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 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
12 =head2 guestfs_add_drive
14 int guestfs_add_drive (guestfs_h *handle,
15 const char *filename);
17 This function adds a virtual machine disk image C<filename> to the
18 guest. The first time you call this function, the disk appears as IDE
19 disk 0 (C</dev/sda>) in the guest, the second time as C</dev/sdb>, and
22 You don't necessarily need to be root when using libguestfs. However
23 you obviously do need sufficient permissions to access the filename
24 for whatever operations you want to perform (ie. read access if you
25 just want to read the image or write access if you want to modify the
28 This is equivalent to the qemu parameter C<-drive file=filename>.
30 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
32 =head2 guestfs_aug_close
34 int guestfs_aug_close (guestfs_h *handle);
36 Close the current Augeas handle and free up any resources
37 used by it. After calling this, you have to call
38 C<guestfs_aug_init> again before you can use any other
41 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
43 =head2 guestfs_aug_defnode
45 struct guestfs_int_bool *guestfs_aug_defnode (guestfs_h *handle,
50 Defines a variable C<name> whose value is the result of
53 If C<expr> evaluates to an empty nodeset, a node is created,
54 equivalent to calling C<guestfs_aug_set> C<expr>, C<value>.
55 C<name> will be the nodeset containing that single node.
57 On success this returns a pair containing the
58 number of nodes in the nodeset, and a boolean flag
59 if a node was created.
61 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_int_bool *>,
62 or NULL if there was an error.
63 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_int_bool> after use>.
65 =head2 guestfs_aug_defvar
67 int guestfs_aug_defvar (guestfs_h *handle,
71 Defines an Augeas variable C<name> whose value is the result
72 of evaluating C<expr>. If C<expr> is NULL, then C<name> is
75 On success this returns the number of nodes in C<expr>, or
76 C<0> if C<expr> evaluates to something which is not a nodeset.
78 On error this function returns -1.
80 =head2 guestfs_aug_get
82 char *guestfs_aug_get (guestfs_h *handle,
85 Look up the value associated with C<path>. If C<path>
86 matches exactly one node, the C<value> is returned.
88 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
89 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
91 =head2 guestfs_aug_init
93 int guestfs_aug_init (guestfs_h *handle,
97 Create a new Augeas handle for editing configuration files.
98 If there was any previous Augeas handle associated with this
99 guestfs session, then it is closed.
101 You must call this before using any other C<guestfs_aug_*>
104 C<root> is the filesystem root. C<root> must not be NULL,
107 The flags are the same as the flags defined in
108 E<lt>augeas.hE<gt>, the logical I<or> of the following
113 =item C<AUG_SAVE_BACKUP> = 1
115 Keep the original file with a C<.augsave> extension.
117 =item C<AUG_SAVE_NEWFILE> = 2
119 Save changes into a file with extension C<.augnew>, and
120 do not overwrite original. Overrides C<AUG_SAVE_BACKUP>.
122 =item C<AUG_TYPE_CHECK> = 4
124 Typecheck lenses (can be expensive).
126 =item C<AUG_NO_STDINC> = 8
128 Do not use standard load path for modules.
130 =item C<AUG_SAVE_NOOP> = 16
132 Make save a no-op, just record what would have been changed.
134 =item C<AUG_NO_LOAD> = 32
136 Do not load the tree in C<guestfs_aug_init>.
140 To close the handle, you can call C<guestfs_aug_close>.
142 To find out more about Augeas, see L<http://augeas.net/>.
144 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
146 =head2 guestfs_aug_insert
148 int guestfs_aug_insert (guestfs_h *handle,
153 Create a new sibling C<label> for C<path>, inserting it into
154 the tree before or after C<path> (depending on the boolean
157 C<path> must match exactly one existing node in the tree, and
158 C<label> must be a label, ie. not contain C</>, C<*> or end
159 with a bracketed index C<[N]>.
161 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
163 =head2 guestfs_aug_load
165 int guestfs_aug_load (guestfs_h *handle);
167 Load files into the tree.
169 See C<aug_load> in the Augeas documentation for the full gory
172 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
174 =head2 guestfs_aug_ls
176 char **guestfs_aug_ls (guestfs_h *handle,
179 This is just a shortcut for listing C<guestfs_aug_match>
180 C<path/*> and sorting the resulting nodes into alphabetical order.
182 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
183 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
184 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
186 =head2 guestfs_aug_match
188 char **guestfs_aug_match (guestfs_h *handle,
191 Returns a list of paths which match the path expression C<path>.
192 The returned paths are sufficiently qualified so that they match
193 exactly one node in the current tree.
