diff --git a/src/arch/arm/kvm/arm_cpu.cc b/src/arch/arm/kvm/arm_cpu.cc
index ecdc602644..33237c996c 100644
--- a/src/arch/arm/kvm/arm_cpu.cc
+++ b/src/arch/arm/kvm/arm_cpu.cc
@@ -374,12 +374,12 @@ ArmKvmCPU::kvmRun(Tick ticks)
     if (fiqAsserted != simFIQ) {
         fiqAsserted = simFIQ;
         DPRINTF(KvmInt, "KVM: Update FIQ state: %i\n", simFIQ);
-        vm.setIRQLine(interruptVcpuFiq(vcpuID), simFIQ);
+        vm->setIRQLine(interruptVcpuFiq(vcpuID), simFIQ);
     }
     if (irqAsserted != simIRQ) {
         irqAsserted = simIRQ;
         DPRINTF(KvmInt, "KVM: Update IRQ state: %i\n", simIRQ);
-        vm.setIRQLine(interruptVcpuIrq(vcpuID), simIRQ);
+        vm->setIRQLine(interruptVcpuIrq(vcpuID), simIRQ);
     }
 
     return BaseKvmCPU::kvmRun(ticks);
diff --git a/src/arch/arm/kvm/base_cpu.cc b/src/arch/arm/kvm/base_cpu.cc
index fe922a10be..f18d697325 100644
--- a/src/arch/arm/kvm/base_cpu.cc
+++ b/src/arch/arm/kvm/base_cpu.cc
@@ -102,13 +102,13 @@ BaseArmKvmCPU::startup()
     struct kvm_vcpu_init target_config;
     memset(&target_config, 0, sizeof(target_config));
 
-    vm.kvmArmPreferredTarget(target_config);
+    vm->kvmArmPreferredTarget(target_config);
     if (!((ArmSystem *)system)->highestELIs64()) {
         target_config.features[0] |= (1 << KVM_ARM_VCPU_EL1_32BIT);
     }
     kvmArmVCpuInit(target_config);
 
-    if (!vm.hasKernelIRQChip())
+    if (!vm->hasKernelIRQChip())
         virtTimerPin = static_cast<ArmSystem *>(system)\
             ->getGenericTimer()->params().int_virt->get(tc);
 }
@@ -120,14 +120,14 @@ BaseArmKvmCPU::kvmRun(Tick ticks)
     const bool simFIQ(interrupt->checkRaw(INT_FIQ));
     const bool simIRQ(interrupt->checkRaw(INT_IRQ));
 
-    if (!vm.hasKernelIRQChip()) {
+    if (!vm->hasKernelIRQChip()) {
         if (fiqAsserted != simFIQ) {
             DPRINTF(KvmInt, "KVM: Update FIQ state: %i\n", simFIQ);
-            vm.setIRQLine(INTERRUPT_VCPU_FIQ(vcpuID), simFIQ);
+            vm->setIRQLine(INTERRUPT_VCPU_FIQ(vcpuID), simFIQ);
         }
         if (irqAsserted != simIRQ) {
             DPRINTF(KvmInt, "KVM: Update IRQ state: %i\n", simIRQ);
-            vm.setIRQLine(INTERRUPT_VCPU_IRQ(vcpuID), simIRQ);
+            vm->setIRQLine(INTERRUPT_VCPU_IRQ(vcpuID), simIRQ);
         }
     } else {
         warn_if(simFIQ && !fiqAsserted,
@@ -144,7 +144,7 @@ BaseArmKvmCPU::kvmRun(Tick ticks)
 
     Tick kvmRunTicks = BaseKvmCPU::kvmRun(ticks);
 
