How to rename LXD / LXC container

H

ow do I rename an LXD managed LXC container under a Linux operating system?

 

You can move or rename containers within or in between lxd instances. In this quick tutorial, I will show how to rename an LXD managed LXC container using lxc command line.

How to rename a local container

Let us say you want to rename a local container named file-server to debian-wheezy. The syntax is:

lxc move {old-lxc-name} {new-lxc-name}

 

Please note that renaming of running container not allowed. So first stop the container, enter:

$ lxc stop file-server

 

Now rename it:

$ lxc move file-server debian-wheezy

 

Start it:

$ lxc start debian-wheezy

 

Verify it:

$ lxc info debian-wheezy

 

Sample outputs:

Fig.01: Rename a local container

 

Login to debian-wheezy LXD container:

$ lxc exec debian-wheezy bash

 

Change hostname and updated /etc/hosts if you want:

# echo  debian-wheezy  > /etc/hostname

# sed -i  s/file-server/debian-wheezy/g  /etc/hosts

# exit

$ lxc restart debian-wheezy

 

Verify new changes:

 

$ lxc exec debian-wheezy bash

root@debian-wheezy:~# cat /etc/os-release

 

Sample outputs:

PRETTY_NAME= Debian GNU/Linux 7 (wheezy)

NAME= Debian GNU/Linux

VERSION_ID= 7

VERSION= 7 (wheezy)

ID=debian

ANSI_COLOR= 1;31

HOME_URL= http://www.debian.org/

SUPPORT_URL= http://www.debian.org/support/

BUG_REPORT_URL= http://bugs.debian.org/

Also you can move a container between two hosts, renaming it if destination name differs. The syntax is:

$ lxc move [<remote>:][<remote>:][<destination container>]

$ lxc stop server1:foo

$ lxc move server1:foo server2:bar

 

 

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