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Using the CLI tools

The two primary CLI tools used for managing resources in the cluster are:

  • The OpenShift Virtualization virtctl client

  • The OpenShift Container Platform oc client

Prerequisites

Virtctl client commands

The virtctl client is a command-line utility for managing OpenShift Virtualization resources.

To view a list of virtctl commands, run the following command:

$ virtctl help

To view a list of options that you can use with a specific command, run it with the -h or --help flag. For example:

$ virtctl image-upload -h

To view a list of global command options that you can use with any virtctl command, run the following command:

$ virtctl options

The following table contains the virtctl commands used throughout the OpenShift Virtualization documentation.

Table 1. virtctl client commands
Command Description

virtctl start <vm_name>

Start a virtual machine.

virtctl stop <vm_name>

Stop a virtual machine.

virtctl pause vm|vmi <object_name>

Pause a virtual machine or virtual machine instance. The machine state is kept in memory.

virtctl unpause vm|vmi <object_name>

Unpause a virtual machine or virtual machine instance.

virtctl migrate <vm_name>

Migrate a virtual machine.

virtctl restart <vm_name>

Restart a virtual machine.

virtctl expose <vm_name>

Create a service that forwards a designated port of a virtual machine or virtual machine instance and expose the service on the specified port of the node.

virtctl console <vmi_name>

Connect to a serial console of a virtual machine instance.

virtctl vnc --kubeconfig=$KUBECONFIG <vmi_name>

Open a VNC (Virtual Network Client) connection to a virtual machine instance. Access the graphical console of a virtual machine instance through a VNC which requires a remote viewer on your local machine.

virtctl vnc --kubeconfig=$KUBECONFIG --proxy-only=true <vmi-name>

Display the port number and connect manually to the virtual machine instance by using any viewer through the VNC connection.

virtctl vnc --kubeconfig=$KUBECONFIG --port=<port-number> <vmi-name>

Specify a port number to run the proxy on the specified port, if that port is available. If a port number is not specified, the proxy runs on a random port.

virtctl image-upload dv <datavolume_name> --image-path=</path/to/image> --no-create

Upload a virtual machine image to a data volume that already exists.

virtctl image-upload dv <datavolume_name> --size=<datavolume_size> --image-path=</path/to/image>

Upload a virtual machine image to a new data volume.

virtctl version

Display the client and server version information.

virtctl help

Display a descriptive list of virtctl commands.

virtctl fslist <vmi_name>

Return a full list of file systems available on the guest machine.

virtctl guestosinfo <vmi_name>

Return guest agent information about the operating system.

virtctl userlist <vmi_name>

Return a full list of logged-in users on the guest machine.

OpenShift Container Platform client commands

The OpenShift Container Platform oc client is a command-line utility for managing OpenShift Container Platform resources, including the VirtualMachine (vm) and VirtualMachineInstance (vmi) object types.

You can use the -n <namespace> flag to specify a different project.
Table 2. oc commands
Command Description

oc login -u <user_name>

Log in to the OpenShift Container Platform cluster as <user_name>.

oc get <object_type>

Display a list of objects for the specified object type in the current project.

oc describe <object_type> <resource_name>

Display details of the specific resource in the current project.

oc create -f <object_config>

Create a resource in the current project from a file name or from stdin.

oc edit <object_type> <resource_name>

Edit a resource in the current project.

oc delete <object_type> <resource_name>

Delete a resource in the current project.

For more comprehensive information on oc client commands, see the OpenShift Container Platform CLI tools documentation.