VM-curator: A New Rust-Based TUI for QEMU/KVM Management

A new utility has emerged for users seeking to harness QEMU/KVM for desktop virtualization without the overhead of traditional management tools. Written in Rust, this tool offers a terminal-based interface designed for speed and simplicity.

The project, known as vm-curator, directly addresses long-standing user frustrations with existing solutions, specifically regarding hardware acceleration support and user interface complexity. It aims to provide a streamlined experience for creating and managing virtual machines.

Development of vm-curator was driven by specific technical limitations found in the standard libvirt and virt-manager ecosystem. The primary catalyst was the lack of functional support for NVIDIA 3D acceleration within these environments. Further investigation revealed that the issue with broken 3D acceleration was actually the fault of libvirt, rather than QEMU's virtio driver.

Additional frustrations included what the developer describes as a "dogmatic embrace of ugly XML" for configuration and a puzzling UI workflow. The process of attaching an ISO to a virtual machine image was cited as requiring an excessive number of clicks, creating friction for users who prefer efficiency.

• Lack of working NVIDIA 3D acceleration support
• Complex XML-based configuration requirements
• Cumbersome UI workflows for simple tasks

The result of this effort is vm-curator, a "fast and friendly" VM management TUI (Terminal User Interface). It allows users to create, configure, organize, and manage VMs directly with QEMU, bypassing the need for libvirt entirely. This approach eliminates the XML layer and the "wonky UIs" associated with it.

The tool is designed to offer the "right level of friendliness, customization, and speed" to be genuinely useful for daily operations. By leveraging Rust, the developer ensures memory safety and performance while building a tool that feels native to the command line environment.

Behold, vm-curator! A fast and friendly VM management TUI written in Rust.

The standout feature of vm-curator is its approach to GPU acceleration. It enables 3D para-virtualization for NVIDIA cards via virtio-vga-gl. This functionality allows users to utilize GPU acceleration within a Linux guest without the complex setup usually required for GPU passthrough.

This development is significant for users running graphics-intensive applications inside Linux virtual machines. However, the developer notes a specific limitation regarding Windows environments.

• Works via virtio-vga-gl for NVIDIA cards
• No complex passthrough hoops required for Linux guests
• Currently not suitable for Windows gaming

While the tool works "great with other guest Linux VMs," it is explicitly noted as not suitable for Windows gaming. For that specific use case, traditional GPU passthrough remains a necessity, though the developer promises fast and friendly support for it in the future.

The project represents a significant coding effort, comprising approximately 10,000 lines of code. The developer clarifies that this was not a "vibe-coded affair" but rather a rigorous pair-programming session, which served as a practical method for learning the Rust programming language. While AI assistance (Claude) was utilized, the heavy lifting was done manually.

The project is currently looking to expand, specifically seeking contributors to assist with ASCII art and donations to support ongoing development. This open invitation suggests the project is moving from a personal tool to a community-driven initiative.

• Approximately 10,000 lines of code written
• Seeking contributors for ASCII art
• Donations are welcome to support development

vm-curator represents a shift toward simpler, more direct management of QEMU/KVM resources, stripping away layers of abstraction that many users find cumbersome. By focusing on the terminal and direct QEMU interaction, it offers a compelling alternative for Linux power users.

As the project matures and potentially gains the promised Windows passthrough support, it could become a standard tool for developers and enthusiasts who require high-performance virtualization without the administrative tax of libvirt. The invitation for community contributions marks the beginning of its public lifecycle.