Proxmox Virtual Environment

Linux distribution for server virtualization

Linux distribution

Proxmox Virtual Environment

Proxmox VE 8.0 administration interface screenshot

Developer| Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH
Written in| Perl,[1] Rust[2]
OS family| Linux (Unix-like)
Working state| Current
Source model| Free and open source software
Initial release| 15 April 2008; 17 years ago (2008-04-15)
Latest release| 9.0[3] / 5 August 2025; 7 days ago (5 August 2025)
Latest preview| 8.0 beta1[4] / 9 June 2023; 2 years ago (2023-06-09)
Repository|

* git.proxmox.com

Available in| 25 languages[5]
Update method| APT
Package manager| dpkg
Supported platforms| AMD64
Kernel type| Monolithic (Linux)
Userland| GNU
Default
user interface| Web-based
License| GNU Affero General Public License[6]
Official website| www.proxmox.com/en/proxmox-virtual-environment/

Proxmox Virtual Environment (PVE, or simply Proxmox) is a virtualization platform designed for the provisioning of hyper-converged infrastructure.

Proxmox allows deployment and management of virtual machines and containers.[7][8] It is based on a modified Ubuntu LTS kernel.[9] Two types of virtualization are supported: container-based with LXC (starting from version 4.0 replacing OpenVZ used in version up to 3.4, included[10]), and full virtualization with KVM.[11]

It includes a web-based management interface.[12][13] There is also a mobile application available for controlling PVE environments.[14]

Proxmox is released under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License, version 3.

## History

[edit]

Development of Proxmox VE started in 2005 when Dietmar Maurer and Martin Maurer, two Linux developers, discovered OpenVZ had no backup tool or management GUI. KVM was also appearing at the same time in Linux, and was added shortly afterwards.[15]

The first public release took place in April 2008. It supported container and full virtualization, managed with a web-based user interface similar to other commercial offerings.[16]

## Features

[edit]

Proxmox VE is an open-source server virtualization platform to manage two virtualization technologies: Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) for virtual machines and LXC for containers - with a single web-based interface.[11] It also integrates out-of-the-box-tools for configuring high availability between servers, software-defined storage, networking, and disaster recovery.[17]

Proxmox VE supports live migration for guest machines between nodes in the scope of a single cluster, which allows smooth migration without interrupting their services.[18] Since PVE 7.3 there is an experimental feature for migration between unrelated nodes in different clusters.[19]

To authenticate users to the web GUI, Proxmox can use its own internal authentication database, PAM, OIDC, LDAP or Active Directory.[20] Multi-factor authentication is also available using TOTP, WebAuthn, or YubiKey OTP.[21]

Since PVE 8.1 there is a full Software-Defined Network (SDN) stack implemented and is compatible with Secure Boot.[22]

Guest machine backups can be done using the included standalone vzdump tool.[23] PVE can also be integrated with a separate Proxmox Backup Server (PBS) using a web GUI,[24] or with the text-based Proxmox Backup Client application.[25]

Since PVE 8, along with the standard GUI installer, there is a semi-graphic (TUI) installer integrated into the ISO image.[20] From PVE 8.2 it is possible to make automatic scripted installations.[26]

### High-Availability Cluster

[edit]

Proxmox VE (PVE) can be clustered across multiple server nodes.[27]

Since version 2.0, Proxmox VE offers a high availability option for clusters based on the Corosync communication stack. Starting from PVE 6.0, Corosync 3.x is in use (not compatible with earlier PVE versions). Individual virtual servers can be configured for high availability using the integrated HA manager.[28][29] If a Proxmox node becomes unavailable or fails, the virtual machines can be automatically moved to another node and restarted.[30] The database and FUSE-based Proxmox Cluster file system (pmxcfs[31]) makes it possible to perform the configuration of each cluster node via the Corosync communication stack with SQLite engine.[13]

Another HA-related element in PVE is the distributed file system Ceph, which can be used as a shared storage for guest machines.[32]

There is also an independent tool available for rebalancing virtual machines and containers between nodes, called Prox Load Balancer (ProxLB).[33]

### Virtual Appliances

[edit]

Proxmox VE has pre-packaged server software appliances which can be downloaded via the GUI.[34]

## Proxmox Datacenter Manager

[edit]

At the end of 2024 it was announced that new product is being developed - Proxmox Datacenter Manager (PDM). Its role is to aggregate management of multiple PVE clusters or hosts, possibly thousands. First release was labelled as alpha, with beta and stable versions expected in 2025.[35]

## See also

[edit]

* Free and open-source software portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Proxmox Virtual Environment.

* Comparison of platform virtualization software
* Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM)
* oVirt

