No Virtio signed drivers blocks windows 2016 install

[falves1]

One of my first tasks since we decided to move to Proxmox is to install a version of Windows 2016 Server. Unless you use a slow-performing IDE emulation, unsuited for databases, it is impossible. If I select the SCSI drive in Proxmox, the default, Windows cannot find a driver in the latest ISO from Fedora, which is supposed to have signed drivers. I tried to viostor and vioscsi, to no avail.
How do I install Windows? Is there any way to do this?

 

[dcsapak]

sure you have 'scsihw: virtio-scsi-pci' in your config?

 

[falves1]

Actually I added a virtio-block disk, as a second disk, and the driver worked. But then I changed the first drive to virtio, reattached it, and it does not boot. I need that he VM boots from virtio or SCSI.

 

[falves1]

The secret is to use virtio as boot device and to load the driver from the ISO, not after the fact.

 

[dcsapak]

after you reattached the disk to boot from to 'virtioX' did you change the bootdisk in the config to point to 'virtioX' ?

 

[falves1]

Yes I did. There is something missing in the windows installation that makes the disk unbootable except with IDE

 

[mbaldini]

I usually use this steps:
- install Windows Server with SATA or IDE disk
- after the installation is complete, create a second virtual disk with scsi
- start the Windows VM
- install virtio drivers for all the unknown devices
- from disk management, initialize and format the new disk
- power off VM
- detach the virtual disk with windows installed and attach as scsi
- power on the vm

This always worked for me

 

[falves1]

That did not work at all with Windows 2016 Server.
The only way was to reinstall from scratch using Virtio. The SCSI driver is not loadable by windows.

 

[WhiteStarEOF]

Is that 2016 Essentials, by chance? I've switched numerous Win 2016 VMs from IDE or SATA to VirtIO using the process you described of adding a secondary disk to install the driver, then changing the primary disk. It works reliably with every version of 2016 I've encountered, except Essentials where it reliably fails. Same with changing the CPU from kvm64 to host, works with everything except Essentials.

 

[Sralityhe]

Is that 2016 Essentials, by chance? I've switched numerous Win 2016 VMs from IDE or SATA to VirtIO using the process you described of adding a secondary disk to install the driver, then changing the primary disk. It works reliably with every version of 2016 I've encountered, except Essentials where it reliably fails. Same with changing the CPU from kvm64 to host, works with everything except Essentials.

Can confirm this. Installing the scsi driver worked but the vm wont boot up (bluescreen). Its working for two 2016 standards and not for two 2016 essentials.

Kind regards