Importing an LVM-based qemu/kvm VM into Proxmox

[law]

Hello, I've installed Proxmox onto a system that used to host a KVM/qemu VM in a separate block-device/LVM partition. The partitions are still there, but I don't know how to import the block devices into Proxmox so the VM can be booted. Basically, I think if I can create a new Proxmox-based VM and specify the pre-existing disks, I might get lucky and the VM would "just boot up". I've tried using pvesm to add the LVM partition, then editing the Proxmox qemu-server/<VM-number>.conf file to point to those LVM devices, but it errors out with 'unable to parse lvm volume name' when I try to start the VM. Any thoughts on what I may be doing wrong?

Here's my various versions and system-output:

root@hv03:/home/law# pveversion -v
proxmox-ve: 6.2-2 (running kernel: 5.4.65-1-pve)
pve-manager: 6.2-12 (running version: 6.2-12/b287dd27)
pve-kernel-5.4: 6.2-7
pve-kernel-helper: 6.2-7
pve-kernel-5.4.65-1-pve: 5.4.65-1
pve-kernel-5.4.34-1-pve: 5.4.34-2
ceph-fuse: 12.2.11+dfsg1-2.1+b1
corosync: 3.0.4-pve1
criu: 3.11-3
glusterfs-client: 5.5-3
ifupdown: 0.8.35+pve1
ksm-control-daemon: 1.3-1
libjs-extjs: 6.0.1-10
libknet1: 1.16-pve1
libproxmox-acme-perl: 1.0.5
libpve-access-control: 6.1-2
libpve-apiclient-perl: 3.0-3
libpve-common-perl: 6.2-2
libpve-guest-common-perl: 3.1-3
libpve-http-server-perl: 3.0-6
libpve-storage-perl: 6.2-8
libqb0: 1.0.5-1
libspice-server1: 0.14.2-4~pve6+1
lvm2: 2.03.02-pve4
lxc-pve: 4.0.3-1
lxcfs: 4.0.3-pve3
novnc-pve: 1.1.0-1
proxmox-backup-client: 0.9.0-2
proxmox-mini-journalreader: 1.1-1
proxmox-widget-toolkit: 2.2-12
pve-cluster: 6.1-8
pve-container: 3.2-2
pve-docs: 6.2-6
pve-edk2-firmware: 2.20200531-1
pve-firewall: 4.1-3
pve-firmware: 3.1-3
pve-ha-manager: 3.1-1
pve-i18n: 2.2-1
pve-qemu-kvm: 5.1.0-2
pve-xtermjs: 4.7.0-2
qemu-server: 6.2-14
smartmontools: 7.1-pve2
spiceterm: 3.1-1
vncterm: 1.6-2
zfsutils-linux: 0.8.4-pve1

root@hv03:/home/law# lsblk -f
NAME FSTYPE LABEL UUID FSAVAIL FSUSE% MOUNTPOINT
sda
├─sda1
├─sda2 vfat C138-D19E
└─sda3 LVM2_member 83jKKp-0prs-h6oZ-X4do-WAcb-jQWc-GBkmJw
├─pve-swap swap f4db51d5-ff1f-46c8-b7fa-01979e8af17f [SWAP]
├─pve-root ext4 78866a2d-25c3-4e47-a9f0-0dbb9cb58e24 10.9G 50% /
├─pve-data_tmeta
│ └─pve-data-tpool
│ ├─pve-data
│ └─pve-vm--100--disk--0
└─pve-data_tdata
└─pve-data-tpool
├─pve-data
└─pve-vm--100--disk--0
sdb
└─sdb1 LVM2_member YlL5xg-OS3K-6wyQ-e6LY-SkR2-WZ2r-W1Usxb
├─volY-storage ext4 194a8d82-1d5e-4d7d-ac10-01a3c5f57000
├─volY-dopefish
├─volY-dopefishvdb LVM2_member w9lKmW-puxU-akfk-NuK0-yQ2T-uNK3-NVM0Kj
│ └─volX-var2 ext4 c42c2299-d2d7-4e5c-a7c2-5a658b960e82
├─volY-repo
├─volY-ci
└─volY-testvm
sr0