195 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
196 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
197 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
199 =head2 guestfs_aug_mv
201 int guestfs_aug_mv (guestfs_h *handle,
205 Move the node C<src> to C<dest>. C<src> must match exactly
206 one node. C<dest> is overwritten if it exists.
208 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
210 =head2 guestfs_aug_rm
212 int guestfs_aug_rm (guestfs_h *handle,
215 Remove C<path> and all of its children.
217 On success this returns the number of entries which were removed.
219 On error this function returns -1.
221 =head2 guestfs_aug_save
223 int guestfs_aug_save (guestfs_h *handle);
225 This writes all pending changes to disk.
227 The flags which were passed to C<guestfs_aug_init> affect exactly
230 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
232 =head2 guestfs_aug_set
234 int guestfs_aug_set (guestfs_h *handle,
238 Set the value associated with C<path> to C<value>.
240 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
242 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_flushbufs
244 int guestfs_blockdev_flushbufs (guestfs_h *handle,
247 This tells the kernel to flush internal buffers associated
250 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
252 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
254 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getbsz
256 int guestfs_blockdev_getbsz (guestfs_h *handle,
259 This returns the block size of a device.
261 (Note this is different from both I<size in blocks> and
262 I<filesystem block size>).
264 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
266 On error this function returns -1.
268 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getro
270 int guestfs_blockdev_getro (guestfs_h *handle,
273 Returns a boolean indicating if the block device is read-only
274 (true if read-only, false if not).
276 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
278 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
280 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getsize64
282 int64_t guestfs_blockdev_getsize64 (guestfs_h *handle,
285 This returns the size of the device in bytes.
287 See also C<guestfs_blockdev_getsz>.
289 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
291 On error this function returns -1.
293 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getss
295 int guestfs_blockdev_getss (guestfs_h *handle,
298 This returns the size of sectors on a block device.
299 Usually 512, but can be larger for modern devices.
301 (Note, this is not the size in sectors, use C<guestfs_blockdev_getsz>
304 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
306 On error this function returns -1.
308 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_getsz
310 int64_t guestfs_blockdev_getsz (guestfs_h *handle,
313 This returns the size of the device in units of 512-byte sectors
314 (even if the sectorsize isn't 512 bytes ... weird).
316 See also C<guestfs_blockdev_getss> for the real sector size of
317 the device, and C<guestfs_blockdev_getsize64> for the more
318 useful I<size in bytes>.
320 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
322 On error this function returns -1.
324 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_rereadpt
326 int guestfs_blockdev_rereadpt (guestfs_h *handle,
329 Reread the partition table on C<device>.
331 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
333 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
335 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setbsz
337 int guestfs_blockdev_setbsz (guestfs_h *handle,
341 This sets the block size of a device.
343 (Note this is different from both I<size in blocks> and
344 I<filesystem block size>).
346 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
348 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
350 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setro
352 int guestfs_blockdev_setro (guestfs_h *handle,
355 Sets the block device named C<device> to read-only.
357 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
359 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
361 =head2 guestfs_blockdev_setrw
363 int guestfs_blockdev_setrw (guestfs_h *handle,
366 Sets the block device named C<device> to read-write.
368 This uses the L<blockdev(8)> command.
370 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
374 char *guestfs_cat (guestfs_h *handle,
377 Return the contents of the file named C<path>.
379 Note that this function cannot correctly handle binary files
380 (specifically, files containing C<\0> character which is treated
381 as end of string). For those you need to use the C<guestfs_download>
382 function which has a more complex interface.
384 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
385 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
387 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
388 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
391 =head2 guestfs_checksum
393 char *guestfs_checksum (guestfs_h *handle,
394 const char *csumtype,
397 This call computes the MD5, SHAx or CRC checksum of the
400 The type of checksum to compute is given by the C<csumtype>
401 parameter which must have one of the following values:
407 Compute the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) specified by POSIX
408 for the C<cksum> command.
412 Compute the MD5 hash (using the C<md5sum> program).
416 Compute the SHA1 hash (using the C<sha1sum> program).
420 Compute the SHA224 hash (using the C<sha224sum> program).
424 Compute the SHA256 hash (using the C<sha256sum> program).
428 Compute the SHA384 hash (using the C<sha384sum> program).
432 Compute the SHA512 hash (using the C<sha512sum> program).
436 The checksum is returned as a printable string.
438 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
439 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
443 int guestfs_chmod (guestfs_h *handle,
447 Change the mode (permissions) of C<path> to C<mode>. Only
448 numeric modes are supported.
