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36.7. Wrong kernel image error - non-PAE kernel on a PAE platform

If you to boot a non-PAE kernel, para-virtualized guest the error message below will display. It indicates you are trying to run a guest kernel on your Hypervisor which at this time is not supported. The Xen hypervisor presently only supports PAE and 64 bit para-virtualized guest kernels.
# xm create -c va-base 
Using config file "va-base".
Error: (22, 'Invalid argument')
[2006-12-14 14:55:46 xend.XendDomainInfo 3874] ERROR (XendDomainInfo:202) Domain construction failed
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/xen/xend/XendDomainInfo.py", 
	line 195, in  create vm.initDomain()
File "/usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/xen/xend/XendDomainInfo.py", 
	line 1363, in initDomain raise VmError(str(exn))
VmError: (22, 'Invalid argument')
[2006-12-14 14:55:46 xend.XendDomainInfo 3874] DEBUG (XendDomainInfo:1449) XendDomainInfo.destroy: domid=1
[2006-12-14 14:55:46 xend.XendDomainInfo 3874] DEBUG (XendDomainInfo:1457) XendDomainInfo.destroyDomain(1)
If you need to run a 32 bit or non-PAE kernel you will need to run your guest as a fully-virtualized virtual machine. The rules for hypervisor compatibility are:
  • para-virtualized guests must match the architecture type of your hypervisor. To run a 32 bit PAE guest you must have a 32 bit PAE hypervisor.
  • to run a 64 bit para-virtualized guest your Hypervisor must be a 64 bit version too.
  • fully virtualized guests your hypervisor must be 32 bit or 64 bit for 32 bit guests. You can run a 32 bit (PAE and non-PAE) guest on a 32 bit or 64 bit hypervisor.
  • to run a 64 bit fully virtualized guest your hypervisor must be 64 bit too.