HYPER-V(4)

💖 HYPER-V(4) 💖

okay bestie, so this is the manual page for hv_utils, and it lives in section 4 of the Kernel Interfaces Manual. yes, that Hyper-V. the Microsoft one. buckle up 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

hv_utils — the Hyper-V Utilities Driver. that's it, that's the name, slay 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

so if you wanna compile this driver into the kernel (like, baked in, not a module), you drop these lines into your system kernel configuration file:

device hyperv

that's the whole vibe. one line. iconic.

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

okay so the hv_utils driver gives you time keeping, shutdown, and heartbeat functionality for FreeBSD guest partitions running on Hyper-V. and what IS Hyper-V? it's a hypervisor-based virtualization technology from Microsoft. no cap.

here's the tea: hv_utils is one of the core drivers that literally has to be present in guest partitions running on Hyper-V. like, you cannot skip it. it's the main character 👑

and here's everything it brings to the table for guest partitions:

• (a) Time Keeping: the clock inside the guest partition stays accurate by synchronizing to the clock on the virtualization server via the Timesync service, plus a lil assist from the pluggable time source device. so your clock is never out here lying to you 🕐✨
• (b) Integrated shutdown: guest partitions running FreeBSD can be shut down straight from the Hyper-V Manager console by using the "Shut down" command. remote shutdown, no ssh required, we love to see it 💖
• (c) Heartbeat: this one lets the virtualization server detect whether the guest partition is running and responsive. like a little "i'm alive bestie!!" pulse 🫶

✨ SEE ALSO ✨

go read these too, they're all part of the friend group:

• hv_ata_pci_disengage(4)
• hv_netvsc(4)
• hv_storvsc(4)
• hv_vmbus(4)

✨ HISTORY ✨

support for hv_utils first appeared in FreeBSD 10.0. and the driver was developed through a joint effort between Citrix Incorporated, Microsoft Corporation, and Network Appliance Incorporated. a whole collab. a crossover episode. the way that three companies linked up for this 😭🔥

✨ AUTHORS ✨

FreeBSD support for hv_utils was first added by the Microsoft BSD Integration Services Team <bsdic@microsoft.com>. thank you for your service, kings and queens 👑

🌸 reminder bestie: this page came from the Debian manual source, dated September 10, 2013. yes, 2013. it's vintage. it's giving legacy but make it fierce. 💜