Proxmox Base Setup Checklist
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Pre-flight (BIOS/Hardware)
- [ ] Enable virtualization extensions (Intel VT-x/AMD-V) and IOMMU/VT-d
- [ ] Set boot order: primary SSD/NVMe that will hold Proxmox
- [ ] Disable unused onboard devices (audio, consumer RGB controllers)
- [ ] Fan curve set to quiet/linear; chassis fans connected to PWM headers
- [ ] ECC memory present or verified non-ECC with recent memtest pass
- [ ] Record disk identifiers (serials/slots) for later pool planning

Installer Prep
- [ ] Download latest Proxmox ISO and verify checksum
- [ ] Write ISO to USB with Rufus/balenaEtcher; safely eject
- [ ] Have static IP, gateway, DNS values ready (ideally on a management VLAN)
- [ ] Note desired hostname (e.g., pve01.lab.local)

Install
- [ ] Select ZFS (RAID1 or RAID10) for root if you have 2+ drives
- [ ] Choose ext4/xfs on single SSD/NVMe for simple lab nodes
- [ ] Set strong root password and unique email for alerts
- [ ] Assign static IP; avoid DHCP for the hypervisor
- [ ] Set correct time zone; enable NTP

Post-install Hardening
- [ ] Apply updates: `apt update && apt dist-upgrade`
- [ ] Create a non-root user with sudo; disable root SSH login
- [ ] Install and enable the Proxmox firewall; default input = DROP
- [ ] Add SSH key auth; remove password auth in sshd_config
- [ ] Set up regular backups of /etc/pve to remote storage (rsync/RESTIC)
- [ ] Configure email alerts (root@) to deliver to an external inbox
- [ ] Create a local admin group and add your user

Network & Storage
- [ ] Bridge vmbr0 to your LAN; tag VLANs where needed
- [ ] Separate storage network if using NFS/iSCSI (vmbr1 or bond)
- [ ] Mount an external NAS share for backups/templates
- [ ] Enable thin provisioning for VM disks (unless you prefer thick)

Quality of Life
- [ ] Create a “golden” base VM template (cloud-init if preferred)
- [ ] Set snapshot schedule on critical VMs
- [ ] Label ports/drives physically; document IPs and VLAN IDs
- [ ] Export this checklist with your completed notes into your runbook