Insights

Irregularly published articles on various features and anti-features, caveats and inner workings of the Proxmox suite. Posts are listed in reverse chronological order.

SSH Public Key Infrastructure
Secure your SSH infrastructure from the very first boot. Rotate keys and never trust a previously unknown machine. Never pass through a key-not-known prompt and do not get used to the …
ZFS root advantage
A look at limited support of ZFS by Proxmox VE stock install. A primer on ZFS basics insofar ZFS as a root filesystem setups - snapshots and clones, with examples. Preparation for ZFS bootloader …
Proxmox bootloaders
What is the bootloader setup determined by and why? What is the role of the Proxmox boot tool? Explore the quirks behind the approach of supporting everything.
Full feature set for free
Everything has its cost. Running off repositories that only went through limited internal testing takes its toll on the user. Be aware of the implications.
Proxmox quality assurance
What kind of testing procedures do they use at Proxmox and how does your bug-reporting fit into it? How consistent and thorough is regression testing before users get hold of a public package?
No-subscription repository
What exactly do you get from the non-subscriber and freely available package repository? And what are the differences to the one meant for public testing only. Almost none.
How PVE shreds SSDs
Debug-level look at what exactly is wrong with the crucial component of every single Proxmox node, including non-clustered ones. History of regressions tracked to decisions made during increase of …
Mountpoint of /etc/pve
Understand the setup of virtual filesystem that holds cluster-wide configurations and has a not-so-usual behaviour - unlike any other regular filesystem.
Quorum options - lesser known
When considering a Quorum Device for small clusters, be aware of other valid alternatives that were taken off the list only due to High Availability stack concerns.
Proxmox Corosync fallacy
Distinguish the role of Corosync in Proxmox clusters from the rest of the stack and appreciate the actual reasons behind unexpected reboots or failed quorums.
SSH - hidden regressions
Over 10 years old bug finally got fixed. What changes did it bring and what undocumented regressions to expect? How to check your current install and whether it is affected?
Why PVE shreds SSDs
Quantify the idle writes of every single Proxmox node that contribute to premature failure of some SSDs despite their high declared endurance.
SSH - passwordless lockout
Not so intuitive cascade of events may lead to inability to SSH connect to a node with otherwise healthy networking setup due to inaccessible keys location.
Watchdog time bomb
The unexpected reboot you have encountered might have had nothing to do with any hardware problem. Details on specific Proxmox watchdog setup missing from official documentation.