450 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
454 int guestfs_chown (guestfs_h *handle,
459 Change the file owner to C<owner> and group to C<group>.
461 Only numeric uid and gid are supported. If you want to use
462 names, you will need to locate and parse the password file
463 yourself (Augeas support makes this relatively easy).
465 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
467 =head2 guestfs_command
469 char *guestfs_command (guestfs_h *handle,
470 char * const* const arguments);
472 This call runs a command from the guest filesystem. The
473 filesystem must be mounted, and must contain a compatible
474 operating system (ie. something Linux, with the same
475 or compatible processor architecture).
477 The single parameter is an argv-style list of arguments.
478 The first element is the name of the program to run.
479 Subsequent elements are parameters. The list must be
480 non-empty (ie. must contain a program name).
482 The C<$PATH> environment variable will contain at least
483 C</usr/bin> and C</bin>. If you require a program from
484 another location, you should provide the full path in the
487 Shared libraries and data files required by the program
488 must be available on filesystems which are mounted in the
489 correct places. It is the caller's responsibility to ensure
490 all filesystems that are needed are mounted at the right
493 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
494 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
496 =head2 guestfs_command_lines
498 char **guestfs_command_lines (guestfs_h *handle,
499 char * const* const arguments);
501 This is the same as C<guestfs_command>, but splits the
502 result into a list of lines.
504 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
505 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
506 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
508 =head2 guestfs_config
510 int guestfs_config (guestfs_h *handle,
511 const char *qemuparam,
512 const char *qemuvalue);
514 This can be used to add arbitrary qemu command line parameters
515 of the form C<-param value>. Actually it's not quite arbitrary - we
516 prevent you from setting some parameters which would interfere with
517 parameters that we use.
519 The first character of C<param> string must be a C<-> (dash).
521 C<value> can be NULL.
523 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
527 int guestfs_cp (guestfs_h *handle,
531 This copies a file from C<src> to C<dest> where C<dest> is
532 either a destination filename or destination directory.
534 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
538 int guestfs_cp_a (guestfs_h *handle,
542 This copies a file or directory from C<src> to C<dest>
543 recursively using the C<cp -a> command.
545 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
549 char *guestfs_debug (guestfs_h *handle,
551 char * const* const extraargs);
553 The C<guestfs_debug> command exposes some internals of
554 C<guestfsd> (the guestfs daemon) that runs inside the
557 There is no comprehensive help for this command. You have
558 to look at the file C<daemon/debug.c> in the libguestfs source
559 to find out what you can do.
561 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
562 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
564 =head2 guestfs_download
566 int guestfs_download (guestfs_h *handle,
567 const char *remotefilename,
568 const char *filename);
570 Download file C<remotefilename> and save it as C<filename>
571 on the local machine.
573 C<filename> can also be a named pipe.
575 See also C<guestfs_upload>, C<guestfs_cat>.
577 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
579 =head2 guestfs_drop_caches
581 int guestfs_drop_caches (guestfs_h *handle,
584 This instructs the guest kernel to drop its page cache,
585 and/or dentries and inode caches. The parameter C<whattodrop>
586 tells the kernel what precisely to drop, see
587 L<http://linux-mm.org/Drop_Caches>
589 Setting C<whattodrop> to 3 should drop everything.
591 This automatically calls L<sync(2)> before the operation,
592 so that the maximum guest memory is freed.
594 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
596 =head2 guestfs_exists
598 int guestfs_exists (guestfs_h *handle,
601 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a file, directory
602 (or anything) with the given C<path> name.
604 See also C<guestfs_is_file>, C<guestfs_is_dir>, C<guestfs_stat>.
606 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
610 char *guestfs_file (guestfs_h *handle,
613 This call uses the standard L<file(1)> command to determine
614 the type or contents of the file. This also works on devices,
615 for example to find out whether a partition contains a filesystem.
617 The exact command which runs is C<file -bsL path>. Note in
618 particular that the filename is not prepended to the output
621 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
622 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
626 int guestfs_fsck (guestfs_h *handle,
630 This runs the filesystem checker (fsck) on C<device> which
631 should have filesystem type C<fstype>.
633 The returned integer is the status. See L<fsck(8)> for the
634 list of status codes from C<fsck>.
642 Multiple status codes can be summed together.
646 A non-zero return code can mean "success", for example if
647 errors have been corrected on the filesystem.
