All was well, until an 'update'.
Have a very small Python script that uses ffmpeg to
record/resize an rtsp stream from a security camera.
The '-t' param determines the video length, then the
ffmpeg process auto-ends. Then we repeat for the
next video segment. 5-minute vids are ideal.
Or USED TO be.
Now, several times a day, oddly most often at certain
hours, the ffmpeg process will HANG - never exits,
never makes anything beyond a zero-byte vid. No
messages. Might work for 5 minutes, 5 hours, 15 hours,
but it WILL hang eventually.
Kept complicating the script, attempting to force
ffmpeg to end with "kill" or "pkill" commands - but
they are usually invulnerable to that.
Latest, ultra-simplfied ... a little better but STILL
prone to hanging-up.
So, had to write a watchdog script. If the log file
doesn't get updated in 150% vidlength then it reboots
the box. Radical, but the ONLY apparent fix and I've
tried a bunch, a bunch of bunches.
This is all running on a MX Libereto ... a fairly
recent incarnation based on BullsEye.
And no no no ... I'm NOT going to try and install another
version of ffmpeg. Tried that once - it's dependencies
and dependencies and dependencies in a massively growing
pyramid. You'd have to gut the entire system, wind up
with some horrible unmaintainable FrankenDistro.
SO ... for now ... I can stick with my kinda-crappy
fix and hope for an updated update OR move this
particular app to another box, another distro, and
hope it's worth it.
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those limitations do
not apply.
On 2026-02-18 05:53, c186282 wrote:
All was well, until an 'update'.
Have a very small Python script that uses ffmpeg to
record/resize an rtsp stream from a security camera.
The '-t' param determines the video length, then the
ffmpeg process auto-ends. Then we repeat for the
next video segment. 5-minute vids are ideal.
Or USED TO be.
Now, several times a day, oddly most often at certain
hours, the ffmpeg process will HANG - never exits,
never makes anything beyond a zero-byte vid. No
messages. Might work for 5 minutes, 5 hours, 15 hours,
but it WILL hang eventually.
Kept complicating the script, attempting to force
ffmpeg to end with "kill" or "pkill" commands - but
they are usually invulnerable to that.
Latest, ultra-simplfied ... a little better but STILL
prone to hanging-up.
So, had to write a watchdog script. If the log file
doesn't get updated in 150% vidlength then it reboots
the box. Radical, but the ONLY apparent fix and I've
tried a bunch, a bunch of bunches.
This is all running on a MX Libereto ... a fairly
recent incarnation based on BullsEye.
And no no no ... I'm NOT going to try and install another
version of ffmpeg. Tried that once - it's dependencies
and dependencies and dependencies in a massively growing
pyramid. You'd have to gut the entire system, wind up
with some horrible unmaintainable FrankenDistro.
SO ... for now ... I can stick with my kinda-crappy
fix and hope for an updated update OR move this
particular app to another box, another distro, and
hope it's worth it.
In some cases, ffmpeg makes use of hardware support for the codec. If it
is doing this, probably you can force doing it all in software.
You can try a different codec.
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
"Depricated" is an EVIL word.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
On 2026-02-19 02:42, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
I haven't noticed any.
On 2026-02-19 02:42, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
I haven't noticed any.
On 2/18/26 20:07, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:32:33 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why, to
get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside of
the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
-a Actually, ffmpeg issues are one of the reasons
-a I completely dumped OpenSUSE a few years ago.
-a The other issue was them dropping a bunch of
-a old/good CL utils that I was parsing to get
-a useful data. "Depricated" is an EVIL word.
On 2/18/26 07:32, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 05:53, c186282 wrote:
All was well, until an 'update'.
In some cases, ffmpeg makes use of hardware support for the codec. If
it is doing this, probably you can force doing it all in software.
You can try a different codec.
If you want to try a different distro, openSUSE leap 15.6 has
available several ffmpeg versions, so you can try which works.
-a I'll have to look in to "forcing it" to not use
-a a codec ... IF that'll work.
-a It makes ".mkv" videos ... seem a bit more compact
-a than MP4s. I don't have 50tb for saving all this.
-a Anyway, the prob started right after a 'full-upgrade',
-a so I'm figuring I got a busted version of ffmpeg.
