Installation Medium¶
Proxmox Backup Server can be installed via different methods. The recommended method is the usage of an installation medium, to simply boot the interactive installer.
Prepare Installation Medium¶
Download the installer ISO image from https://www.proxmox.com/downloads.
The Proxmox Backup Server installation medium is a hybrid ISO image. It works in two ways:
An ISO image file ready to burn to a DVD.
A raw sector (IMG) image file ready to copy to a USB flash drive (USB stick).
Using a USB flash drive to install Proxmox Backup Server is the recommended way since it is the faster and more frequently available option these days.
Prepare a USB Flash Drive as Installation Medium¶
The flash drive needs to have at least 2 GB of storage space.
Note
Do not use UNetbootin. It does not work with the Proxmox Backup Server installation image.
Important
Existing data on the USB flash drive will be overwritten. Therefore, make sure that it does not contain any still needed data and unmount it afterwards again before proceeding.
Instructions for GNU/Linux¶
On Unix-like operating systems use the dd command to copy the ISO
image to the USB flash drive. First find the correct device name of the
USB flash drive (see below). Then run the dd command. Depending on
your environment, you will need to have root privileges to execute
dd.
# dd bs=1M conv=fdatasync if=./proxmox-backup-server_*.iso of=/dev/XYZ
Note
Be sure to replace /dev/XYZ with the correct device name and adapt
the input filename (if) path.
Caution
Be very careful, and do not overwrite the wrong disk!
Find the Correct USB Device Name¶
There are two ways to find out the name of the USB flash drive. The
first one is to compare the last lines of the dmesg command output
before and after plugging in the flash drive. The second way is to
compare the output of the lsblk command. Open a terminal and run:
# lsblk
Then plug in your USB flash drive and run the command again:
# lsblk
A new device will appear. This is the one you want to use. To be on the extra safe side check if the reported size matches your USB flash drive.
Instructions for macOS¶
Open the terminal (query Terminal in Spotlight).
Convert the .iso file to .dmg format using the convert option of
hdiutil, for example:
# hdiutil convert proxmox-backup-server_*.iso -format UDRW -o proxmox-backup-server_*.dmg
Note
macOS tends to automatically add .dmg to the output file name.
To get the current list of devices run the command:
# diskutil list
Now insert the USB flash drive and run this command again to determine
which device node has been assigned to it. (e.g., /dev/diskX).
# diskutil list
# diskutil unmountDisk /dev/diskX
Note
replace X with the disk number from the last command.
# sudo dd if=proxmox-backup-server_*.dmg bs=1M of=/dev/rdiskX
Note
rdiskX, instead of diskX, in the last command is intended. It will increase the write speed.
Instructions for Windows¶
Using Etcher¶
Etcher works out of the box. Download Etcher from https://etcher.io. It will guide you through the process of selecting the ISO and your USB flash drive.
Using Rufus¶
Rufus is a more lightweight alternative, but you need to use the DD mode to make it work. Download Rufus from https://rufus.ie/. Either install it or use the portable version. Select the destination drive and the downloaded Proxmox ISO file.
Important
Once you click Start, you have to click No on the dialog asking to download a different version of Grub. In the next dialog select DD mode.
Use the Installation Medium¶
Insert the created USB flash drive (or DVD) into your server. Continue by reading the installer chapter, which also describes possible boot issues.