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Virtual Machine Setup

Finding the ISO​

Let's setup a Virtual Machine based on Alpine Linux. If you have never used Alpine before it will be quite a bit different than anything debian based (Ubuntu) it is also quite a bit lighter weight than other base installs.

First, download the base ISO for Alpine by opening your web browser and going to the Alpine Linux download page. Under the 'Extended' heading, download the version that matches your platform (x86 for older machines or x86_64 for newer ones). Right-click on the desired version and select 'Copy Link'.

Then, go to Proxmox, double-click 'Datacenter', then your PVE server name, and select 'local (PVE name)', which is your PVE server's storage. On the right, you'll see several headings:

  • Summary

  • Backups

  • ISO Images

  • CT Templates

  • Permissions

Choose 'ISO Images' and click 'Download from URL'. In the URL dialog box, paste the Alpine Linux ISO URL and click 'Query URL'. This will fill in the 'File name' dialog box. To ensure the download is authentic, select 'Hash algorithm' and choose 'sha256'. Return to the Alpine download page and click the 'sha256' link next to the version you're downloading. Download the file, open it, and copy everything at the start of the line except for '(alpine-extended-3.20.0-x86_64.iso)'. Paste this into the 'Checksum' field in PVE and click 'Download'. Once downloaded, you can close off the dialog box that popped up.

Creating the Virtual Machine​

To create a VM, look in the top right corner for the following options:

  • Documentation

  • Create VM

  • Create CT

Click on "Create VM." A dialog box titled 'Create: Virtual Machine' will appear with several tabs below it.

General:​

  • Node: [YOUR_PVE_NAME]

  • VM ID: 000 [PVE assigns these sequentially. Specify a different ID if desired.]

  • Name: [Choose a name, avoiding spaces and periods as they may cause issues. Also, avoid lengthy names since this field doubles as the VM's host name.]

  • Start at boot: [Select this if you want the VM to start with PVE.]

OS:​

  • ISO Image: Click the dropdown menu and select the ISO you've downloaded, e.g., alpine-extended-3.19.1-x86_65.iso.

  • Leave other fields at their default settings.

System:​

  • Default settings are adequate.

Disks:​

  • Disk size (GiB): [16 GiB is typically sufficient.]

  • SSD emulation: [Enable if using an SSD.]

CPU:​

  • Sockets: [1]

  • Cores: [2]

  • Type: [Default is adequate.]

  • Enable NUMA: [Enable this to allow PVE to manage the host CPU allocation.]

Memory:​

  • Note: Values are in MB (Megabytes), not MiB (Mebibytes). Use an online converter for unit conversion.

  • Memory (MiB): [Default is usually adequate.]

  • Ballooning Device: [Disable this to allocate the specified memory solely to this VM. Some OS may have issues if enabled.]

Network:​

  • Configure according to personal preference.

Confirm:​

Review the summary of settings to ensure they meet your requirements. You can modify these settings later if the VM reaches any limits.

Starting the VM:​

Once you have thoroughly reviewed all your settings, you may proceed to select the 'Start after created' option. Following this, you are prepared to finalize the process by clicking on the 'Finish' button.

Initial System Start-up​

Upon the system's initial boot, a Message of The Day (MOTD) will be displayed, indicating that you can initiate a general setup using the command:

setup-alpine
tip

I strongly recommend executing this command as it efficiently handles most of the setup tasks that are typically configured in operating systems like Ubuntu. Simply adhere to the prompts, and the process should proceed smoothly. When it becomes necessary to reboot the Virtual Machine (VM), the following command should be executed:

reboot

The initial setup has been successfully completed. Congratulations on this accomplishment!