-    if (!vm.hasKernelIRQChip()) {
+    if (!vm->hasKernelIRQChip()) {
         uint64_t device_irq_level =
             getKvmRunState()->s.regs.device_irq_level;
 
diff --git a/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.cc b/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.cc
index 34ac704ec8..af041a5066 100644
--- a/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.cc
+++ b/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.cc
@@ -536,8 +536,14 @@ checkSeg(const char *name, const int idx, const struct kvm_segment &seg,
 X86KvmCPU::X86KvmCPU(const X86KvmCPUParams &params)
     : BaseKvmCPU(params),
       useXSave(params.useXSave)
+{}
+
+void
+X86KvmCPU::init()
 {
-    Kvm &kvm(*vm.kvm);
+    BaseKvmCPU::init();
+
+    Kvm &kvm = *vm->kvm;
 
     if (!kvm.capSetTSSAddress())
         panic("KVM: Missing capability (KVM_CAP_SET_TSS_ADDR)\n");
@@ -667,7 +673,7 @@ X86KvmCPU::dumpVCpuEvents() const
 void
 X86KvmCPU::dumpMSRs() const
 {
-    const Kvm::MSRIndexVector &supported_msrs(vm.kvm->getSupportedMSRs());
+    const Kvm::MSRIndexVector &supported_msrs = vm->kvm->getSupportedMSRs();
     auto msrs = newVarStruct<struct kvm_msrs, struct kvm_msr_entry>(
             supported_msrs.size());
 
@@ -1549,7 +1555,7 @@ const Kvm::MSRIndexVector &
 X86KvmCPU::getMsrIntersection() const
 {
     if (cachedMsrIntersection.empty()) {
-        const Kvm::MSRIndexVector &kvm_msrs(vm.kvm->getSupportedMSRs());
+        const Kvm::MSRIndexVector &kvm_msrs = vm->kvm->getSupportedMSRs();
 
         DPRINTF(Kvm, "kvm-x86: Updating MSR intersection\n");
         for (auto it = kvm_msrs.cbegin(); it != kvm_msrs.cend(); ++it) {
diff --git a/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.hh b/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.hh
index ae41b6b663..33f58d7997 100644
--- a/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.hh
+++ b/src/arch/x86/kvm/x86_cpu.hh
@@ -56,6 +56,7 @@ class X86KvmCPU : public BaseKvmCPU
     virtual ~X86KvmCPU();
 
     void startup() override;
+    void init() override;
 
     /** @{ */
     void dump() const override;
diff --git a/src/cpu/kvm/KvmVM.py b/src/cpu/kvm/KvmVM.py
index 29a90a4bb8..aae9d988b2 100644
--- a/src/cpu/kvm/KvmVM.py
+++ b/src/cpu/kvm/KvmVM.py
@@ -45,3 +45,5 @@ class KvmVM(SimObject):
 
     coalescedMMIO = \
       VectorParam.AddrRange([], "memory ranges for coalesced MMIO")
+
+    system = Param.System(Parent.any, "system this VM belongs to")
diff --git a/src/cpu/kvm/base.cc b/src/cpu/kvm/base.cc
index bc0e428203..b76bddc2fd 100644
--- a/src/cpu/kvm/base.cc
+++ b/src/cpu/kvm/base.cc
@@ -64,14 +64,14 @@ namespace gem5
 
 BaseKvmCPU::BaseKvmCPU(const BaseKvmCPUParams &params)
     : BaseCPU(params),
-      vm(*params.system->getKvmVM()),
+      vm(nullptr),
       _status(Idle),
       dataPort(name() + ".dcache_port", this),
       instPort(name() + ".icache_port", this),
       alwaysSyncTC(params.alwaysSyncTC),
       threadContextDirty(true),
       kvmStateDirty(false),
-      vcpuID(vm.allocVCPUID()), vcpuFD(-1), vcpuMMapSize(0),
+      vcpuID(-1), vcpuFD(-1), vcpuMMapSize(0),
       _kvmRun(NULL), mmioRing(NULL),
       pageSize(sysconf(_SC_PAGE_SIZE)),
       tickEvent([this]{ tick(); }, "BaseKvmCPU tick",
@@ -108,6 +108,8 @@ BaseKvmCPU::~BaseKvmCPU()
 void
 BaseKvmCPU::init()
 {
+    vm = system->getKvmVM();
+    vcpuID = vm->allocVCPUID();
     BaseCPU::init();
     fatal_if(numThreads != 1, "KVM: Multithreading not supported");
 }
@@ -118,19 +120,19 @@ BaseKvmCPU::startup()
     const BaseKvmCPUParams &p =
         dynamic_cast<const BaseKvmCPUParams &>(params());
 