Some people say to never update a production machine. Some keep them
running for a decade.
On 19/02/2026 05:16, c186282 wrote:
"Depricated" is an EVIL word.
It sure is...:=)
On 19/02/2026 11:27, Carlos E. R. wrote:
Some people say to never update a production machine. Some keep them
running for a decade.
I have great sympathy with that view.
I *only* do a major upgrade when there is a severe security issue or I
need as program that wont run on my existing version.
Embedded stuff I don't upgrade at all. It's working now. Why change it?
On 2026-02-19 02:42, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why,
to get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside
of the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
I haven't noticed any.
I've marked a lot of my code "deprecated" (which is the correct
spelling, by the way),
Some people say to never update a production machine.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 18:51:42 GMT, Charlie Gibbs wrote:
I've marked a lot of my code "deprecated" (which is the correct
spelling, by the way),
All too often I have seen it turn into rCLdepreciatedrCY ...
... maybe for tax purposes, I guess ...
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 12:27:53 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
Some people say to never update a production machine.
If it runs as a VM, it is easy enough to take a snapshot before an
upgrade.
On 19/02/2026 11:27, Carlos E. R. wrote:
Some people say to never update a production machine. Some keep them
-arunning for a decade.
I have great sympathy with that view.
I *only* do a major upgrade when there is a severe security issue or I
need as program that wont run on my existing version.
Embedded stuff I don't upgrade at all. It's working now. Why change it?
Oh yea ... 'KVM' is no longer in the Deb distro libs.
ffmpeg is a huge complicated collection of utilities
accessed under one name.
If it worked in 1996 and will still work
-a in 2026 then there's NO reason for it to
-a be deprecated. At least keep it in the
-a distro libs and allow manual installation.
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 12:19:44 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-19 02:42, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Thu, 19 Feb 2026 02:07:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-18 22:07, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
Prebuilt distributions of FFmpeg can never have all the options
available in the source enabled, for legal reasons. This is why,
to get the maximum capability, you have to build from source.
openSUSE doesn't build ffmpg inside openSUSE. It is built outside
of the project, and distributed outside of the project, so those
limitations do not apply.
The limitations still apply.
I haven't noticed any.
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
...--
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
Oh yea ... 'KVM' is no longer in the Deb distro libs.
There's some Xen stuff, but no kvm - and Deb doesn't even include a
VirtualBox anymore, you'd have to download the whole mess from
Oracle. KVM is good, VirtualBox is good ... Xen, well, never liked
it.
Did change a box to Deb Trixie today to see if it gets around my
ffmpeg problem. Seems pretty nice.
Also put a bunch of x-devel tools on it ... maybe I can do my Ards
and Pico's ...
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
And what do you know, those old stanzas work fine with Debian
Trixie's ffmpeg. But on Debian Bookworm, they produce non-working
crap.
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 12:26:31 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
I wonder how they can redistribute it, then ...
On 2026-02-21 00:21, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 12:26:31 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
I wonder how they can redistribute it, then ...
I told you how. It is distributed by another group outside of the
company, using a server in a country with friendly legislation.
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 01:38:38 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-21 00:21, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 12:26:31 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
I wonder how they can redistribute it, then ...
I told you how. It is distributed by another group outside of the
company, using a server in a country with friendly legislation.
rCLPiracy-friendlyrCY legislation? Not signatories to the Hague
Convention, then?
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 01:21:49 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh yea ... 'KVM' is no longer in the Deb distro libs.
There's some Xen stuff, but no kvm - and Deb doesn't even include a
VirtualBox anymore, you'd have to download the whole mess from
Oracle. KVM is good, VirtualBox is good ... Xen, well, never liked
it.
https://tutorialforlinux.com/2025/08/08/how-to-install-kvm-on-debian- trixie-step-by-step/
lsmod | grep kvm
The kernel module probably is already loaded or else you can load it with modprobe. I'm surprised the instructions don't include editing
libvirtd.conf.
Even the Intel processor on my 15 year old netbook supports virtualization
so that shouldn't be a problem, although it might be turned off in the
bios.
