Basic Settings

The Basic Settings category focuses on foundational configurations for your Proxmox VE installation, including installing essential utilities, adding repositories, managing packages, and keeping the system up to date.

Available Optimizations

1

Install Common System Utilities

This optimization installs a set of common system utilities that are useful for system administration and troubleshooting.

Why it's beneficial:Having these utilities pre-installed saves time when managing your Proxmox VE system. They provide essential tools for monitoring system performance, managing files, and troubleshooting issues, enhancing your ability to maintain and optimize your virtualization environment.

Utilities installed:

• axel: A light command-line download accelerator

  Example usage:

  axel -n 10 http://example.com/largefile.zip
• dialog: A tool for creating TUI interfaces

  Example usage:

  dialog --title "Hello" --msgbox "Hello, World!" 10 20
• dos2unix: Text file format converter to remove Windows-style line endings.

  Example usage:

  dos2unix file.txt
• grc: Generic colouriser for everything

  Example usage (colorize ping output):

  grc ping example.com
• htop: An interactive process viewer

  To start htop, simply type:

  htop
• btop: A resource monitor that shows usage and stats for processor, memory, disks, network and processes

  To start btop, type:

  btop
• iftop: A tool to display bandwidth usage on an interface

  To start iftop (requires root):

  iftop
• iotop: A tool to display I/O usage by processes

  To start iotop (requires root):

  siotop
• iperf3: A tool for active measurements of the maximum achievable bandwidth on IP networks

  Example usage (server mode):

  iperf3 -s

  Example usage (client mode):

  iperf3 -c server_ip
• ipset: A tool to manage IP sets in the Linux kernel

  Example usage (create a new set):

  ipset create myset hash:ip
• iptraf-ng: An interactive colorful IP LAN monitor

  To start iptraf-ng:

  iptraf-ng
• mlocate: A tool to find files by name quickly

  Example usage:

  locate filename
• msr-tools: Tools for accessing CPU model-specific registers

  Example usage (read MSR):

  rdmsr 0x1a0
• net-tools: A collection of programs that form the base set of the NET-3 networking distribution for the Linux operating system

  Example usage (show network interfaces):

  ifconfig
• sshpass: A tool for non-interactive SSH password authentication.

  Example usage:

  sshpass -p 'password' ssh user@hostname
• tmux: A terminal multiplexer that allows managing multiple sessions in a single terminal.

  To start a new tmux session:

  tmux

  In tmux, most commands are executed using Ctrl + b, followed by another key:

  Action	Shortcut
  Detach session (leave it running)	Ctrl + b, then d
  List active sessions	tmux ls
  Reattach a session	tmux attach -t session_name
  Exit session	exit or Ctrl + d

  
• unzip: A tool for extracting and viewing files in .zip archives

  Example usage:

  unzip file.zip
• whois: A client for the whois directory service

  Example usage:

  whois example.com
• zip: A compression and file packaging utility

  Example usage:

  zip archive.zip file1 file2 file3
• libguestfs-tools: A set of tools for accessing and modifying virtual machine disk images.

  Example usage (list files in a VM disk image):

  guestfish -a disk.img -m /dev/sda1 ls /

This option automatically installs these utilities by running this command:

# Update package lists
sudo apt-get update

# Install common system utilities
sudo apt-get install -y axel dialog dos2unix grc htop btop iftop iotop iperf3 ipset iptraf-ng mlocate msr-tools net-tools omping sshpass tmux unzip zip libguestfs-tools

        

2

Skip Downloading Additional Languages

This optimization configures APT to skip downloading additional language packages, which can save disk space and speed up package operations.

Why it's beneficial:By skipping unnecessary language packages, you can reduce disk usage and improve the speed of package management operations. This is particularly useful in server environments where multiple language support is often not required.

This adjustment automates the following command:

# Configure APT to skip downloading additional languages
echo 'Acquire::Languages "none";' | sudo tee /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/99-disable-translations
        

3

Synchronize Time Automatically

This optimization configures the system to automatically synchronize its time, ensuring accurate timekeeping.

Why it's beneficial:Accurate timekeeping is crucial for many system operations, log consistency, and proper functioning of time-sensitive applications. Automatic synchronization ensures your Proxmox VE system maintains the correct time without manual intervention.

This adjustment automates the following command:

# Note: To set timezone automatically based on IP, you can use:
IP=$(dig +short myip.opendns.com @resolver1.opendns.com)
TIMEZONE=$(curl -s "https://ipapi.co/$IP/timezone")
sudo timedatectl set-timezone "$TIMEZONE"
        

4

Update and Upgrade System

This optimization updates the system's package lists, upgrades installed packages, and configures Proxmox repositories. It also includes additional steps to properly set up Debian repositories and disable certain warnings.

Why it's beneficial:Keeping your system up-to-date is essential for security, stability, and performance. This optimization ensures you have the latest patches and features, while also configuring the correct repositories for Proxmox VE, enabling access to necessary updates and tools.

Repository changes:

• Disabled: Enterprise Proxmox repository (pve-enterprise.list) - This repository is for users with a paid subscription.
• Disabled: Enterprise Proxmox Ceph repository (ceph.list) - This repository is for enterprise Ceph storage solutions.
• Added: Free public Proxmox repository (pve-public-repo.list) - This provides access to free Proxmox VE updates and packages.
• Configured: Main Debian repositories - These provide access to the core Debian packages and security updates.

This adjustment automates the following command:

# Disable enterprise Proxmox repository
if [ -f /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pve-enterprise.list ]; then
  sudo sed -i 's/^deb/#deb/g' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pve-enterprise.list
fi

# Disable enterprise Proxmox Ceph repository
if [ -f /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ceph.list ]; then
  sudo sed -i 's/^deb/#deb/g' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ceph.list
fi

# Enable free public Proxmox repository
echo "deb http://download.proxmox.com/debian/pve $(lsb_release -cs) pve-no-subscription" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/pve-public-repo.list


# Configure main Debian repositories
cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list
deb http://deb.debian.org/debian $(lsb_release -cs) main contrib non-free non-free-firmware
deb http://deb.debian.org/debian $(lsb_release -cs)-updates main contrib non-free non-free-firmware
deb http://security.debian.org/debian-security $(lsb_release -cs)-security main contrib non-free non-free-firmware
EOF

# Disable non-free firmware warnings
echo 'APT::Get::Update::SourceListWarnings::NonFreeFirmware "false";' | sudo tee /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/no-bookworm-firmware.conf

# Update and upgrade
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade -y

# Update PVE application manager
pveam update

# Install additional packages
sudo apt-get install -y zfsutils-linux proxmox-backup-restore-image chrony