root@hv03:/home/law# lvs -a
LV VG Attr LSize Pool Origin Data% Meta% Move Log Cpy%Sync Convert
data pve twi-aotz-- 52.37g 0.00 1.59
[data_tdata] pve Twi-ao---- 52.37g
[data_tmeta] pve ewi-ao---- 1.00g
[lvol0_pmspare] pve ewi------- 1.00g
root pve -wi-ao---- 24.75g
swap pve -wi-ao---- 8.00g
vm-100-disk-0 pve Vwi-a-tz-- 32.00g data 0.00
var2 volX -wi-a----- 40.00g
ci volY -wi-a----- 80.00g
dopefish volY -wi-a----- 350.00g
dopefishvdb volY -wi-ao---- 150.00g
repo volY -wi-a----- 60.00g
storage volY -wi-a----- 465.66g
testvm volY -wi-a----- 10.00g
root@hv03:/home/law#
root@hv03:/home/law# vgs -a
VG #PV #LV #SN Attr VSize VFree
pve 1 4 0 wz--n- <99.50g <12.38g
volX 1 1 0 wz--n- <150.00g <110.00g
volY 1 6 0 wz--n- <1.82t <746.84g


root@hv03:/home/law# cat /etc/pve/storage.cfg
dir: local
path /var/lib/vz
content iso,vztmpl,backup

lvmthin: local-lvm
thinpool data
vgname pve
content rootdir,images

lvm: volX
vgname volX
content images

lvm: volY
vgname volY

root@hv03:/home/law# pvs
PV VG Fmt Attr PSize PFree
/dev/sda3 pve lvm2 a-- <99.50g <12.38g
/dev/sdb1 volY lvm2 a-- <1.82t <746.84g

root@hv03:/home/law# vgs
VG #PV #LV #SN Attr VSize VFree
pve 1 4 0 wz--n- <99.50g <12.38g
volX 1 1 0 wz--n- <150.00g <110.00g
volY 1 6 0 wz--n- <1.82t <746.84g

root@hv03:/home/law# lvs
LV VG Attr LSize Pool Origin Data% Meta% Move Log Cpy%Sync Convert
data pve twi-aotz-- 52.37g 0.00 1.59
root pve -wi-ao---- 24.75g
swap pve -wi-ao---- 8.00g
vm-100-disk-0 pve Vwi-a-tz-- 32.00g data 0.00
var2 volX -wi-a----- 40.00g
dopefish volY -wi-a----- 350.00g
dopefishvdb volY -wi-ao---- 150.00g

cat /etc/pve/nodes/hv03/qemu-server/100.conf
bootdisk: scsi0
cores: 1
ide2: none,media=cdrom
memory: 4096
name: dopefish
net0: virtio=CA:0E:1E:ED:59:C3,bridge=vmbr0,firewall=1
numa: 0
ostype: l26
scsi0: volY:dopefish,size=350G
scsihw: virtio-scsi-pci
smbios1: uuid=3bd508e5-7537-4a6d-844c-e1e5d16b4dfb
sockets: 1
vmgenid: 3b807667-6f62-4979-acb1-2b5da7bf5996


The only LVs I care about in the above output are /dev/mapper/volY-dopefish and /dev/mapper/volY-dopefishvdb. I believe if I can get those imported into Proxmox and properly defined in a VM, I should be good to go.

 

[apoc]

The only LVs I care about in the above output are /dev/mapper/volY-dopefish and /dev/mapper/volY-dopefishvdb.

Proxmox expects the disk names to follow a certain naming convention. If the disks don't match this it won't work according to my experience.
I am convinced that is the reason why it fails.
I am not 100% sure about the name but you should easily be able to find out by just adding a new disk.
Rename the existing lvm volumes to match the expected format and I guess you are good to go.

 

[law]

Thanks so much for the quick reply! What is the expected naming convention, and would using 'lvrename', 'vgrename', etc, be the way to do it, or is there a proxmox-centric command I should be using instead?

 

[apoc]

This should be the format:
local-lvm:vm-101-disk-0
Local-lvm in this case is the proxmox storage name
I would go with lvrename.
HTH

 

[Dominic]

If renaming does not work, you can also dd the logical volume to a regular file

(Please check before copying)

dd if=/dev/volY/dopefish of=image.raw

and then use the importdisk command of Proxmox VE

qm importdisk 100 image.raw local-lvm

which handles all the naming.