The instructions for different distros is about the same although the packages that add qemu, virt-manager, and so forth might have different names. Fedora 43 makes it easy -- 'sudo dnf install @virtualization'.
We used to use xen on a HA server but it switched to kvm. The support
people didn't miss xen. It did amuse me that the sysadmins that refused to use Linux didn't know their Windows Server VMs were running on Red Hat.
A gaudy interface. The alleged package manager/updater only shows about
10 percent of what's actually there. Zypper can search - but installing something does not mean it will WORK. It's worse than Centos/Gnome4. It
is just unusable except maybe for Granny who only wants web/e-mail.
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 01:11:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
A gaudy interface. The alleged package manager/updater only shows about
10 percent of what's actually there. Zypper can search - but installing
something does not mean it will WORK. It's worse than Centos/Gnome4. It
is just unusable except maybe for Granny who only wants web/e-mail.
I only installed it into a VM but Leap/KDE looks just the same as Fedora/
KDE and EndeavourOS/KDE. If you don't like KDE you should have went with Leap/GNOME. That one really sucks.
You do seem to be having more problems than the average bear.
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 01:38:38 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-21 00:21, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 12:26:31 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
I wonder how they can redistribute it, then ...
I told you how. It is distributed by another group outside of the
company, using a server in a country with friendly legislation.
rCLPiracy-friendlyrCY legislation? Not signatories to the Hague
Convention, then?
On 2/20/26 14:32, rbowman wrote:
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 01:21:49 -0500, c186282 wrote:
We used to use xen on a HA server but it switched to kvm. The support
people didn't miss xen. It did amuse me that the sysadmins that
refused to
use Linux didn't know their Windows Server VMs were running on Red Hat.
-a Ya see, this is all COMPLICATED - fine if you're a
-a highly-caffeinated teenage geek who is not distracted
-a by any girlfriends, but I ain't teen-aged anymore
-a by a LONG shot.
-a I screwed around for awhile and apparently DID manage
-a to load the KVM kernel stuff - it's mostly under 'qemu-"
-a entries. Alas, nothing new in the menus.
-a So, downloaded VirtualBox ... but attempting to get
-a an OpenSUSE to install there were evil messages about
-a how it couldn't run because some KVM kernel shit had
-a already been done. Instructions for disabling/removing
-a said KVM shit ... kinda useless. Best advice was to
-a rebuild the kernel from scratch - NO THANKS !
-a Can't get there from here.
-a SO, have OpenSUSE installing right now - netinst over
-a my slow-ass connection. Told it to install all the
-a KVM stuff, so I'll see what I get. VBox is good but
-a KVM is pretty good too so I don't care.
-a SO, instead of Deb13 with an OSUSE VM it'll hopefully
-a be OSUSE with a Deb13 VM :-)
-a Oh, Deb13 did NOT solve my ffmpeg problem. A little
-a better, but ..... I swear it is somehow linked to
-a the time of day !
-a We'll see if Leap can do it better.
-a DID have to pick KDE ... the XFCE was 'experimental
-a Wayland' and I really don't wanna do Wayland.
-a Leap now promises 24 months of support. This ain't
-a too bad. If I'm still alive in two years, well,
-a who knows what I'll install. NOT sure how easy it
-a is to update OS "in place" these days, haven't
-a used the distro in awhile.
-a Hell, my last OS install was Tumbleweed - on a PI4 !
KDE ??? What kind of USELESS MESS *is* this ???
Installed OpenSUSE/KDE.
WHAT A WASTE OF TIME !!!
A gaudy interface. The alleged package manager/updater
only shows about 10 percent of what's actually there.
Zypper can search - but installing something does not
mean it will WORK. It's worse than Centos/Gnome4. It
is just unusable except maybe for Granny who only wants
web/e-mail.
CLAIMED ssh/sshd were installed, but the proper files
were not in the proper /etc folder to set anything.
Could NOT start the firewall (I use non-standard ports
for some stuff). 'firewalld' - nada.
On Fri, 20 Feb 2026 12:26:31 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
On 2026-02-20 05:40, Lawrence DrCOOliveiro wrote:
# ./configure --enable-gpl ... --enable-nonfree ...
Both are present in the openSUSE rpm.
