KubeVirt

v1.7.3Orchestration & Management

Apr 25, 2026Copy link

KubeVirt v1.7.3 is a focused patch release fixing 11 bugs across live migration, ARM64/s390x guest support, VMExport, and virt-handler stability.

• breakingBackend storage volume name has changed — check existing VMs

  VMs using backend storage volumes will now report the volume name as 'persistent-state-for-this-vm' instead of a name derived from the VM name. If you have monitoring, automation, or tooling that references the old volume name pattern, update those references before upgrading. Verify existing VMs with backend storage in your environment to understand impact before rolling out v1.7.3.

• enhancementUpgrade if you run ARM64 or s390x guests, or use decentralized live migration

  Three targeted fixes land for non-x86 architectures: ARM64 SMBIOS visibility and s390x PCIe controller errors are both resolved. Separately, decentralized live migration now correctly reports success and supports Windows VMs requiring Hyper-V enlightenments. If any of these scenarios apply to your cluster, this patch is worth prioritizing over staying on v1.7.2.

• enhancementvirt-handler socket recovery is now automatic — no more manual pod restarts

  Two separate fixes address domain-notify server crashes and socket deletion. Previously, a deleted or crashed notify socket would leave virt-handler in a broken state requiring manual intervention. After upgrading, this recovers automatically. If you've been seeing unexplained VM communication failures on nodes, this is likely the culprit.