651 Checking or repairing NTFS volumes is not supported
656 This command is entirely equivalent to running C<fsck -a -t fstype device>.
658 On error this function returns -1.
660 =head2 guestfs_get_autosync
662 int guestfs_get_autosync (guestfs_h *handle);
664 Get the autosync flag.
666 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
668 =head2 guestfs_get_e2label
670 char *guestfs_get_e2label (guestfs_h *handle,
673 This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on
676 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
677 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
679 =head2 guestfs_get_e2uuid
681 char *guestfs_get_e2uuid (guestfs_h *handle,
684 This returns the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on
687 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
688 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
690 =head2 guestfs_get_path
692 const char *guestfs_get_path (guestfs_h *handle);
694 Return the current search path.
696 This is always non-NULL. If it wasn't set already, then this will
697 return the default path.
699 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
700 The string is owned by the guest handle and must I<not> be freed.
702 =head2 guestfs_get_qemu
704 const char *guestfs_get_qemu (guestfs_h *handle);
706 Return the current qemu binary.
708 This is always non-NULL. If it wasn't set already, then this will
709 return the default qemu binary name.
711 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
712 The string is owned by the guest handle and must I<not> be freed.
714 =head2 guestfs_get_state
716 int guestfs_get_state (guestfs_h *handle);
718 This returns the current state as an opaque integer. This is
719 only useful for printing debug and internal error messages.
721 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
723 On error this function returns -1.
725 =head2 guestfs_get_verbose
727 int guestfs_get_verbose (guestfs_h *handle);
729 This returns the verbose messages flag.
731 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
733 =head2 guestfs_grub_install
735 int guestfs_grub_install (guestfs_h *handle,
739 This command installs GRUB (the Grand Unified Bootloader) on
740 C<device>, with the root directory being C<root>.
742 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
744 =head2 guestfs_is_busy
746 int guestfs_is_busy (guestfs_h *handle);
748 This returns true iff this handle is busy processing a command
749 (in the C<BUSY> state).
751 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
753 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
755 =head2 guestfs_is_config
757 int guestfs_is_config (guestfs_h *handle);
759 This returns true iff this handle is being configured
760 (in the C<CONFIG> state).
762 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
764 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
766 =head2 guestfs_is_dir
768 int guestfs_is_dir (guestfs_h *handle,
771 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a directory
772 with the given C<path> name. Note that it returns false for
773 other objects like files.
775 See also C<guestfs_stat>.
777 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
779 =head2 guestfs_is_file
781 int guestfs_is_file (guestfs_h *handle,
784 This returns C<true> if and only if there is a file
785 with the given C<path> name. Note that it returns false for
786 other objects like directories.
788 See also C<guestfs_stat>.
790 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
792 =head2 guestfs_is_launching
794 int guestfs_is_launching (guestfs_h *handle);
796 This returns true iff this handle is launching the subprocess
797 (in the C<LAUNCHING> state).
799 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
801 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
803 =head2 guestfs_is_ready
805 int guestfs_is_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
807 This returns true iff this handle is ready to accept commands
808 (in the C<READY> state).
810 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
812 This function returns a C truth value on success or -1 on error.
814 =head2 guestfs_kill_subprocess
816 int guestfs_kill_subprocess (guestfs_h *handle);
818 This kills the qemu subprocess. You should never need to call this.
820 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
822 =head2 guestfs_launch
824 int guestfs_launch (guestfs_h *handle);
826 Internally libguestfs is implemented by running a virtual machine
829 You should call this after configuring the handle
830 (eg. adding drives) but before performing any actions.
832 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
834 =head2 guestfs_list_devices
836 char **guestfs_list_devices (guestfs_h *handle);
838 List all the block devices.
840 The full block device names are returned, eg. C</dev/sda>
842 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
843 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
844 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
846 =head2 guestfs_list_partitions
848 char **guestfs_list_partitions (guestfs_h *handle);
850 List all the partitions detected on all block devices.
852 The full partition device names are returned, eg. C</dev/sda1>
854 This does not return logical volumes. For that you will need to
857 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
858 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
859 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
863 char *guestfs_ll (guestfs_h *handle,
864 const char *directory);
866 List the files in C<directory> (relative to the root directory,
867 there is no cwd) in the format of 'ls -la'.
869 This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. It
870 is I<not> intended that you try to parse the output string.
872 This function returns a string, or NULL on error.
873 I<The caller must free the returned string after use>.
877 char **guestfs_ls (guestfs_h *handle,
878 const char *directory);
880 List the files in C<directory> (relative to the root directory,
881 there is no cwd). The '.' and '..' entries are not returned, but
882 hidden files are shown.
