Unable to convert Linux with LVM / BRTFS configuration

[DrDebate]

I have a number of servers currently running on Hyper-V that I can't seam to convert to ESXi using standalone converter 5.5.  Converter is able to connect to the powered on VM and prepare the job but it failed to submit on the last step.  All server are Ubuntu 14.04.  I'm not the most versed person when it comes to Linux disk structure but as I understand it it's a 2 TB vhd being presented by Hyper-V.  The composes a single 2 TB volume group (vg0) and within that an 80 GB BTRFS disk.  It's been explained to me that the BTRFS disk is more of a raw device then a typical partition.  Here is an excerpt from the worker log that appears to identify the problem:

2014-09-15T19:22:23.230-07:00 [02548 info 'Default'] Cloning mode volumeBasedCloning

2014-09-15T19:22:23.230-07:00 [02548 warning 'Default'] Disk id fake-disk-from-vg(vg0) does not identify an existing disk

2014-09-15T19:22:23.230-07:00 [02548 info 'Default'] found VolumesToClone list in TargetDiskParams

2014-09-15T19:22:23.230-07:00 [02548 warning 'Default'] Disk id fake-disk-from-vg(vg0) does not identify an existing disk

2014-09-15T19:22:23.230-07:00 [02548 error 'Default'] VmTransformerImpl::SeparateBootDisk: Unable to find VirtualDisk for diskId=fake-disk-from-vg(vg0)

2014-09-15T19:22:23.232-07:00 [02548 error 'Default'] TargetVmManagerImpl::CreateVM: Vm creation failed with error Invalid argument : VmTransformerImpl::SeparateBootDisk: Unable to find VirtualDisk for an active volume

Any ideas or suggestions?

[ivivanov]

Can you provide the full worker log file?

[DrDebate]

Attached.

[patanassov]

Hi

I guess you are having 2 issues here:

  -  /boot is in a logical volume (as a directory under /). Converter expects /boot to be in a basic volume

  - grub-install is expected to also be an issue. Converter calls "grub-install -v" to determine the GRUB version. However this syntax has been changed with the grub version in Ubuntu 14.04, '-v' meaning 'verbose', not 'version'.

These defects will be fixed in the next Converter version. As a workaround you may try converting '/' to basic volume at the destination. Also see this thread Re: ubuntu p2v - converter fails generic error for a hint how to hack the grub-install script (it is about a different but similar issue)

HTH

Plamen

[DrDebate]

The only grub-install I'm finding is /usr/sbin/grub-install and it appears to be a binary file.  Am I looking in the wrong place?  Also, the button to change the disk to basic is greyed out but perhaps I need to get it to recognize grub properly first.

[patanassov]

Oops! The disabled button is a UI issue, it was intended not to allow changing the boot volume from basic to logical. You could eventually use SDK though it is not trivial.

As for grub-install, you are looking in the right place. Well, the binary can be renamed and added a shell script with its name which does the job of calling it and translating "-v". Not trivial either but easier than starting to use SDK

There doesn't seem to be an easy workaround but after all Ubuntu 14.04 is not supported. Neither is BtrFS by the way. If you manage to run the conversion, it will be converted to ext3.