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Proxmox and Windows VMs: Why the Native CPU Type Might Be a Bad Idea

(2025-03-23):
It’s a long story when it comes to run Windows VMs in Proxmox and luckily the things became pretty well in the recent years. However, from time to time people start complaining about performance issues that are mostly only visible on Windows systems and this has mostly three major reasons: o Missing Drivers / Guest Tools o Wrong configuration / usage (e.g., still using VMDK disk files, controllers, devices) o Wrong CPU Type As said, within the recent years the situation got much better but we also had to deal with some insane hardware vulnerabilities like Spectre and Meltdown for CPUs. Spectre and Meltdown are two significant security vulnerabilities that affect modern processors, particularly those from Intel, AMD, and ARM. Discovered in 2017 and publicly disclosed in early 2018, these vulnerabilities exploit critical flaws in speculative execution, a performance optimization technique used by CPUs. And this is also partly a .... [read more]

HowTo: Proxmox Backup Server – Prometheus Exporter and Grafana Dashboard

(2025-03-14):
Proxmox Backup Server is an essential tool for anyone running Proxmox Virtual Environment (PVE) or managing backups efficiently in a virtualized setup. It provides a high-performance and deduplication-enabled backup solution that ensures data protection while keeping storage demands in check. But like any critical infrastructure component, monitoring its performance and status is key to ensuring smooth operations and quick troubleshooting. This is where integrating metrics into a single solution, like a Prometheus and Grafana setup, becomes invaluable. Instead of manually checking logs or relying on periodic status reports, a well-integrated monitoring system provides real-time insights into the health and performance of the backup server. With Prometheus scraping metrics and Grafana visualizing them in intuitive dashboards, administrators gain a clear view of key indicators such as backup job status, storage utilization, performance bottlenecks, and potential failures. This proactive approach helps to detect issues before they escalate and ensures that backups are .... [read more]

HowTo: Matrix Synapse Server on FreeBSD with SSO via Microsoft Azure AD by OIDC

(2025-03-10):
When deploying an open-source chat solution like Matrix Synapse, authentication is a critical piece of the puzzle. Many businesses rely on centralized identity providers to manage user access efficiently. That’s where OpenID Connect (OIDC) comes in, allowing seamless integration with enterprise-grade identity solutions like Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) which is now also known as Microsoft Entra ID. By leveraging OIDC, we can integrate Azure AD as a Single Sign-On (SSO) provider for Matrix Synapse, ensuring users authenticate using their existing corporate credentials including and enforcing two factor authentication (2FA). This eliminates the need for separate logins while enhancing security and user convenience. One of the biggest advantages of using open-source software like Matrix Synapse is flexibility. Unlike proprietary communication platforms, Matrix allows us to customize and extend its authentication system to fit our business needs. And by integrating with Azure AD, we get enterprise-level security without locking ourselves .... [read more]

HowTo: Kleene as a Container Management Platform for FreeBSD

(2025-02-14):
Kleene is a container management (jail manager) platform designed specifically for FreeBSD, bringing familiar concepts from Docker while fully embracing FreeBSDs native tools and philosophy. Instead of reinventing the wheel, Kleene follows the KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) principle, leveraging FreeBSD’s built-in features to simplify application deployment, maintenance, and upgrades without unnecessary complexity or abstraction. By using FreeBSD’s core technologies like jails, ZFS, and PF (Packet Filter), Kleene provides a streamlined way to build, run, and manage containerized applications while maintaining transparency and control. Key functionalities include: Jailed Applications: Running lightweight, isolated environments using ZFS for storage efficiency. Native Networking: Automatically setting up necessary network devices and configurations. Firewall Integration: Managing connectivity securely with FreeBSD’s PF firewall. Unlike some container solutions that introduce heavy layers of abstraction, Kleene stays true to FreeBSD’s “Power to Serve” motto, ensuring users retain full visibility and control over their system. If you’re familiar with .... [read more]

HowTo Create a Kubernetes Cluster in 10 Minutes

(2025-02-04):
Creating and managing a Kubernetes cluster from scratch can be challenging and there’re definitely a way too many possibilities to do so in 2025. With Talos Linux, this can be done in less than 10 minutes! What is Talos Linux? Talos Linux is an operating system built specifically for Kubernetes, focusing on security, immutability, and minimalism. It is designed to work across a variety of environments, including cloud platforms, bare metal servers, and virtualization platforms, providing a versatile solution for modern infrastructure needs. One of its key features is that system management is completely API-driven, eliminating the need for traditional SSH, shell access, or a console interface, which enhances both security and ease of automation. Talos is production-ready, having been used to support some of the largest Kubernetes clusters globally. It is an open-source project developed by the team at Sidero Labs, which is committed to simplifying infrastructure management for .... [read more]

