Description of problem: Try this: $ echo -n 'log_level=1' > ~/.config/libvirt/libvirtd.conf $ libvirtd --timeout=10 2014-10-10 10:30:56.394+0000: 6626: info : libvirt version: 1.1.3.6, package: 1.fc20 (Fedora Project, 2014-09-08-17:50:42, buildvm-05.phx2.fedoraproject.org) 2014-10-10 10:30:56.394+0000: 6626: error : main:1261 : Can't load config file: configuration file syntax error: /home/rjones/.config/libvirt/libvirtd.conf:1: expecting a value: /home/rjones/.config/libvirt/libvirtd.conf Note that libvirtd fails to start because of a trivial problem (lack of \n) in the configuration file. Using echo instead of echo -n "fixes" this, but libvirtd should be tolerant of such errors in the configuration file. Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable): libvirt-1.1.3.6-1.fc20.x86_64 How reproducible: 100% Steps to Reproduce: 1. As above.
(In reply to Richard W.M. Jones from comment #0) > Description of problem: > > Try this: > > $ echo -n 'log_level=1' > ~/.config/libvirt/libvirtd.conf You DO know that 'echo -n' is non-portable, and that you should use 'printf' instead, right? > Note that libvirtd fails to start because of a trivial problem > (lack of \n) in the configuration file. POSIX says that a non-empty file lacking a trailing newline is not a text file. Configuration files should be text files. That said, yeah, we should really be more tolerant of this situation.
I sent a patch upstream: http://www.redhat.com/archives/libvir-list/2016-April/msg01367.html
Fixed upstream: commit 3cc2a9e0d412776a07780b090cf286cc603cea84 Author: Cole Robinson <crobinso> Date: Wed Apr 20 20:25:31 2016 -0400 virconf: Handle conf file without ending newline