884 This command is mostly useful for interactive sessions. Programs
885 should probably use C<guestfs_readdir> instead.
887 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
888 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
889 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
893 struct guestfs_stat *guestfs_lstat (guestfs_h *handle,
896 Returns file information for the given C<path>.
898 This is the same as C<guestfs_stat> except that if C<path>
899 is a symbolic link, then the link is stat-ed, not the file it
902 This is the same as the C<lstat(2)> system call.
904 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_stat *>
905 (see L<stat(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
906 or NULL if there was an error.
907 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
909 =head2 guestfs_lvcreate
911 int guestfs_lvcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
913 const char *volgroup,
916 This creates an LVM volume group called C<logvol>
917 on the volume group C<volgroup>, with C<size> megabytes.
919 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
921 =head2 guestfs_lvm_remove_all
923 int guestfs_lvm_remove_all (guestfs_h *handle);
925 This command removes all LVM logical volumes, volume groups
926 and physical volumes.
928 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
930 B<This command is dangerous. Without careful use you
931 can easily destroy all your data>.
933 =head2 guestfs_lvremove
935 int guestfs_lvremove (guestfs_h *handle,
938 Remove an LVM logical volume C<device>, where C<device> is
939 the path to the LV, such as C</dev/VG/LV>.
941 You can also remove all LVs in a volume group by specifying
942 the VG name, C</dev/VG>.
944 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
948 char **guestfs_lvs (guestfs_h *handle);
950 List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
951 of the L<lvs(8)> command.
953 This returns a list of the logical volume device names
954 (eg. C</dev/VolGroup00/LogVol00>).
956 See also C<guestfs_lvs_full>.
958 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
959 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
960 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
962 =head2 guestfs_lvs_full
964 struct guestfs_lvm_lv_list *guestfs_lvs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
966 List all the logical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
967 of the L<lvs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
969 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_lv_list *>
970 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
971 or NULL if there was an error.
972 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_lv_list> after use>.
976 int guestfs_mkdir (guestfs_h *handle,
979 Create a directory named C<path>.
981 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
983 =head2 guestfs_mkdir_p
985 int guestfs_mkdir_p (guestfs_h *handle,
988 Create a directory named C<path>, creating any parent directories
989 as necessary. This is like the C<mkdir -p> shell command.
991 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
995 int guestfs_mkfs (guestfs_h *handle,
999 This creates a filesystem on C<device> (usually a partition
1000 of LVM logical volume). The filesystem type is C<fstype>, for
1003 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1005 =head2 guestfs_mount
1007 int guestfs_mount (guestfs_h *handle,
1009 const char *mountpoint);
1011 Mount a guest disk at a position in the filesystem. Block devices
1012 are named C</dev/sda>, C</dev/sdb> and so on, as they were added to
1013 the guest. If those block devices contain partitions, they will have
1014 the usual names (eg. C</dev/sda1>). Also LVM C</dev/VG/LV>-style
1017 The rules are the same as for L<mount(2)>: A filesystem must
1018 first be mounted on C</> before others can be mounted. Other
1019 filesystems can only be mounted on directories which already
1022 The mounted filesystem is writable, if we have sufficient permissions
1023 on the underlying device.
1025 The filesystem options C<sync> and C<noatime> are set with this
1026 call, in order to improve reliability.
1028 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1030 =head2 guestfs_mount_options
1032 int guestfs_mount_options (guestfs_h *handle,
1033 const char *options,
1035 const char *mountpoint);
1037 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1038 allows you to set the mount options as for the
1039 L<mount(8)> I<-o> flag.
1041 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1043 =head2 guestfs_mount_ro
1045 int guestfs_mount_ro (guestfs_h *handle,
1047 const char *mountpoint);
1049 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1050 mounts the filesystem with the read-only (I<-o ro>) flag.
1052 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1054 =head2 guestfs_mount_vfs
1056 int guestfs_mount_vfs (guestfs_h *handle,
1057 const char *options,
1058 const char *vfstype,
1060 const char *mountpoint);
1062 This is the same as the C<guestfs_mount> command, but it
1063 allows you to set both the mount options and the vfstype
1064 as for the L<mount(8)> I<-o> and I<-t> flags.
1066 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1068 =head2 guestfs_mounts
1070 char **guestfs_mounts (guestfs_h *handle);
1072 This returns the list of currently mounted filesystems. It returns
1073 the list of devices (eg. C</dev/sda1>, C</dev/VG/LV>).
