How to Access /etc/pve Configs in Rescue Mode?

[PHPMaroc]

Hi! everyone,

I’m currently facing a situation where I need to access the VM/CT configuration files stored in /etc/pve on my Proxmox server, but the server won’t boot normally.

I understand that /etc/pve is a virtual filesystem backed by a SQLite database located at /var/lib/pve-cluster/config.db, and it’s not directly accessible in rescue mode.

My questions are:

• How can I mount or access /etc/pve from a rescue environment (like a live CD or SystemRescue) to extract VM/CT config files (from /etc/pve/qemu-server/ and /etc/pve/lxc/)?
• Is there a simple way to recover these configs without fully booting Proxmox?
• Alternatively, how can I boot Proxmox into rescue or single-user mode to access /etc/pve normally and perform necessary operations?

Thanks in advance for any advice or experiences you can share!

Best regards.

 

[waltar]

See eg here for handling the pve db: https://forum.proxmox.com/threads/backup-cluster-config-pmxcfs-etc-pve.154569/

 

[Impact]

I have a little script here to extract guest configs from the database: https://gist.github.com/Impact123/3dbd7e0ddaf47c5539708a9cbcaab9e3#restore-guest-configs

 

[PHPMaroc]

Thank you for the link, it’s very helpful for handling the PVE database.

However, my main question is more about whether it’s possible to boot the entire Proxmox system along with all VMs and containers in rescue or debug mode without reinstalling Proxmox — for example using the Proxmox live ISO or by using rescue/debug modes from GRUB.

I want to know if I can start the system and the VMs/CTs in such a mode to recover data or fix issues without performing a full reinstall.

Could you please advise if this is possible or how to do it?

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Impact]

The PVE iso has a rescue mode but without knowing why the server does not boot it's hard to give good advice.