Hosting a new ActivityPub Relay for the Fediverse including Mastodon and snac

(2025-01-22):
The Fediverse is an interconnected world of diverse platforms, brought together by the ActivityPub protocol. At its heart lies a fundamental concept: decentralized, federated communication. In this environment, relays play a significant role by enhancing the reach and visibility of servers (instances) within the network. To understand why relays matter, it’s important to explore how a relay works and what they bring to the Fediverse – including all the software components like Mastodon, Pleroma, snac and many more. ActivityPub Relay for the Fediverse by gyptazy An ActivityPub relay acts as a middleman, bridging multiple servers to facilitate broader content sharing. Without a relay, communication across instances relies entirely on direct relationships between servers. If two servers don’t know about each other, their users might remain unaware of the conversations and communities happening elsewhere. This might also often lead into missing content when searching for specific keywords or hashtags. A relay .... [read more]

Virtualization in 2024: Market Trends, Open-Source Opportunities, Broadcom’s VMware Shake-Up, and Top Solutions to Watch

(2024-12-10):
The year 2024 marked a turning point for the virtualization industry. Following Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware, significant changes to VMware’s licensing model and pricing structure set off a wave of responses across the market. These changes had a profound impact on the virtualization landscape, altering long-held assumptions and forcing enterprises to re-evaluate their strategies. VMware had long been a leader in the virtualization space, with its solutions forming the backbone of countless enterprise data centers. Its platforms, including vSphere, vSAN, and NSX, were considered industry standards, praised for their robustness and feature set. However, post-acquisition, VMware’s licensing and pricing underwent substantial revisions. For many organizations, these changes represented a significant cost increase, leading to concerns about the sustainability of continuing with VMware’s solutions. The updates, while intended to align with Broadcom’s broader enterprise strategy, prompted businesses to reexamine their dependence on proprietary virtualization platforms. This shift created ripple effects, opening .... [read more]

BoxyBSD Empowers the Open-Source Community by Provisioning 500+ Free BSD-Focused VPS Instances

(2024-12-07):
This weekend marks an incredible milestone for BoxyBSD : we’ve provisioned our 500th free VPS instance! What started as a passion project aimed at supporting the open-source community has grown into something truly special, and I couldn’t be more proud to see the impact it’s having on learners, enthusiasts, and open-source contributors worldwide. Building a Bridge to BSD and Beyond BoxyBSD was born out of a simple yet powerful idea: to lower the barriers to entry for anyone eager to learn, experiment, or contribute to BSD-based operating systems. By providing free virtual private servers (VPS), I’ve been able to offer a platform where beginners can explore the intricacies of system administration, networking, and security practices without the financial burden of hosting costs. This mission also extends to supporting open-source projects. Many community-driven initiatives lack the infrastructure needed to thrive. BoxyBSD fills that gap by providing free hosting on a range .... [read more]

HowTo: Managing VM on FreeBSD with bhyve and vm-bhyve

(2024-10-26):
The bhyve hypervisor on FreeBSD is an impressive tool that brings lightweight, efficient virtualization capabilities directly into the FreeBSD ecosystem. It’s a powerful type 2 hypervisor that allows FreeBSD users to run virtual machines with minimal overhead, making it an excellent choice for those who value performance and stability. I find bhyve especially compelling for running various Unix-like operating systems like FreeBSD itself, Linux, and even Windows, thanks to UEFI support. In the past, I already wrote many blog posts about virtualization and hypervisor solutions where I also often mentioned bhyve but also the lacks around bhyve. However, bhyve is still an amazing way to virtualize your workloads by running VMs of any operating system. Recently I got ask how I usually manage bhyve and if I could provide a small howto. To manage bhyve VMs more easily, I rely on vm-bhyve, which streamlines the creation, configuration, and operation of .... [read more]

bhyve on FreeBSD and VM Live Migration – Quo vadis?

(2024-10-21):
When I think about bhyve Live Migration, it’s something I encounter almost daily in my consulting calls. VMware’s struggles with Broadcom’s licensing issues have been a frequent topic, even as we approach the end of 2024. It’s surprising that many customers still feel uncertain about how to navigate this mess. While VMware has been a mainstay in enterprise environments for years, these ongoing issues make customers nervous. And they should be – it’s hard to rely on something when even the licensing situation feels volatile. Now, as much as I’m a die-hard FreeBSD fan, I have to admit that FreeBSD still falls short when it comes to virtualization – at least from an enterprise perspective. In these environments, it’s not just about running a VM; it’s about having the flexibility and capabilities to manage workloads without interruption. Years ago, open-source solutions like KVM (e.g., Proxmox) and Xen (e.g., XCP-ng) introduced .... [read more]

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