HowTo: Proxmox 1.8 on Debian Squeeze

[AttNet]

Hi @ all,

at the first, sorry for my bad english.

The last day's i work on a solution, to install Proxmox 1.8 on a debian squeeze host.
AND, it is working !

So, i post here a short howto, and i want and hope, that many users test ist.
But please, all users who test it, write a short message here in this thread,
if is working, or if you have problems ....

Ok, lets go :
- First, install a new, clean Debian Squeeze (from netinstall) by example.
- setup your Lan and so on, so that you can use apt-get or aptitude
and install an text editor like nano or vi (i prefer vi ;-) )

If you have this, the we install proxmox.

I have recompiled all relevant packages from proxmox on a debian squeeze
Maschine, and changed all relevant things, so, that the new packages
can be installed on squeeze. For that, i have created an repo at one of
my servers. My packages are not signed at this (testing) time.
apt-get / aptitude ask you about that. If you want to install unsigned
packages .... ?
You need to answer 'Yes' in that case !

- Add one line to your sources.apt :
open vi /etc/apt/sources.lst
and add the next line
deb http://debian.attserver.de/debian squeeze ve
then save the file

- Add my repo key to your maschine, run :
wget -O- "http://debian.attserver.de/debian/PublicKey" | apt-key add -

- run
apt-get update
to get the new repo packages list

- Next, we install the pve Kernel. At this time, only the 2.6.32-5 Kernel is avaiable
run :
apt-get install pve-kernel-2.6.32-5-pve
and say 'yes' to questions

- Squeeze uses grub2, so we need to add the new Kernel in the grub.cfg file
The grub.cfg is write protected, so run :
chmod 644 /boot/grub/grub.cfg
Now open the file with a text editor, run
vi /boot/grub/grub.cfg
and scroll down to that place:
-----------------

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
menuentry 'Debian GNU/Linux, with Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64' --class debian --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='(hd0,msdos1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872
echo 'Loading Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 ...'
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-5-amd64 root=UUID=fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872 ro quiet
echo 'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-5-amd64
}
menuentry 'Debian GNU/Linux, with Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 (recovery mode)' --class debian --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='(hd0,msdos1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872
echo 'Loading Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 ...'
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-5-amd64 root=UUID=fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872 ro single
echo 'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-5-amd64
}
### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

-------------
- Copy the first menuentry block, and insert before the first.
Then change the -amd64 to -pve and change the entry text
After the changes you see :

### BEGIN /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###
menuentry 'Proxmox VE Kernel, with Linux 2.6.32-5-pve' --class debian --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='(hd0,msdos1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872
echo 'Loading Proxmox PVE 2.6.32-5-pve ...'
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-5-pve root=UUID=fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872 ro quiet
echo 'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-5-pve
}
menuentry 'Debian GNU/Linux, with Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64' --class debian --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='(hd0,msdos1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872
echo 'Loading Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 ...'
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-5-amd64 root=UUID=fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872 ro quiet
echo 'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-5-amd64
}
menuentry 'Debian GNU/Linux, with Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 (recovery mode)' --class debian --class gnu-linux --class gnu --class os {
insmod part_msdos
insmod ext2
set root='(hd0,msdos1)'
search --no-floppy --fs-uuid --set fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872
echo 'Loading Linux 2.6.32-5-amd64 ...'
linux /boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-5-amd64 root=UUID=fe6679d5-6d80-4a44-b615-67198fda5872 ro single
echo 'Loading initial ramdisk ...'
initrd /boot/initrd.img-2.6.32-5-amd64
}
### END /etc/grub.d/10_linux ###

- Save the file and exit

- If you want, you can install the kernel headers now, run
apt-get install pve-headers-2.6.32-5-pve

- Now restart the system, and boot with the new kernel

- If the system is up again, run
uname -a
if you see somthing like that:
Linux 2.6.32-5-pve ...
all is ok

- Now we install the rest of the proxmox 1.8, run:
apt-get install proxmox-ve-2.6.32 ntp ssh lvm2
Answer 'yes' to questions

- Now open the webif with :
https://your.ip

- Navigate to 'System' and then to the Network tab
and change the ip/netmask of the vmbr0 interface
add eth0 to bridge ports and activate autostart at boot time
- Klick save and you see the gateway field
add the gateway ip
- then klick on dns tab and add your dns server
klick save

- For all german people, i have added a new german translation file.
Now, all possible is translated to german.
You can activate german in the option tab.

- Reboot the sytsem and then create your vm's ....

I have testet with openvz squeeze vm and a kvm winxp maschine.
All works fine.
Please, if you test, give me here a response !

Best regards,

Torsten Albrecht
Dipl.-Ing. IT
Germany
Company: Ingenineurbüro AttNet
E-Mail: info@attnet.de

 

[tom]

This is not recommended and already discussed several times, e.g. http://forum.proxmox.com/threads/6243-Installing-to-Debian-6?p=35377#poststop

 

[AttNet]

It's ok.
I need a VE and Lenny is now the 'old stable' tree.
For production servers i need squeeze at this time.
So, the only way is, to do the needed changes for
the proxmox 1.8 tree, that i can use it on squeeze.
I hope for proxmox 2.0 in the near future, but at
this time, i have no other way.

I tested my system now for one week without any
problems. The squeeze server and de vm's are running,
no freezes, no errors and so on. So, for me, that's the
best solution at the moment.

All other people can test it and use it if they want,
but nobody must use it .....

People who test it, can give a response.

I know, that this is not a recommend way from proxmox,
but i and much other people have no other way.

So, is see no problem to test it.

Best regards,
Torsten Albrecht
Alias AttNet

 

[kobuki]

Purely out of curiosity: what do you specifically need in Squeeze (as the HN) that's not available in Lenny?

 

[AttNet]

Simply the up to date Software packages
and the official stable (not old stable) release
I hope, that that is enough...

 

[kobuki]

Yeah, I'm not going to argue here with you, but for me it's much more important to have a stable, supported (by Debian folks and their security team, and of course the Proxmox team) foundation for running my VPSes, a relatively recent kernel (even the default uses 2.6.32 like Squeeze), and the ability for the VPSes to install whatever Linux release I choose. This is all available in the current Proxmox 1.8 standard distro. What is not, is a lot of functionality that will be provided in 2.0, and many of those currently has to be done by hand. Building an unsupported box with squeeze doesn't have much appeal for me and it won't help me with the upcoming Proxmox release's functionality.

 

[tom]

Simply the up to date Software packages
and the official stable (not old stable) release
I hope, that that is enough...

If you run Proxmox VE 1.8 on squeeze you just get a completely untested system, quite the opposite what you prefer. but it looks you are just ignoring this part.