>.
1760 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1762 =head2 guestfs_tgz_out
1764 int guestfs_tgz_out (guestfs_h *handle,
1765 const char *directory,
1766 const char *tarball);
1768 This command packs the contents of C<directory> and downloads
1769 it to local file C<tarball>.
1771 To download an uncompressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tar_out>.
1773 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1775 =head2 guestfs_touch
1777 int guestfs_touch (guestfs_h *handle,
1780 Touch acts like the L<touch(1)> command. It can be used to
1781 update the timestamps on a file, or, if the file does not exist,
1782 to create a new zero-length file.
1784 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1786 =head2 guestfs_tune2fs_l
1788 char **guestfs_tune2fs_l (guestfs_h *handle,
1789 const char *device);
1791 This returns the contents of the ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem
1792 superblock on C<device>.
1794 It is the same as running C<tune2fs -l device>. See L<tune2fs(8)>
1795 manpage for more details. The list of fields returned isn't
1796 clearly defined, and depends on both the version of C<tune2fs>
1797 that libguestfs was built against, and the filesystem itself.
1799 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of
1800 strings, or NULL if there was an error.
1801 The array of strings will always have length C<2n+1>, where
1802 C<n> keys and values alternate, followed by the trailing NULL entry.
1803 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1805 =head2 guestfs_umount
1807 int guestfs_umount (guestfs_h *handle,
1808 const char *pathordevice);
1810 This unmounts the given filesystem. The filesystem may be
1811 specified either by its mountpoint (path) or the device which
1812 contains the filesystem.
1814 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1816 =head2 guestfs_umount_all
1818 int guestfs_umount_all (guestfs_h *handle);
1820 This unmounts all mounted filesystems.
1822 Some internal mounts are not unmounted by this call.
1824 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1826 =head2 guestfs_upload
1828 int guestfs_upload (guestfs_h *handle,
1829 const char *filename,
1830 const char *remotefilename);
1832 Upload local file C<filename> to C<remotefilename> on the
1835 C<filename> can also be a named pipe.
1837 See also C<guestfs_download>.
1839 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1841 =head2 guestfs_vg_activate
1843 int guestfs_vg_activate (guestfs_h *handle,
1845 char * const* const volgroups);
1847 This command activates or (if C<activate> is false) deactivates
1848 all logical volumes in the listed volume groups C<volgroups>.
1849 If activated, then they are made known to the
1850 kernel, ie. they appear as C</dev/mapper> devices. If deactivated,
1851 then those devices disappear.
1853 This command is the same as running C<vgchange -a y|n volgroups...>
1855 Note that if C<volgroups> is an empty list then B<all> volume groups
1856 are activated or deactivated.
1858 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1860 =head2 guestfs_vg_activate_all
1862 int guestfs_vg_activate_all (guestfs_h *handle,
1865 This command activates or (if C<activate> is false) deactivates
1866 all logical volumes in all volume groups.
1867 If activated, then they are made known to the
1868 kernel, ie. they appear as C</dev/mapper> devices. If deactivated,
1869 then those devices disappear.
1871 This command is the same as running C<vgchange -a y|n>
1873 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1875 =head2 guestfs_vgcreate
1877 int guestfs_vgcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
1878 const char *volgroup,
1879 char * const* const physvols);
1881 This creates an LVM volume group called C<volgroup>
1882 from the non-empty list of physical volumes C<physvols>.
1884 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1886 =head2 guestfs_vgremove
1888 int guestfs_vgremove (guestfs_h *handle,
1889 const char *vgname);
1891 Remove an LVM volume group C<vgname>, (for example C<VG>).
1893 This also forcibly removes all logical volumes in the volume
1896 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1900 char **guestfs_vgs (guestfs_h *handle);
1902 List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent
1903 of the L<vgs(8)> command.
1905 This returns a list of just the volume group names that were
1906 detected (eg. C<VolGroup00>).
1908 See also C<guestfs_vgs_full>.
1910 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1911 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1912 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1914 =head2 guestfs_vgs_full
1916 struct guestfs_lvm_vg_list *guestfs_vgs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
1918 List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent
1919 of the L<vgs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
1921 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_vg_list *>
1922 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1923 or NULL if there was an error.
1924 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_vg_list> after use>.
1926 =head2 guestfs_wait_ready
1928 int guestfs_wait_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
1930 Internally libguestfs is implemented by running a virtual machine
1933 You should call this after C<guestfs_launch> to wait for the launch
1936 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1938 =head2 guestfs_write_file
1940 int guestfs_write_file (guestfs_h *handle,
1942 const char *content,
1945 This call creates a file called C<path>. The contents of the
1946 file is the string C<content> (which can contain any 8 bit data),
1947 with length C<size>.
1949 As a special case, if C<size> is C<0>
1950 then the length is calculated using C<strlen> (so in this case
1951 the content cannot contain embedded ASCII NULs).
1953 I<NB.> Owing to a bug, writing content containing ASCII NUL
1954 characters does I<not> work, even if the length is specified.
1955 We hope to resolve this bug in a future version. In the meantime
1956 use C<guestfs_upload>.
1958 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1960 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
1961 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
1966 int guestfs_zero (guestfs_h *handle,
1967 const char *device);
1969 This command writes zeroes over the first few blocks of C<device>.
1971 How many blocks are zeroed isn't specified (but it's I<not> enough
1972 to securely wipe the device). It should be sufficient to remove
1973 any partition tables, filesystem superblocks and so on.
1975 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1977 =head2 guestfs_zerofree
1979 int guestfs_zerofree (guestfs_h *handle,
1980 const char *device);
1982 This runs the I<zerofree> program on C<device>. This program
1983 claims to zero unused inodes and disk blocks on an ext2/3
1984 filesystem, thus making it possible to compress the filesystem
1987 You should B<not> run this program if the filesystem is
1990 It is possible that using this program can damage the filesystem
1991 or data on the filesystem.
1993 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.