1075 Some internal mounts are not shown.
1077 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1078 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1079 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1083 int guestfs_mv (guestfs_h *handle,
1087 This moves a file from C<src> to C<dest> where C<dest> is
1088 either a destination filename or destination directory.
1090 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1092 =head2 guestfs_pvcreate
1094 int guestfs_pvcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
1095 const char *device);
1097 This creates an LVM physical volume on the named C<device>,
1098 where C<device> should usually be a partition name such
1101 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1103 =head2 guestfs_pvremove
1105 int guestfs_pvremove (guestfs_h *handle,
1106 const char *device);
1108 This wipes a physical volume C<device> so that LVM will no longer
1111 The implementation uses the C<pvremove> command which refuses to
1112 wipe physical volumes that contain any volume groups, so you have
1113 to remove those first.
1115 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1119 char **guestfs_pvs (guestfs_h *handle);
1121 List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1122 of the L<pvs(8)> command.
1124 This returns a list of just the device names that contain
1125 PVs (eg. C</dev/sda2>).
1127 See also C<guestfs_pvs_full>.
1129 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1130 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1131 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1133 =head2 guestfs_pvs_full
1135 struct guestfs_lvm_pv_list *guestfs_pvs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
1137 List all the physical volumes detected. This is the equivalent
1138 of the L<pvs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
1140 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_pv_list *>
1141 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1142 or NULL if there was an error.
1143 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_pv_list> after use>.
1145 =head2 guestfs_read_lines
1147 char **guestfs_read_lines (guestfs_h *handle,
1150 Return the contents of the file named C<path>.
1152 The file contents are returned as a list of lines. Trailing
1153 C<LF> and C<CRLF> character sequences are I<not> returned.
1155 Note that this function cannot correctly handle binary files
1156 (specifically, files containing C<\0> character which is treated
1157 as end of line). For those you need to use the C<guestfs_read_file>
1158 function which has a more complex interface.
1160 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1161 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1162 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1166 int guestfs_rm (guestfs_h *handle,
1169 Remove the single file C<path>.
1171 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1173 =head2 guestfs_rm_rf
1175 int guestfs_rm_rf (guestfs_h *handle,
1178 Remove the file or directory C<path>, recursively removing the
1179 contents if its a directory. This is like the C<rm -rf> shell
1182 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1184 =head2 guestfs_rmdir
1186 int guestfs_rmdir (guestfs_h *handle,
1189 Remove the single directory C<path>.
1191 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1193 =head2 guestfs_set_autosync
1195 int guestfs_set_autosync (guestfs_h *handle,
1198 If C<autosync> is true, this enables autosync. Libguestfs will make a
1199 best effort attempt to run C<guestfs_umount_all> followed by
1200 C<guestfs_sync> when the handle is closed
1201 (also if the program exits without closing handles).
1203 This is disabled by default (except in guestfish where it is
1204 enabled by default).
1206 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1208 =head2 guestfs_set_busy
1210 int guestfs_set_busy (guestfs_h *handle);
1212 This sets the state to C<BUSY>. This is only used when implementing
1213 actions using the low-level API.
1215 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
1217 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1219 =head2 guestfs_set_e2label
1221 int guestfs_set_e2label (guestfs_h *handle,
1225 This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem label of the filesystem on
1226 C<device> to C<label>. Filesystem labels are limited to
1229 You can use either C<guestfs_tune2fs_l> or C<guestfs_get_e2label>
1230 to return the existing label on a filesystem.
1232 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1234 =head2 guestfs_set_e2uuid
1236 int guestfs_set_e2uuid (guestfs_h *handle,
1240 This sets the ext2/3/4 filesystem UUID of the filesystem on
1241 C<device> to C<uuid>. The format of the UUID and alternatives
1242 such as C<clear>, C<random> and C<time> are described in the
1243 L<tune2fs(8)> manpage.
1245 You can use either C<guestfs_tune2fs_l> or C<guestfs_get_e2uuid>
1246 to return the existing UUID of a filesystem.
1248 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1250 =head2 guestfs_set_path
1252 int guestfs_set_path (guestfs_h *handle,
1255 Set the path that libguestfs searches for kernel and initrd.img.
1257 The default is C<$libdir/guestfs> unless overridden by setting
1258 C<LIBGUESTFS_PATH> environment variable.
1260 The string C<path> is stashed in the libguestfs handle, so the caller
1261 must make sure it remains valid for the lifetime of the handle.
