Linux KVM: Disable virbr0 NAT Interface

by Vivek Gite on June 16, 2010 last updated February 1, 2011

https://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/linux-kvm-disable-virbr0-nat-interface/

in CentOS, Linux KVM, RedHat and Friends, Virtualization

The virtual network (virbr0) used for Network address translation (NAT) which allows guests to access to network services. However, NAT slows down things and only recommended for desktop installations. To disable Network address translation (NAT) forwarding type the following commands:

Display Current Setup

Type the following command:
# ifconfig
Sample outputs:

virbr0    Link encap:Ethernet  HWaddr 00:00:00:00:00:00  
          inet addr:192.168.122.1  Bcast:192.168.122.255  Mask:255.255.255.0
          inet6 addr: fe80::200:ff:fe00:0/64 Scope:Link
          UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST  MTU:1500  Metric:1
          RX packets:0 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 frame:0
          TX packets:39 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0 carrier:0
          collisions:0 txqueuelen:0 
          RX bytes:0 (0.0 b)  TX bytes:7921 (7.7 KiB)

Or use the following command:
# virsh net-list
Sample outputs:

Name                 State      Autostart
-----------------------------------------
default              active     yes       

To disable virbr0, enter:
# virsh net-destroy default
# virsh net-undefine default
# service libvirtd restart
# ifconfig