-    Kvm &kvm(*vm.kvm);
+    Kvm &kvm = *vm->kvm;
 
     BaseCPU::startup();
 
     assert(vcpuFD == -1);
 
     // Tell the VM that a CPU is about to start.
-    vm.cpuStartup();
+    vm->cpuStartup();
 
     // We can't initialize KVM CPUs in BaseKvmCPU::init() since we are
     // not guaranteed that the parent KVM VM has initialized at that
     // point. Initialize virtual CPUs here instead.
-    vcpuFD = vm.createVCPU(vcpuID);
+    vcpuFD = vm->createVCPU(vcpuID);
 
     // Map the KVM run structure
     vcpuMMapSize = kvm.getVCPUMMapSize();
diff --git a/src/cpu/kvm/base.hh b/src/cpu/kvm/base.hh
index 449c5db1b2..6b4b88af49 100644
--- a/src/cpu/kvm/base.hh
+++ b/src/cpu/kvm/base.hh
@@ -157,7 +157,7 @@ class BaseKvmCPU : public BaseCPU
      */
     ThreadContext *tc;
 
-    KvmVM &vm;
+    KvmVM *vm;
 
   protected:
     /**
@@ -444,7 +444,7 @@ class BaseKvmCPU : public BaseCPU
      * this queue when accessing devices. By convention, devices and
      * the VM use the same event queue.
      */
-    EventQueue *deviceEventQueue() { return vm.eventQueue(); }
+    EventQueue *deviceEventQueue() { return vm->eventQueue(); }
 
     /**
      * Update the KVM if the thread context is dirty.
@@ -654,7 +654,7 @@ class BaseKvmCPU : public BaseCPU
     bool kvmStateDirty;
 
     /** KVM internal ID of the vCPU */
-    const long vcpuID;
+    long vcpuID;
 
     /** ID of the vCPU thread */
     pthread_t vcpuThread;
diff --git a/src/cpu/kvm/vm.cc b/src/cpu/kvm/vm.cc
index d58439b330..fc84594228 100644
--- a/src/cpu/kvm/vm.cc
+++ b/src/cpu/kvm/vm.cc
@@ -306,12 +306,13 @@ Kvm::createVM()
 
 KvmVM::KvmVM(const KvmVMParams &params)
     : SimObject(params),
-      kvm(new Kvm()), system(nullptr),
+      kvm(new Kvm()), system(params.system),
       vmFD(kvm->createVM()),
       started(false),
       _hasKernelIRQChip(false),
       nextVCPUID(0)
 {
+    system->setKvmVM(this);
     maxMemorySlot = kvm->capNumMemSlots();
     /* If we couldn't determine how memory slots there are, guess 32. */
     if (!maxMemorySlot)
@@ -357,7 +358,6 @@ KvmVM::cpuStartup()
 void
 KvmVM::delayedStartup()
 {
-    assert(system); // set by the system during its construction
     const std::vector<memory::BackingStoreEntry> &memories(
         system->getPhysMem().getBackingStore());
 
@@ -553,18 +553,9 @@ KvmVM::validEnvironment() const
     return true;
 }
 
-void
-KvmVM::setSystem(System *s)
-{
-    panic_if(system != nullptr, "setSystem() can only be called once");
-    panic_if(s == nullptr, "setSystem() called with null System*");
-    system = s;
-}
-
 long
 KvmVM::contextIdToVCpuId(ContextID ctx) const
 {
-    assert(system != nullptr);
     return dynamic_cast<BaseKvmCPU*>
         (system->threads[ctx]->getCpuPtr())->getVCpuID();
 }
diff --git a/src/cpu/kvm/vm.hh b/src/cpu/kvm/vm.hh
index 083c2b2eea..443367231c 100644
--- a/src/cpu/kvm/vm.hh
+++ b/src/cpu/kvm/vm.hh
@@ -419,11 +419,6 @@ class KvmVM : public SimObject
     /** Verify gem5 configuration will support KVM emulation */
     bool validEnvironment() const;
 