1263 Setting C<path> to C<NULL> restores the default path.
1265 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1267 =head2 guestfs_set_qemu
1269 int guestfs_set_qemu (guestfs_h *handle,
1272 Set the qemu binary that we will use.
1274 The default is chosen when the library was compiled by the
1277 You can also override this by setting the C<LIBGUESTFS_QEMU>
1278 environment variable.
1280 The string C<qemu> is stashed in the libguestfs handle, so the caller
1281 must make sure it remains valid for the lifetime of the handle.
1283 Setting C<qemu> to C<NULL> restores the default qemu binary.
1285 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1287 =head2 guestfs_set_ready
1289 int guestfs_set_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
1291 This sets the state to C<READY>. This is only used when implementing
1292 actions using the low-level API.
1294 For more information on states, see L<guestfs(3)>.
1296 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1298 =head2 guestfs_set_verbose
1300 int guestfs_set_verbose (guestfs_h *handle,
1303 If C<verbose> is true, this turns on verbose messages (to C<stderr>).
1305 Verbose messages are disabled unless the environment variable
1306 C<LIBGUESTFS_DEBUG> is defined and set to C<1>.
1308 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1310 =head2 guestfs_sfdisk
1312 int guestfs_sfdisk (guestfs_h *handle,
1317 char * const* const lines);
1319 This is a direct interface to the L<sfdisk(8)> program for creating
1320 partitions on block devices.
1322 C<device> should be a block device, for example C</dev/sda>.
1324 C<cyls>, C<heads> and C<sectors> are the number of cylinders, heads
1325 and sectors on the device, which are passed directly to sfdisk as
1326 the I<-C>, I<-H> and I<-S> parameters. If you pass C<0> for any
1327 of these, then the corresponding parameter is omitted. Usually for
1328 'large' disks, you can just pass C<0> for these, but for small
1329 (floppy-sized) disks, sfdisk (or rather, the kernel) cannot work
1330 out the right geometry and you will need to tell it.
1332 C<lines> is a list of lines that we feed to C<sfdisk>. For more
1333 information refer to the L<sfdisk(8)> manpage.
1335 To create a single partition occupying the whole disk, you would
1336 pass C<lines> as a single element list, when the single element being
1337 the string C<,> (comma).
1339 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1341 B<This command is dangerous. Without careful use you
1342 can easily destroy all your data>.
1346 struct guestfs_stat *guestfs_stat (guestfs_h *handle,
1349 Returns file information for the given C<path>.
1351 This is the same as the C<stat(2)> system call.
1353 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_stat *>
1354 (see L<stat(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1355 or NULL if there was an error.
1356 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
1358 =head2 guestfs_statvfs
1360 struct guestfs_statvfs *guestfs_statvfs (guestfs_h *handle,
1363 Returns file system statistics for any mounted file system.
1364 C<path> should be a file or directory in the mounted file system
1365 (typically it is the mount point itself, but it doesn't need to be).
1367 This is the same as the C<statvfs(2)> system call.
1369 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_statvfs *>
1370 (see L<statvfs(2)> and E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1371 or NULL if there was an error.
1372 I<The caller must call C<free> after use>.
1376 int guestfs_sync (guestfs_h *handle);
1378 This syncs the disk, so that any writes are flushed through to the
1379 underlying disk image.
1381 You should always call this if you have modified a disk image, before
1384 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1386 =head2 guestfs_tar_in
1388 int guestfs_tar_in (guestfs_h *handle,
1389 const char *tarfile,
1390 const char *directory);
1392 This command uploads and unpacks local file C<tarfile> (an
1393 I<uncompressed> tar file) into C<directory>.
1395 To upload a compressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tgz_in>.
1397 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1399 =head2 guestfs_tar_out
1401 int guestfs_tar_out (guestfs_h *handle,
1402 const char *directory,
1403 const char *tarfile);
1405 This command packs the contents of C<directory> and downloads
1406 it to local file C<tarfile>.
1408 To download a compressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tgz_out>.
1410 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1412 =head2 guestfs_tgz_in
1414 int guestfs_tgz_in (guestfs_h *handle,
1415 const char *tarball,
1416 const char *directory);
1418 This command uploads and unpacks local file C<tarball> (a
1419 I<gzip compressed> tar file) into C<directory>.
1421 To upload an uncompressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tar_in>.
1423 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1425 =head2 guestfs_tgz_out
1427 int guestfs_tgz_out (guestfs_h *handle,
1428 const char *directory,
1429 const char *tarball);
1431 This command packs the contents of C<directory> and downloads
1432 it to local file C<tarball>.
