Proxmox Homelab: Setup on a Mini PC, Ubuntu VMs & Beyond

If you've ever wanted to run multiple operating systems and services on a single machine without the overhead of a full VMware setup, Proxmox is where it's at. It's an open-source virtualization platform that's powerful enough for production but approachable enough for a home lab. For more details, check out Setting Up a Python Development Environment on VirtualBox wi. For more details, check out Installing Radarr, Jackett, QBitTorrent (qbittorrent-nox), a. For more details, check out 📝 Cambridge AS & A Level Computer Science June 2025 Paper 2 .

I've been running Proxmox on a mini PC for a while now, and in this guide I'll show you how to set it up from scratch — picking the hardware, installing Proxmox, and getting your first Ubuntu VM running.

What is Proxmox

Proxmox Virtual Environment (Proxmox VE) is a Debian-based platform that gives you both KVM-based virtual machines and LXC containers. You manage everything through a web interface, so once it's set up you don't need to be at the machine. It handles:

• Virtual machines (full OS isolation with KVM)
• Containers (lightweight, shares the host kernel with LXC)
• Software-defined storage (ZFS, LVM, Ceph, directory-based)
• Backups and snapshots
• Clustering (run multiple Proxmox nodes as one cluster)
• Built-in firewall and networking

The best part? It's completely free and open source.

Part 1: Setting Up Proxmox on a Mini PC

Choosing the Right Hardware

The mini PC you choose makes a big difference. Here's what I look for:

Popular options that work great: - Intel NUC — the gold standard for home labs. Powerful, small, well-supported. - Gigabyte BRIX — similar form factor to NUC, usually a bit cheaper. - ASUS VivoMini — slightly larger but good cooling. - HP EliteDesk / Dell OptiPlex Mini — excellent used options on eBay.

I grabbed a used Intel NUC with an i5, 16 GB RAM, and a 256 GB SSD. It's been rock solid running 4-5 VMs.

Downloading Proxmox

Head to the Proxmox downloads page and grab the latest ISO. You'll also need a tool to create a bootable USB — I use Rufus on Windows or dd on Linux.

Installing Proxmox

1. Write the ISO to a USB drive using Rufus or Etcher.
2. Plug the USB into your mini PC and boot from it (you may need to hit F2/F12/DEL to get into the boot menu).
3. You'll see the Proxmox installer. Follow the on-screen steps: - Target disk — choose where to install (the SSD, not your storage drive). - Location and time zone — set it correctly for your time. - Password and email — set a root password. Don't forget it. - Management network — set a static IP if your network doesn't have DHCP reservations. You'll access Proxmox via this IP.
4. The installer takes about 5 minutes. When it's done, remove the USB and reboot.
5. You'll see a terminal with the IP address. Type that into a browser on another machine: https://192.168.1.100:8006 (use your actual IP).

Configuring Proxmox After Installation

Once you're in the web interface:

1. Login with root and the password you set.
2. Upload your subscription key (or click OK to use the free repository — you just get occasional nag messages, nothing broken).
3. Configure storage — go to Datacenter > Storage and add any additional drives you have. I added a 1 TB HDD for VM storage.
4. Set up networking — Proxmox uses Linux bridges by default. You usually don't need to change anything unless you want VLANs or multiple networks.

Part 2: Creating and Installing an Ubuntu VM

Now for the fun part — getting a VM running.

Step 1: Upload the Ubuntu ISO

1. Download the Ubuntu Server or Desktop ISO from ubuntu.com.
2. In Proxmox, select your node, go to local (storage) > ISO Images > Upload.
3. Browse to your downloaded ISO and upload it.

Step 2: Create the Virtual Machine

1. Click Create VM at the top right.
2. General — give it a name like "ubuntu-server".
3. OS — choose the Ubuntu ISO you uploaded. Set Type to Linux and Version to match your Ubuntu version.
4. System — defaults are fine. I usually leave graphics on VirtIO-GPU for better performance.
5. Disks — I give Ubuntu server VMs 20-30 GB. For desktop, 40-50 GB. Use SCSI or VirtIO Block for better performance.
6. CPU — start with 2 cores. You can always add more later.
7. Memory — 2048 MB minimum for server, 4096 MB for desktop.
8. Network — the default bridge (vmbr0) will give your VM an IP on your network via DHCP.

Review the settings and click Finish.

Step 3: Install Ubuntu

1. Select your new VM and click Start.
2. Click Console to open the display.
3. You'll see the Ubuntu installer. Go through the standard steps: - Choose your language and keyboard layout - Select Install Ubuntu Server (or Desktop) - Set up your network (DHCP is easiest) - Configure storage — use guided partitioning for simplicity - Create a username and password - Install OpenSSH server during the software selection (trust me, you want this)
4. The install takes 5-10 minutes. When it finishes, the VM will reboot.

Step 4: Post-Installation Configuration

Once Ubuntu is installed, log in with your username and password. Run some updates:

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y

I also recommend installing a few essentials:

sudo apt install -y htop net-tools curl wget git

Step 5: Accessing Your Ubuntu VM

You have two options:

1. Proxmox Console — from the web interface, click your VM and go to Console. It works fine but can feel clunky.
2. SSH — find your VM's IP (ip addr or check your router's DHCP leases) and connect from another machine:

ssh [email protected]

This is my preferred method. It's faster, you can copy-paste commands, and you can have multiple terminal sessions open.

Managing Your Proxmox Homelab

Taking Snapshots

Before making big changes to any VM, take a snapshot:

1. Select the VM > More > Snapshot.
2. Name it something descriptive like "before-nginx-install".
3. If things go wrong, click the snapshot and Rollback.

Backing Up VMs

Proxmox has built-in backup:

1. Go to Datacenter > Backup.
2. Create a backup job — set the storage, schedule, and which VMs to include.
3. I run mine weekly to an external drive.

Monitoring Resources

The web interface shows CPU, memory, and disk usage in real-time. For individual VMs, I SSH in and use htop or top.

What Can You Run in Your Proxmox Homelab?

Here are some things I run in my home lab:

The beauty of Proxmox is that you can spin up a new VM in minutes, use it for whatever experiment you're working on, and delete it when you're done.

Final Thoughts

Setting up Proxmox on a mini PC is one of the best investments you can make in your homelab journey. It's affordable — especially if you buy used hardware — and the flexibility it gives you is incredible. Want to try a new Linux distro? Spin up a VM. Need a sandbox for testing? Snapshot your current setup and go wild.

Start with the mini PC install, get your first Ubuntu VM running, and build from there. Before you know it, you'll have a full home lab that rivals what you'd find in a small business IT closet — all running on a machine that fits in the palm of your hand.