-    /**
-     * Initialize system pointer. Invoked by system object.
-     */
-    void setSystem(System *s);
-
     /**
       * Get the VCPUID for a given context
       */
diff --git a/src/sim/System.py b/src/sim/System.py
index c5b7a8208b..499cf9bd07 100644
--- a/src/sim/System.py
+++ b/src/sim/System.py
@@ -38,7 +38,6 @@
 # OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 
 from m5.SimObject import *
-from m5.defines import buildEnv
 from m5.params import *
 from m5.proxy import *
 
@@ -126,6 +125,3 @@ class System(SimObject):
     # ISA specific value in this class directly.
     m5ops_base = Param.Addr(0, "Base of the 64KiB PA range used for "
        "memory-mapped m5ops. Set to 0 to disable.")
-
-    if buildEnv['USE_KVM']:
-        kvm_vm = Param.KvmVM(NULL, 'KVM VM (i.e., shared memory domain)')
diff --git a/src/sim/system.cc b/src/sim/system.cc
index 4829b5827b..db8f44c90a 100644
--- a/src/sim/system.cc
+++ b/src/sim/system.cc
@@ -50,10 +50,6 @@
 #include "base/str.hh"
 #include "base/trace.hh"
 #include "config/the_isa.hh"
-#include "config/use_kvm.hh"
-#if USE_KVM
-#include "cpu/kvm/vm.hh"
-#endif
 #if !IS_NULL_ISA
 #include "cpu/base.hh"
 #endif
@@ -198,9 +194,6 @@ System::System(const Params &p)
       init_param(p.init_param),
       physProxy(_systemPort, p.cache_line_size),
       workload(p.workload),
-#if USE_KVM
-      kvmVM(p.kvm_vm),
-#endif
       physmem(name() + ".physmem", p.memories, p.mmap_using_noreserve,
               p.shared_backstore),
       ShadowRomRanges(p.shadow_rom_ranges.begin(),
@@ -221,12 +214,6 @@ System::System(const Params &p)
     // add self to global system list
     systemList.push_back(this);
 
-#if USE_KVM
-    if (kvmVM) {
-        kvmVM->setSystem(this);
-    }
-#endif
-
     // check if the cache line size is a value known to work
     if (_cacheLineSize != 16 && _cacheLineSize != 32 &&
         _cacheLineSize != 64 && _cacheLineSize != 128) {
diff --git a/src/sim/system.hh b/src/sim/system.hh
index de030f0452..7dcd1aabf2 100644
--- a/src/sim/system.hh
+++ b/src/sim/system.hh
@@ -334,7 +334,13 @@ class System : public SimObject, public PCEventScope
      * Get a pointer to the Kernel Virtual Machine (KVM) SimObject,
      * if present.
      */
-    KvmVM *getKvmVM() { return kvmVM; }
+    KvmVM *getKvmVM() const { return kvmVM; }
+
+    /**
+     * Set the pointer to the Kernel Virtual Machine (KVM) SimObject. For use
+     * by that object to declare itself to the system.
+     */
+    void setKvmVM(KvmVM *const vm) { kvmVM = vm; }
 
     /** Get a pointer to access the physical memory of the system */
     memory::PhysicalMemory& getPhysMem() { return physmem; }
@@ -395,7 +401,7 @@ class System : public SimObject, public PCEventScope
 
   protected:
 
-    KvmVM *const kvmVM = nullptr;
+    KvmVM *kvmVM = nullptr;
 
     memory::PhysicalMemory physmem;