Phase 1 - Proxmox Installation

Phase 1 — Proxmox Installation 🖥️

What is Proxmox?

Proxmox VE (Virtual Environment) is a bare metal hypervisor — meaning it runs directly on the hardware with no underlying OS beneath it. It lets you run multiple virtual machines simultaneously on a single physical server, each isolated from one another. Think of it as the foundation everything else in the lab sits on top of.

Hardware Used

Component Spec
CPU Xeon E5-2690 v4 (14 cores / 28 threads)
RAM 64GB ECC
GPU AMD RX6600XT 8GB (future AI/ML use)
Storage (OS) 500GB SSD
Storage (Expansion) 1TB SSD
NIC 1 Onboard Intel eno1
NIC 2 Fenvi Dual Port Intel I226-V PCIe 2.5G

Installation Steps

1. Download Proxmox VE 8.4 ISO

Chose 8.4 over 9.2 for stability and broader community support. Newer isn’t always better in a lab environment — maturity means more documentation and more solved problems.

2. Create Bootable USB

Used Rufus in DD image mode — not ISO mode. This matters because Proxmox uses a hybrid ISO that requires DD mode to boot correctly on UEFI systems.

3. BIOS Configuration

Setting Value
Boot Mode UEFI
Secure Boot Disabled
VT-x Enabled
VT-d Enabled

VT-x enables CPU virtualization. VT-d enables IOMMU — required later for PCIe passthrough (GPU, NIC).

4. Installation

  • Target disk: 500GB SSD
  • Filesystem: ext4 (simple, well supported)
  • Static IP: 192.168.0.10/24
  • Gateway: 192.168.0.1

5. Post-Installation Configuration

Disable enterprise repositories (requires paid subscription):

sed -i 's/^deb/#deb/' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pve-enterprise.list
sed -i 's/^deb/#deb/' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ceph.list

Add free community repository, then update:

apt update && apt full-upgrade -y

Remove subscription nag screen:

sed -i.bak "s/NotSubscribed/Active/" /usr/share/javascript/proxmox-widget-toolkit/proxmoxlib.js
systemctl restart pveproxy

⚠️ Note: The nag fix needs to be reapplied after every Proxmox update, as updates overwrite proxmoxlib.js.

Current Status

Setting Value
Version Proxmox VE 8.4.19
Web UI https://192.168.0.10:8006
Username root
Repos Community (free)
Status Fully updated ✅

What I Learned

  • Proxmox installation writes its own UEFI bootloader as the primary entry, which pushed my existing Windows Boot Manager down — making Windows unbootable. Always verify boot order after installing a bare metal hypervisor alongside an existing OS.
  • The difference between VT-x (CPU virtualization) and VT-d (IOMMU/passthrough) — both need to be enabled for a full-featured lab.
  • Why enterprise repos are disabled for home use — Proxmox is free but defaults to a subscription-gated update channel.