I've been using a dual boot setup to play the daily challenges in Microsoft Solitaire Collection during lunch. Recently, I tried setting up a Windows 11 VM in virt-manager but noticed that the performance isn't great; the games lag significantly. I thought maybe there's a way to enhance the VM's performance without needing GPU passthrough since Solitaire is rather lightweight. I'm currently assigning 8GB RAM and 12 CPU threads to it. I've experimented with QXL and VirtIO for display options, but haven't seen much improvement. Any tips for making the VM run smoother?
3 Answers
If you're open to other Solitaire games, **Aisleriot Solitaire** is a great native option for Linux with tons of variations! It's not a direct solution for your VM issue, but it might be worth checking out if you want something that's optimized for Linux.
I appreciate the recommendation, but I'm committed to the Microsoft version since I have a big streak going!
I haven't tested a Windows VM lately, but I found that using Cockpit for managing VMs made a noticeable difference in responsiveness compared to virt-manager. I set up a VM with 2 vCPUs and 16GB memory, and it felt pretty smooth while playing Klondike. Since you’re using 12 cores, that should definitely cover any performance issues unless your host system is slower than expected. It might be worth debloating Windows with a tool like Chris Titus's to improve performance. Good luck!
It's surprising that you're experiencing lag with such a basic game! I tested Microsoft Solitaire in my VM using QXL and Spice too, and it felt clunky. When I switched to real hardware, the performance improved significantly. It might be related to video acceleration. If you're looking for alternatives, I found that Klondike Forever and Solitaire Forever work nicely with Wine. Just a thought!
Thanks for testing that! It's odd how such a simple game isn't running smoothly.
Thanks for the suggestion!