Proxmox: The Ultimate Hypervisor
Virtualizing Operating Systems has taken the IT world by storm. It has become the preferred method of running multiple operating systems across all types of hardware. If you are interested in learning more about Virtualization you can read up on it, in this previous article.
A Hypervisor is a type of software that allows for the creation and operation of virtual machines. Billion dollar corporations run on virtualized software running on hypervisor architecture. Needless to say, with all of the benefits of Virtualization, Hypervisors are here to stay.
There are two types of Hypervisors; Type 1 Hypervisor and Type 2 Hypervisor. Both types host Virtual Machines, but the key difference is that Type 1 Hypervisors are installed DIRECTLY to the host hardware. The host operating system is the Hypervisor software. A few examples of Type 1 Hypervisors are Proxmox (My personal favorite), VMware vSphere/ESXi and Citrix XenServer. These all get installed directly onto the hardware and allow for deployment of Virtual Machines. Type 1 Hypervisors are great for spinning up server VMs and long term tasks.
As for Type 2 Hypervisors, they are installed onto an EXISTING Operating system. Think of Windows 10 with Virtualbox running. Speaking of, a few examples of Type 2 Hypervisors are; VMware Workstation, Oracle VirtualBox, and QEMU. Type 2 Hypervisors are good for spinning up VMs in a hurry and testing out GUI features.
Now that we are nice and familiar with Hypervisors, I would like to revisit one I’ve mentioned earlier and in previous posts. My go-to Type 1 Hypervisor and one that I recommend to anyone looking for a virtual solution is Proxmox. Proxmox is a Debian-based, opensource solution for any and all virtualization needs.
The installation of Proxmox can be done via USB, as with any Operating System. Visit their site to download the correct ISO and flash that bad boy to a USB Drive. I stick with the Proxmox VE ISO. (If you need any help with this you can refer back to this previous article.)
After successfully booting into the Proxmox ISO of your choice, you are greeted with a lovely Install Splash page. During this user-friendly install, you can decide the filesytem format, and how you want to utilize your drives, assuming there are multiple drives.
After the End User License Agreement, and some IP configuration menus, you should be off to the races. From a separate machine, navigate to the IP Address that is recommended by the Proxmox Login. Your screen will likely look something like this:
Navigate to the IP mentioned above, and you should see something similar to this:
Login with your established credentials that were setup at initial install, and you should be all setup. Typically the homepage is a blinding white, and you can start spinning up virtual machines from there, but you will be pleased to learn that there is a handy dandy ‘Dark Mode’ script for the Home screen. Script found here.
Once your eyes are nice and adjusted to the slick Dark Mode, you can navigate on over to the dropdown below ‘Datacenter’. You might notice that I named mine Morthal, after a city in Skyrim. Feel free to name yours whatever you want during install.
Navigate to the option that says ‘Local’.
Click on that and navigate over to where it says ‘ISO Images’.
Click Upload.
This will be how you upload any ISOs for future Virtual Machines you want to spin up. You can download them to your local host, then upload them to your Proxmox server. There is also an option to download them DIRECTLY to your Proxmox Server, but I have never messed with that feature.
Once the ISO is uploaded to the Proxmox server, you can right Click on whatever you named your Server, and you should see the options that say: ‘Create VM, Create CT, Bulk Start…’
Spin up the VM with the ‘Create VM’ option, and you are cooking with gas. The opportunities are as limited as your imagination. If there is an ISO for it, you can probably spin it up on Proxmox.
If you have any spare PCs lying around, try installing Proxmox and feel free to reach out with any feedback. I hope you’ve learned something from this one. Remember to never stop learning, and take care.
Originally published at http://greysonlopez.com on November 5, 2022.