SPICE clipboard not working for Debian 12 KDE VM

J

jAston

New Member
Aug 26, 2023
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Install new VM debian-live-12.9.0-amd64-kde.iso

On VM, make sure agent is running
Code: 
ps aux | grep spice-vdagent
systemctl start spice-vdagent

Host Settings:
Code: 
BIOS: UEFI
Machine: Q35
Display: Spice (QXL)

- Start SPICE console
- Copy text in VM
- Paste on Host

Actual result: Empty clipboard, nothing pasted
Expected: Text from VM pasted

Pasting from another Ubuntu VM works on same Host for me.
 
Last edited:
jAston said:
Install new VM debian-live-12.9.0-amd64-kde.iso

On VM, make sure agent is running
Code: 
ps aux | grep spice-vdagent
systemctl start spice-vdagent

Host Settings:
Code: 
BIOS: UEFI
Machine: Q35
Display: Spice (QXL)

- Start SPICE console
- Copy text in VM
- Paste on Host

Actual result: Empty clipboard, nothing pasted
Expected: Text from VM pasted

Pasting from another Ubuntu VM works on same Host for me.
Click to expand...
The SPICE clipboard issue in Debian 12 KDE might be caused by missing dependencies or KDE's clipboard manager (Klipper) interfering. Try the following steps:

1️ Ensure spice-vdagent is Installed & Running​

Run inside the Debian 12 KDE VM:
Bash: 
sudo apt update
sudo apt install spice-vdagent -y
systemctl enable --now spice-vdagent

Check if it's running:
Bash: 
systemctl status spice-vdagent

2️ Disable KDE's Clipboard Manager (Klipper)​

Temporarily disable Klipper and test clipboard:
Bash: 
killall klipper

If this works, disable Klipper at startup:
  • Open System Settings → Startup and Shutdown
  • Remove Klipper from the startup list.

3️ Use virtio-vga Instead of QXL​

In Proxmox VM Settings, change:
  • Display: SPICE (QXL) → SPICE (virtio-vga)
  • Restart the VM.

4️ Enable Clipboard Support in SPICE Client​

If using remote-viewer, start it with clipboard enabled:
Bash: 
remote-viewer --spice-clipboard=on spice://your-vm-ip:port

If using .vv config files, make sure they contain:
INI: 
enable-smartcard=1
clipboard=on

Final Steps:​

✅ Check if spice-vdagent is installed and running.
✅ Disable KDE's Klipper if it's interfering with the clipboard.
✅ Switch to virtio-vga display mode in Proxmox settings.
✅ Ensure SPICE client clipboard support is enabled.

I hope this answer was helpful :)
 
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Thank you, your answer is appreciated.

1.)
Getting
Unknown option --spice-clipboard=on

On a Ubuntu 22.04, the outdated virt-viewer might be an issue
Code: 
virt-viewer --version
virt-viewer version 7.0

Not sure how to upgrade it right now..

2.)
Klipper wasn't running at all, not sure if because I debloated Debian 12 initially

3.)
Can only set Graphic Card in Proxmox VM Settings to
VirtIO-GPU
or
SPICE
SPICE dual monitor
etc.
 
The problem appears to be with the Debian KDE build. If you install and change to XFCE, Spice works immediately and you can copy and paste outside of the VM.
 
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