1434 To download an uncompressed tarball, use C<guestfs_tar_out>.
1436 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1438 =head2 guestfs_touch
1440 int guestfs_touch (guestfs_h *handle,
1443 Touch acts like the L<touch(1)> command. It can be used to
1444 update the timestamps on a file, or, if the file does not exist,
1445 to create a new zero-length file.
1447 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1449 =head2 guestfs_tune2fs_l
1451 char **guestfs_tune2fs_l (guestfs_h *handle,
1452 const char *device);
1454 This returns the contents of the ext2, ext3 or ext4 filesystem
1455 superblock on C<device>.
1457 It is the same as running C<tune2fs -l device>. See L<tune2fs(8)>
1458 manpage for more details. The list of fields returned isn't
1459 clearly defined, and depends on both the version of C<tune2fs>
1460 that libguestfs was built against, and the filesystem itself.
1462 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of
1463 strings, or NULL if there was an error.
1464 The array of strings will always have length C<2n+1>, where
1465 C<n> keys and values alternate, followed by the trailing NULL entry.
1466 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1468 =head2 guestfs_umount
1470 int guestfs_umount (guestfs_h *handle,
1471 const char *pathordevice);
1473 This unmounts the given filesystem. The filesystem may be
1474 specified either by its mountpoint (path) or the device which
1475 contains the filesystem.
1477 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1479 =head2 guestfs_umount_all
1481 int guestfs_umount_all (guestfs_h *handle);
1483 This unmounts all mounted filesystems.
1485 Some internal mounts are not unmounted by this call.
1487 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1489 =head2 guestfs_upload
1491 int guestfs_upload (guestfs_h *handle,
1492 const char *filename,
1493 const char *remotefilename);
1495 Upload local file C<filename> to C<remotefilename> on the
1498 C<filename> can also be a named pipe.
1500 See also C<guestfs_download>.
1502 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1504 =head2 guestfs_vgcreate
1506 int guestfs_vgcreate (guestfs_h *handle,
1507 const char *volgroup,
1508 char * const* const physvols);
1510 This creates an LVM volume group called C<volgroup>
1511 from the non-empty list of physical volumes C<physvols>.
1513 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1515 =head2 guestfs_vgremove
1517 int guestfs_vgremove (guestfs_h *handle,
1518 const char *vgname);
1520 Remove an LVM volume group C<vgname>, (for example C<VG>).
1522 This also forcibly removes all logical volumes in the volume
1525 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1529 char **guestfs_vgs (guestfs_h *handle);
1531 List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent
1532 of the L<vgs(8)> command.
1534 This returns a list of just the volume group names that were
1535 detected (eg. C<VolGroup00>).
1537 See also C<guestfs_vgs_full>.
1539 This function returns a NULL-terminated array of strings
1540 (like L<environ(3)>), or NULL if there was an error.
1541 I<The caller must free the strings and the array after use>.
1543 =head2 guestfs_vgs_full
1545 struct guestfs_lvm_vg_list *guestfs_vgs_full (guestfs_h *handle);
1547 List all the volumes groups detected. This is the equivalent
1548 of the L<vgs(8)> command. The "full" version includes all fields.
1550 This function returns a C<struct guestfs_lvm_vg_list *>
1551 (see E<lt>guestfs-structs.hE<gt>),
1552 or NULL if there was an error.
1553 I<The caller must call C<guestfs_free_lvm_vg_list> after use>.
1555 =head2 guestfs_wait_ready
1557 int guestfs_wait_ready (guestfs_h *handle);
1559 Internally libguestfs is implemented by running a virtual machine
1562 You should call this after C<guestfs_launch> to wait for the launch
1565 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1567 =head2 guestfs_write_file
1569 int guestfs_write_file (guestfs_h *handle,
1571 const char *content,
1574 This call creates a file called C<path>. The contents of the
1575 file is the string C<content> (which can contain any 8 bit data),
1576 with length C<size>.
1578 As a special case, if C<size> is C<0>
1579 then the length is calculated using C<strlen> (so in this case
1580 the content cannot contain embedded ASCII NULs).
1582 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.
1584 Because of the message protocol, there is a transfer limit
1585 of somewhere between 2MB and 4MB. To transfer large files you should use
1590 int guestfs_zero (guestfs_h *handle,
1591 const char *device);
1593 This command writes zeroes over the first few blocks of C<device>.
1595 How many blocks are zeroed isn't specified (but it's I<not> enough
1596 to securely wipe the device). It should be sufficient to remove
1597 any partition tables, filesystem superblocks and so on.
1599 This function returns 0 on success or -1 on error.