...
license='nonfree and unredistributable'
I wonder how they can redistribute it, then ...
On 2/21/26 01:33, rbowman wrote:
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 01:11:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
A gaudy interface. The alleged package manager/updater only shows about
10 percent of what's actually there. Zypper can search - but installing
something does not mean it will WORK. It's worse than Centos/Gnome4. It
is just unusable except maybe for Granny who only wants web/e-mail.
I only installed it into a VM but Leap/KDE looks just the same as Fedora/ KDE and EndeavourOS/KDE. If you don't like KDE you should have went with Leap/GNOME. That one really sucks.
Hard to imagine it's even MORE sucky ...
But I do remember Centos with G4 ... a constant
fight to accomplish anything useful, and those
HUGE icons !!!
And people wonder why I stick with LXDE/Debs.
You get a COMPUTER computer geared to DO stuff.
You do seem to be having more problems than the average bear.
Things have not gone well of late. They went very well
for a very long time, but now ......
As usual, everybody is convinced they have the
BETTER PLAN.
And DON'T.
Anyway, Deb13 back on the box. Took barely 15 minutes
to install, five minutes to install/set VNC and SSH.
Synaptic shows EVERYTHING and helps you along.
I'll go for VirtualBox tomorrow.
Ever tried GhostBSD ? It's pretty nice and straight-up.
They SAY it's sort of a merger of FreeBSD and TrueOS.
MAY also make an Arch Universe VM. I can just barely
stand Manjaro/XFCE and the one remaining box has been
reliable (until the nvidia lib issue recently mentioned).
Gonna give that one a couple of weeks ... if I'm having
issues LOTS of people are.
I have been upgrading in place my SUSE system for over two decades.
Have you tried using virt-manager to manage your kvm instances?
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 12:54:02 +0100, Carlos E. R. wrote:
I have been upgrading in place my SUSE system for over two decades.
You're lucky.
At the time many were having problems with upgrading 13.2 to--
Leap 42 and a reinstall was recommended. I didn't and ran 13.2 past its
EOL. Historically the attraction of SuSE for me was KDE but now I have Fedora/KDE and Endeavour/KDE and SUSE/KDE in a VM. I haven't seen anything
in the VM that would make me install it on bare metal. Nothing wrong with
it but nothing outstanding either. I already have a rolling and semi-
rolling release so Tumbleweed has no advantage.
On Sat, 21 Feb 2026 12:14:49 +0000, vallor wrote:
Have you tried using virt-manager to manage your kvm instances?
I was impressed by virt-manager. I don't know how it could get any
easier.
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
All was well, until an 'update'.
Have a very small Python script that uses ffmpeg to
...
Now, several times a day, oddly most often at certain
hours, the ffmpeg process will HANG - never exits,
On Sun, 22 Feb 2026 04:42:43 -0500, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
They don't have kvm as a distinct thing because it's baked into the
kernel.
KVM -- Kernel-based Virtualization Machine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel-based_Virtual_Machine
ffmpeg seems to be on all my boxes including the Pi but I have never used
it afaik.
On 2/22/26 13:49, rbowman wrote:
On Sun, 22 Feb 2026 04:42:43 -0500, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
They don't have kvm as a distinct thing because it's baked into the
kernel.
KVM -- Kernel-based Virtualization Machine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel-based_Virtual_Machine
ffmpeg seems to be on all my boxes including the Pi but I have never used it afaik.
Sorry, but I'd like to SEE it - and be able to
add/remove it easily.
"Baking it into the kernel" seems an attempt to
deny or hyper-complicate all other solutions.
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct
thing to install.
On Sun, 22 Feb 2026 04:42:43 -0500, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
They don't have kvm as a distinct thing because it's baked into the
kernel.
KVM -- Kernel-based Virtualization Machine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel-based_Virtual_Machine
"Baking it into the kernel" seems an attempt to deny or
hyper-complicate all other solutions.
At Sun, 22 Feb 2026 23:11:51 -0500, c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
On 2/22/26 13:49, rbowman wrote:
On Sun, 22 Feb 2026 04:42:43 -0500, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
They don't have kvm as a distinct thing because it's baked into the
kernel.
