This patch allows selection of the NIC model for QEMU/KVM domains. The selection is done by adding a <model/> element to the XML, as in this example: <interface type='user'> <mac address='00:16:3e:33:b8:d3'/> <model type='ne2k_pci'/> </interface> The model type string is only checked to make sure it's a short alpha-numeric + underscore, since it seems impractical to extract the actual list of supported models. If you choose a supported model then QEMU starts up with this extra -nic parameter: /usr/bin/qemu-kvm -M pc -m 500 -smp 1 -monitor pty \ -boot c -hda /var/lib/xen/images/rhel51x32kvm.img \ -net nic,macaddr=00:16:3e:33:b8:d3,vlan=0,model=ne2k_pci -net user,vlan=0 \ -usb -vnc 127.0.0.1:0 If you choose a non-existant model then you get the error: libvir: QEMU error : internal error QEMU quit during monitor startup Rich. -- Richard Jones, Emerging Technologies, Red Hat http://et.redhat.com/~rjones virt-top is 'top' for virtual machines. Tiny program with many powerful monitoring features, net stats, disk stats, logging, etc. http://et.redhat.com/~rjones/virt-top