---
title: "Deploying a vNIOS Instance in Proxmox VE"
canonical: "https://docs.infoblox.com/space/vniosproxmox/1861812246/Deploying%20a%20vNIOS%20Instance%20in%20Proxmox%20VE"
format: markdown
---
Before setting up a NIOS appliance as a Grid Master or a Grid member, deploy the vNIOS instance in Proxmox VE. 

To deploy a vNIOS instance, complete the *[Prerequisites](https://infoblox-docs.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/vniosproxmox/pages/1861648475)* and then perform the procedures defined in the following sections:

> Macro (toc)

## Creating a vNIOS Virtual Machine Instance in Proxmox VE

When you create a vNIOS virtual machine instance, the *Proxmox Virtual Environment* console allows you to add only one network interface in the console UI: **Network Device**. Add the required number of network devices after creating the virtual machine. A non-HA (high-availability) instance requires a minimum of two interfaces and an HA instance requires three. For an HA deployment, create two vNIOS instances for the HA pair.

To create a virtual machine (VM) instance in the Proxmox VE host, complete the following steps:

1. Open the *Proxmox Virtual Environment* console and sign in.
2. On the landing page > in the resource tree, right-click the Proxmox VE host where you want to create the virtual machine and select **Create VM**.
3. In the *Create a VM* dialog box, configure the following settings:
  1. **General**: Configure the following and click **Next**.
    - **VM ID**: By default, Proxmox populates an ID for the virtual machine. You can specify an ID of your choice. You will use the VM ID later to import the vNIOS image into the virtual machine.
    - **Name**: Specify a name for the virtual machine that you are creating.
  2. **OS**: Select **Do not use any media** and click **Next**.
  3. **System**: Retain the default settings and click **Next**.
  4. **Disk**: Remove the default disk **scsi0** by clicking the **Delete** icon, and then click **Next**.  
You will create and attach a NIOS disk later in the deployment process.
  5. **CPU**: Configure the CPU settings as follows and click **Next**:
    - According to the vNIOS appliance model you plan to deploy, configure the number of **Sockets** and **Cores** to obtain the required total number of cores, and then click **Next**.  
For appliances supported on Proxmox VE and their specifications, see the *[vNIOS for Proxmox X6 Series](https://docs.infoblox.com/space/vniosspec/1857781969/vNIOS+for+Proxmox+X6+Series)* and *[vNIOS for Proxmox X5 Series](https://docs.infoblox.com/space/vniosspec/1856045372/vNIOS+for+Proxmox+X5+Series)*[ topics](https://docs.infoblox.com/space/vniosspec/1856045372/vNIOS+for+Proxmox+X5+Series).
    - **Type**: Retain the default type.
  6. **Memory**: According to the vNIOS appliance model you plan to deploy, specify the size of the memory in MB, and click **Next**.  
For example, for an IB-V926 appliance, specify **32000**.
  7. **Network**: In the **Bridge** drop-down list, select the VNet that you created for the network device **net0** and click **Next**.  
You must add the required number of network devices after the virtual machine is created.
  8. Review the settings, and click **Finish**.  
The virtual machine instance is created under the selected node, and its details appear in the right panel.
4. Add the required number of network devices to the virtual machine instance.  
Because the virtual machine instance is created with only the net0 interface, add a second interface for net1 because a vNIOS member requires a minimum of two network devices.  
For an HA deployment, create two instances, each with net0, net1, and net2 devices. In NIOS, net0, net1, and net2 network devices are labeled as MGMT, LAN1, and HA network interfaces, respectively.  
To add a network device:
  1. In the right panel of the virtual machine instance, click the **Hardware** tab.
  2. From the **Add** drop-down list, select **Network Device**.
  3. In the *Add Hardware Device* dialog box, select a VNet from the **Bridge** drop-down list and click **Add**.
  4. Repeat steps 4b and 4c to add the required number of interfaces.

> ⚠️ **Important**
> ⚠️ 
> ⚠️ Do not power on the virtual machine instance at this stage, because it will fail to boot. Power it on after importing the disk image and attaching the disk to the instance as explained in sections below.

## Importing the vNIOS Disk Image to Proxmox VE

Create a disk in the vNIOS virtual machine instance by importing the vNIOS image:

1. Sign in to the CLI console of the Proxmox VE host (root node) using SSH.  
Or  
In the *Proxmox Virtual Environment* console, right-click the Proxmox VE host and select **Shell**.
2. Navigate to the following path and copy the .qcow2 image you downloaded from the Infoblox Support portal:  
/`var/lib/vz/import/`
3. Run the following command to import the .qcow2 disk image into the virtual machine:  
`qm importdisk <vm_id> <.qcow2_file_name> <datastore_name> --format qcow2`  
Field description:  
`<vm_id>`: The ID assigned to the virtual machine.  
`<.qcow2_file_name>`: The name of the .qcow2 file you downloaded from the Infoblox Support portal.  
`<datastore_name>`: The name of the Proxmox VE storage where the disk image must be saved.  
Example:  
`qm importdisk 103 nios-9.0.8-12345-00088-2025-09-10-08-37-44-fixed-500G.qcow2 1ds --format qcow2`  
Importing the disk image takes several minutes. After completion, a success message appears in the CLI and Proxmox Virtual Environment consoles, and the disk appears as *Unused Disk 0* on the **Hardware** tab of the virtual machine instance.

## Attaching the Imported Disk to the Virtual Machine

In the Proxmox Virtual Environment console, attach the imported disk to the virtual machine and set the boot order to prioritize the disk.

To attach:

1. Navigate to the virtual machine that you created.
2. Attach the imported disk:
  1. On the **Hardware** tab, double-click **Unused Disk 0**.
  2. In the *Add Unused Disk* dialog box, retain the default settings and click **Add** to attach the disk to the virtual machine.  
The disk appears as *Hard Disk (scsi0)*.  
  
Note: If you are deploying the instance with a resizable image, resize the disk by running the following command from the CLI console of the Proxmox VE host:  
`qm resize <vm_id> <disk_id> <disk_size_in_GiB>`  
Example: `qm resize 707 scsi0 200G`
3. Update the boot order as follows:
  1. On the **Options** tab, double-click **Boot Order**.
  2. In the *Edit Boot Order* dialog box, enable **scsi0** and drag it to the first position to increase its priority.
  3. Disable the **ide2** checkbox.
  4. Ensure that all other network devices are enabled, and click **OK**.  
NIOS assigns network devices to the instance in the order defined in this dialog box.  
When adding network devices, match each interface with the corresponding VNet.
4. To start the virtual machine, click the **Start** button located at the top of the virtual machine panel.  
The virtual machine takes several minutes to start.

According to the type of members that you have deployed in Proxmox VE, set up Infoblox NIOS. For more information, refer to topics *HA Master - Node 1* and *Adding an HA Member* in chapter *Deploying a Grid* in the <u>*[Infoblox NIOS Documentation](https://docs.infoblox.com/space/NIOS/35400616/NIOS)*</u>.

> ⚠️ **Note**
> ⚠️ 
> ⚠️ - After a vNIOS for Proxmox instance is started following a fresh deployment, the memory usage on the *Instance Summary* page displays over 90% while the usage in NIOS remains within permissible limits. This has no impact on performance.
> ⚠️ - The **Host Platform** field in Grid Manager and the **Member host platform** field in the CLI display the host platform as QEMU instead of Proxmox.