KVM -- Kernel-based Virtualization Machine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel-based_Virtual_Machine
ffmpeg seems to be on all my boxes including the Pi but I have never
used it afaik.
Sorry, but I'd like to SEE it - and be able to add/remove it easily.
"Baking it into the kernel" seems an attempt to deny or
hyper-complicate all other solutions.
?
Just run virt-manager.
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
At Sun, 22 Feb 2026 23:11:51 -0500, c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
On 2/22/26 13:49, rbowman wrote:
On Sun, 22 Feb 2026 04:42:43 -0500, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
They don't have kvm as a distinct thing because it's baked into the
kernel.
KVM -- Kernel-based Virtualization Machine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernel-based_Virtual_Machine
ffmpeg seems to be on all my boxes including the Pi but I have never used >>> it afaik.
Sorry, but I'd like to SEE it - and be able to
add/remove it easily.
"Baking it into the kernel" seems an attempt to
deny or hyper-complicate all other solutions.
?
Just run virt-manager.
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct
thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 09:43:52 +0000, Nuno Silva wrote:
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
Yeah, it was in the Sun box of goodies.
So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
about 'freedom' after all :-)
On 2026-02-24, c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
about 'freedom' after all :-)
Is this a Trixie thing? I'm still on Bookworm, and
running Windows XP under Virtual Box 7.2 on my laptop.
(I must have forgotten an update for the desktop box -
I just looked and it's still running 7.0.)
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
On 2/23/26 04:43, Nuno Silva wrote:
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
It's always been Oracle, or has been for a LONG time.
So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
lock me into KVM.
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:48:59 -0500, c186282 wrote:
On 2/23/26 04:43, Nuno Silva wrote:
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
It's always been Oracle, or has been for a LONG time.
Since they bought Sun. I forget who Sun bought to get it.
The first
-a one that cleanly solves my mentioned ffmpeg
-a problem becomes the surviving VM.
-a So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
-a lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
-a about 'freedom' after all-a :-)
On 2026-02-24 12:26 a.m., c186282 wrote:
-a So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
-a lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
-a about 'freedom' after all-a :-)
You're not locked in at all. There is absolutely nothing stopping you
from running VirtualBox on Debian. It's not part of the main stable repositories for support reasons. You can get packages from other
sources, either within the Debian project or directly from Oracle.
(Your choice.) Read the Debian wiki page about VirtualBox instead of spreading this nonsense:
https://wiki.debian.org/VirtualBox
In any case, I don't want ANY Linux FORCING me into software choices.
KVM is good ... but I know VBox a bit better and like some of its
options. I thus choose to emulate using VBox, not KVM. Alas "baking
in" KVM into the kernel makes VBox unusable without massive kernel
destruction.
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:47:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
You sure? 'lsmod | grep kvm'
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:48:59 -0500, c186282 wrote:
On 2/23/26 04:43, Nuno Silva wrote:
On 2026-02-22, c186282 wrote:
I know VirtualBox better than KVM at this point,
and the repos no longer have KVM as a distinct thing to install.
Speaking of it and virtualization software in general, isn't VirtualBox
now owned by Oracle Legal... er, I mean, Oracle?
It's always been Oracle, or has been for a LONG time.
Since they bought Sun. I forget who Sun bought to get it.
On 24/02/2026 15:16, John-Paul Stewart wrote:
On 2026-02-24 12:26 a.m., c186282 wrote:
-a-a So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
-a-a lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
-a-a about 'freedom' after all-a :-)
You're not locked in at all.-a There is absolutely nothing stopping you
from running VirtualBox on Debian.-a It's not part of the main stable
repositories for support reasons.-a You can get packages from other
sources, either within the Debian project or directly from Oracle.
(Your choice.)-a Read the Debian wiki page about VirtualBox instead of
spreading this nonsense:
https://wiki.debian.org/VirtualBox
I think it is a philosophical issue with Debian, and one of the reasons
I migrated to Mint: they were not picky about including 'nonfree' stuff
by default. Like virtual box and Nvidia graphics drivers and iirc a broadcomm wifi driver.
I respect Debian's position, but for my money having an 'It Just Works' distro like Mint is overall to be preferred.
