[libvirt-users] location of network xml files

[Cole Robinson]

On 02/28/2010 06:50 PM, carlos campderrós wrote:
> Hello again,
> 
> 2010/3/1 carlos campderrós <gilipollas.desconcertante at gmail.com
> <mailto:gilipollas.desconcertante at gmail.com>>
> 
>     Is it reasonable to symlink (or hardlink if possible) one file to
>     the other? Or to remove the /etc file and point the autostart to the
>     /var file? Also, does the autostart do something? because it's
>     pointing to the ignored file.
> 
> 
> Now I see that the contents of both files are different, so I suppose
> that linking one to another wouldn't work. So, in short, what's the
> purpose of /etc/libvirt/qemu/networks/default.xml?
> 

You aren't supposed to edit the XML files in /etc/libvirt/qemu directly, you
should use virsh for that:

http://wiki.libvirt.org/page/FAQ#Where_are_VM_config_files_stored.3F_How_do_I_edit_a_VM.27s_XML_config.3F

Basically, the location of files under /etc/libvirt/qemu are an implementation
detail and its really not important what their purpose is: you should always
use virsh.

Also, making changes to the XML while the network is running won't take
immediate effect, you will need to restart it. This has more info with respect
to VMs, but it applies to networks as well:

http://wiki.libvirt.org/page/FAQ#If_I_change_the_XML_of_running_machine.2C_do_the_changes_take_immediate_effect.3F

- Cole