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Synopsis

smolvm stop <vm_id>

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Description

The stop command shuts down a running VM and releases its resources (TAP device, network rules, process). The VM state is removed, so you cannot restart it after stopping — use snapshots if you need to save and restore state.

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Arguments

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vm_id
string
required
The identifier of the VM to stop. This is the name you provided (or that was auto-generated) when creating the VM with smolvm create.

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Examples

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Stop a VM by name

smolvm stop my-sandbox

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Create, use, and stop a VM

smolvm create --name dev-env
smolvm ssh dev-env
# ... work inside the VM ...
smolvm stop dev-env

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What happens during stop

  1. SmolVM sends a shutdown signal to the VM process
  2. The TAP network device and NAT rules are removed
  3. The VM state is cleaned up from the local database
  4. Temporary disk images are deleted

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Exit codes

CodeDescription
0Success — VM stopped and cleaned up
1Error — VM not found or stop failed
Last modified on April 5, 2026