VirtualBox can't enable the AMD-V extension. Please disable the KVM kernel extension, recompile your kernel and reboot

Fixing VirtualBox Error: AMD-V In Use (VERR_SVM_IN_USE)

Error: VirtualBox can't enable AMD-V extension. Please disable the KVM kernel extension, recompile your kernel and reboot (VERR_SVM_IN_USE).

 

Why This Happens

This error occurs because AMD-V is already in use by KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) on your Linux host. VirtualBox cannot share AMD-V with KVM, resulting in a failure to start your VM.

 

How to Fix It (Temporarily)

1. Check if KVM is loaded:
   

   lsmod | grep kvm

   If it returns results like kvm or kvm_amd, it's active.
2. Unload KVM modules:
   

   sudo modprobe -r kvm_amd kvm

   This command removes KVM from the kernel for the current session.
3. Start your VirtualBox VM: It should now run without the error.

 

Optional: Permanently Disable KVM (for VirtualBox Users)

1. Blacklist KVM modules:

   echo -e "blacklist kvm\nblacklist kvm_amd" | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-kvm.conf

2. Update initramfs:

   sudo update-initramfs -u

3. Reboot your system:

   sudo reboot

Note: This will disable KVM permanently. Useful for VirtualBox, but will break QEMU/KVM functionality.

If you need both KVM and VirtualBox often, consider isolating them using dual boot or separate containers/VMs. These hypervisors generally don’t work well together.