2 Methods to Check if CPU Supports Virtualization on Linux

Virtualization is essential for running virtual machines (VMs) using tools like KVM, VirtualBox, or VMware. Before you set up a virtual environment, it's a good idea to confirm whether your CPU supports virtualization technology, such as Intel VT-x or AMD-V. This tutorial provides 2 methods how to check if CPU supports virtualization on Linux.

Method 1 - /proc/cpuinfo file

The /proc/cpuinfo file contains detailed information about the processor, including supported features and flags. You can use the following grep command to search for virtualization flags:

grep -m1 -oE 'vmx|svm' /proc/cpuinfo

• vmx - indicates Intel VT-x support.
• svm - indicates AMD-V support.
• -m1 - stops at the first match.
• -oE - extracts only the matching text (vmx or svm).

If the CPU supports virtualization, it will output either vmx or svm. No output means virtualization is not supported.

Method 2 - lscpu command

The lscpu command provides a structured summary of CPU architecture and features. You can use awk to extract the virtualization support line directly:

lscpu | awk -F': *' '/Virtualization/{print $2}'

• -F': *' - it sets the field separator to a colon followed by optional spaces, allowing each line to be split into meaningful fields for easier extraction.
• /Virtualization/ - matches the line showing virtualization type.
• print $2 - outputs the virtualization type (e.g., VT-x or AMD-V).

If the CPU supports virtualization, this command will output VT-x (Intel CPU) or AMD-V (AMD CPU).