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Proxmox Manager Git Tree". Retrieved 4 March 2019.
2. ^ "Proxmox VE Rust Git Tree". git.proxmox.com.
3. ^ "Proxmox Virtual Environment 9.0 with Debian 13 released". 5 August 2025. Retrieved 5 August 2025.
4. ^ "Roadmap". Proxmox. Retrieved 2014-12-03.
5. ^ "projects / proxmox-i18n.git / tree". Retrieved 16 November 2022.
6. ^ "Open Source – Proxmox VE". Proxmox Server Solutions. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
7. ^ Simon M.C. Cheng (31 October 2014). Proxmox High Availability. Packt Publishing Ltd. pp. 41–. ISBN 978-1-78398-089-5.
8. ^ Plura, Michael (July 2013). "Aus dem Nähkästchen". IX Magazin. 2013 (7). Heise Zeitschriften Verlag: 74–77. Retrieved July 20, 2015.
9. ^ "Proxmox VE Kernel - Proxmox VE". pve.proxmox.com. Retrieved 2017-05-26.
10. ^ "Proxmox VE 4.0 with Linux Containers (LXC) and new HA Manager released". Proxmox. 11 December 2015. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
11. ^ a b Ken Hess (July 11, 2011). "Proxmox: The Ultimate Hypervisor". ZDNet. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
12. ^ Vervloesem, Koen. "Proxmox VE 2.0 review – A virtualization server for any situation", Linux User & Developer, 11 April 2012. Retrieved on 16 July 2015.
13. ^ a b Drilling, Thomas (May 2013). "Virtualization Control Room". Linux Pro Magazine. Linux New Media USA. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
14. ^ "Proxmox Virtual Environment". Google Play. Proxmox Server Solutions GmbH. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
15. ^ "Proxmox VE 1.5: combining KVM and OpenVZ". Linux Weekly News. Retrieved 2015-04-10.
16. ^ Ken Hess (April 15, 2013). "Happy 5th birthday, Proxmox". ZDNet. Retrieved October 4, 2021.
17. ^ "Features". www.proxmox.com. Retrieved 2019-05-12.
18. ^ Rajvanshi, Akash. "Proxmox 101". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
19. ^ "How to migrate VM from one PVE cluster to another". Proxmox Forums. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
20. ^ a b Lee, Brandon. "Proxmox 8: New Features and Home Lab Upgrade Instructions". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
21. ^ Lee, Brandon (2024-03-22). "First 10 Steps I do on Proxmox in 2024". Virtualization Howto. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
22. ^ Borisov, Bobby. "Proxmox VE 8.1 Introduces Secure Boot Compatibility". Linuxiac. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
23. ^ "Backup of a running container with vzdump". OpenVZ Wiki. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
24. ^ "Getting Started With Proxmox Backup Server". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
25. ^ "How To Use Proxmox Backup Client To Backup Files In Linux". Retrieved 12 November 2023.
26. ^ Smith, Lyle. "Proxmox VE 8.2 Introduces VMware Import Wizard, Enhanced Backup Options, and Advanced GUI Features". StorageReview. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
27. ^ Wasim Ahmedi (2014-07-14). Mastering Proxmox. Packt Publishing Ltd. pp. 99–. ISBN 978-1-78398-083-3.
28. ^ "PVE HA Manager Source repository". Retrieved 2020-10-19.
29. ^ "Proxmox VE documentation: High Availability". Retrieved 2020-10-19.
30. ^ "High Availability Virtualization using Proxmox VE and Ceph". Jacksonville Linux Users' Group. Archived from the original on 2020-11-30. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
31. ^ "Proxmox Cluster File System (pmxcfs)". Proxmox VE Administration Guide. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
32. ^ Ladyzhenskyi, Pavel. "Setting up a Proxmox VE cluster with Ceph shared storage". Medium.com. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
33. ^ "ProxLB - The Prox Load Balancer for Proxmox". ProxLB. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
34. ^ "The next server operating system you buy will be a virtual machine". ZDNET. 15 October 2013. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
35. ^ t.lamprecht (Dec 19, 2024). "Proxmox Datacenter Manager - First Alpha Release". Proxmox forum. Retrieved 9 July 2025.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Virtualization software

Comparison of platform virtualization software

Hardware
(hypervisors)|

| Native|

* Adeos
* CP/CMS
* Hyper-V
* KVM
* oVirt
* KubeVirt
* LDoms / Oracle VM Server for SPARC
* Logical partition (LPAR)
* LynxSecure
* PikeOS
* Proxmox VE
* QNX
* SIMMON
* VMware ESXi
* VMware vSphere
* vCloud
* VMware Infrastructure
* Xen
* XenServer
* XCP-ng
* XtratuM
* z/VM

|

Hosted|

| Specialized|

* Basilisk II
* Bochs
* Cooperative Linux
* DOSBox
* DOSEMU
* PCem
* 86Box
* PikeOS
* SheepShaver
* SIMH
* Windows on Windows
* Virtual DOS machine
* Win4Lin

|

Independent|

* bhyve
* Microsoft Virtual Server
* Parallels Workstation (Extreme)
* Parallels Desktop for Mac
* Parallels Server for Mac
* PearPC
* QEMU
* UTM
* VirtualBox
* Virtual Iron
* Virtual PC
* VMware Fusion
* VMware Server
* VMware Workstation (Player)

Tools|

* Ganeti
* System Center Virtual Machine Manager
* Virt-manager

Operating
system|

| OS containers|

* FreeBSD jail
* iCore Virtual Accounts
* Linux-VServer
* Linux Containers
* OpenVZ
* Solaris Containers
* Virtuozzo
* Workload Partitions

|

Application containers|

* Docker
* Podman
* lmctfy
* rkt

Virtual kernel architectures|

* Rump kernel
* User-mode Linux
* vkernel

Related kernel features|

* BrandZ
* cgroups
* chroot
* namespaces
* eBPF
* seccomp

Orchestration|

* Amazon ECS
* Kubernetes
* OpenShift

Desktop|

* Citrix Virtual Apps
* Citrix Virtual Desktops
* Remote Desktop Services
* VMware Horizon

Application|

* Ceedo
* Citrix Virtual Apps
* Dalvik
* InstallFree
* Microsoft App-V
* Remote Desktop Services
* Symantec Workspace Virtualization
* Turbo
* VMware ThinApp
* ZeroVM

Network|

* Distributed Overlay Virtual Ethernet (DOVE)
* Ethernet VPN (EVPN)
* NVGRE
* Open vSwitch
* Virtual security switch
* Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN)
* Generic Network Virtualization Encapsulation (GENEVE)

See also|

* BlueStacks

See also: List of emulators, List of computer system emulators

Authority control databases

National|

* United States
* Israel

Other|

* Yale LUX

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