On 2026-02-24 12:26 a.m., c186282 wrote:I said somewhere that there IS a problem in Trixie.
-a So ... I don't want Linux/Deb know-betters to
-a lock me into KVM. Linux was supposed to be
-a about 'freedom' after all-a :-)
You're not locked in at all. There is absolutely nothing stopping you
from running VirtualBox on Debian.
On 2/24/26 02:39, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:47:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
You sure? 'lsmod | grep kvm'
Let's say it's not "baked in" in a fashion that keeps VBox from
working. Trixie does.
I said somewhere that there IS a problem in Trixie. Just TRY to run a
VBox VM - all kinds of KVM-related errors and nothing runs.
On 2/24/26 02:39, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:47:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
You sure? 'lsmod | grep kvm'
Let's say it's not "baked in" in a fashion
that keeps VBox from working. Trixie does.
At least with Trixie, you CAN'T run a VBox VM ...
a bunch of error messages happen saying that
kernel KVM stuff is responsible. Removing those
blocks ... tried a few weird complicated fixes
but they didn't work. And no, I'm NOT gonna
shred and rebuild the kernel ... I'll use
another distro.
On Tue, 24 Feb 2026 21:35:35 -0500, c186282 wrote:
On 2/24/26 02:39, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:47:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
You sure? 'lsmod | grep kvm'
Let's say it's not "baked in" in a fashion that keeps VBox from
working. Trixie does.
Check /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf. You can unload the module with
'sudo modprobe -r kvm_intel kvm' or kvm_amd if that's the processor but
it has to be on the blacklist or it will be back after a reboot.
fwiw 'sudo apt install virt-manager' on LM 22.3 sucks in all the packages that a lot of the instructions say you need to list. That's as good as Fedora's 'sudo dnf install @virtualization'
I didn't complete creating a VM on the LM netbook; it only has 4 GB of RAM and I cheaped out with a 128 GB SSD. I didn't try VB but the kernel definitely had kvm loaded.
The problem with VB on Debian is a known issue solved with blacklisting
kvm.
c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
At least with Trixie, you CAN'T run a VBox VM ...
a bunch of error messages happen saying that
kernel KVM stuff is responsible. Removing those
blocks ... tried a few weird complicated fixes
but they didn't work. And no, I'm NOT gonna
shred and rebuild the kernel ... I'll use
another distro.
Why not learn Linux basics instead?
c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
On 2/24/26 02:39, rbowman wrote:
On Mon, 23 Feb 2026 19:47:46 -0500, c186282 wrote:
Oh well, now have Mint installed and it does NOT have the stuff
'baked in' and VirtualBox runs OK.
You sure? 'lsmod | grep kvm'
Let's say it's not "baked in" in a fashion
that keeps VBox from working. Trixie does.
Untrue.
At least three errors - all related to the KVM
shit - when you try to start a VBox machine.
It's a "Sorry, can't get there from here" situation.
SOME recommended modprobe fixes did NOT work.
RBowman suggests some others ... I may try
those, but not today. Have a good Mint install
and VBox does run OK on that.
Trixie is NEW ... and, like BullsEye/BullSHIT,
they may have released it a bit too soon.
I'd LIKE straight-up Debian - it's simple and
at least very standard and no-BS. Alas that
presumption has been TESTED, not generously,
the last couple releases.
I think Deb is rushing things.
c186282 <c186282@nnada.net> wrote:
At least three errors - all related to the KVM
shit - when you try to start a VBox machine.
What is the error message? Where is your bug report?
It's a "Sorry, can't get there from here" situation.
SOME recommended modprobe fixes did NOT work.
RBowman suggests some others ... I may try
those, but not today. Have a good Mint install
and VBox does run OK on that.
Trixie is NEW ... and, like BullsEye/BullSHIT,
they may have released it a bit too soon.
I'd LIKE straight-up Debian - it's simple and
at least very standard and no-BS. Alas that
presumption has been TESTED, not generously,
the last couple releases.
Ah, never mind. I'll try to ignore you better next time.
Trixie is brand new. I also had issues with BullsEye when it first
came out - I think Deb is rushing things.
WAS calling BullsEye "BullSHIT" and worse for awhile ...
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