How to install Win 7 x64 from a USB stick

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

I'm a total newbie. I've been searching for a howto to boot the Win7 domain from a USB stick so that Windows installs from the USB stick. I went thru the process to attach the PCI channel using qvm-pci -a command in Dom0. When I checked the Win7 Devices in VM Manager I see 00:14.0 USB Controller ...

What I can't figure out is how to get the domain to boot from the USB stick nor have my searches been fruitful. When I try to boot the domain I get a PCI error that isn't displayed long enough for me to make a note of it. The log file for the domain in VM Manager is greyed out.

I'm stuck.

[Grzesiek Chodzicki]

Attack the stick using qvm-usb and then use the qvm-start windowsvmname --drive=windowsvmname:/dev/xvdi

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

qvm-usb -l shows my stick at dom0:3-2
qvm-usb -a Win7 dom0:3-2 gives the error message "VM Win7 not running". Win7 is an HVM template that has no boot information and therefore won't start.

[Grzesiek Chodzicki]

Okay, if your usb stick is assigned to dom0 then all you need to do is
qvm-start windowsvmname --drive=/dev/xvdi

[Jean-Philippe Ouellet]

It may make more sense to use qvm-block than qvm-usb here. Should in
theory have a smaller attack surface and expose better-tested code
paths.

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

I must be missing something really basic that, as a noob, I don't understand.
The command qvm-block -a Win7 dom0:sdb returns
ERROR: VM Win7 not running.

This seems like a catch 22 since I can't start the VM because there's no bootable file system yet nor can I attach a device to a not running VM.

[Grzesiek Chodzicki]

Don't use qvm-block, use --drive argument for the qvm-start command instead.
qvm-start Win7 --drive=/path/to/usb/drive

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

qvm-start Win7 --drive=/dev/sdb1
Starting NetVM sys-firewall
Starting NetVM sys-net
Creating volatile image :/var/liv/qubes/servicevms/sys-net/volatile.img
Loading the VM (type=NetVM)
ERROR: PCI device 01:00.0 does not exist (domain sys-net)

We're making progress!

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

Other notes:
qvm-start Win7 --drive=/dev/sdb produces the same result as does qvm-start Win7 --cdrom=/dev/cdrom

Fedora-23 is the template for sys-net

[Grzesiek Chodzicki]

Can you check what type of the device is it? You can do that using the following command (in dom0 terminal):
lspci|grep 01:00.0

Also, this part here is interesting:
> > Loading the VM (type=NetVM)

It seems that your windows-7 vm is of NetVM type and not of the HVM/TemplateHVM type. Remove it and then create a new VM of HVM Standalone or HVM Template type. Then start it again using the --drive or --cdrom argument

[stevemic...@gmail.com]

nothing found

>
> Also, this part here is interesting:
> > > Loading the VM (type=NetVM)
>
> It seems that your windows-7 vm is of NetVM type and not of the HVM/TemplateHVM type. Remove it and then create a new VM of HVM Standalone or HVM Template type. Then start it again using the --drive or --cdrom argument

From VM Manager, General type is TemplateHVM, NetVM was sys-firewall. I changed the NetVM to none and the CD now boots but hangs at the Starting Windows screen.
The fix for that problem is at:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/qubes-users/2q19jFeTFGk in case someone finds this thread in a search.
Thanks so much for your help!!