Skip to main content

Proxmox

Adding Shared Storage to Proxmox Installation

In this part of the Proxmox tutorial series, you'll learn to add shared storage to a Proxmox installation.

So far in this Proxmox series, you have learned about installing Proxmox and creating virtual machines and containers.

In this part, you'll learn about adding shared storage in Proxmox.

Proxmox VE supports shared storage – for instance, you could use your network attached storage device as a shared storage medium for one or more nodes, or simply as external and larger storage for a single node.

Add shared storage in Proxmox

In this tutorial, I will be setting up shared storage on a single node using my Synology NAS device with an NFS share.

Click on the Datacenter tab on the left side of your Proxmox GUI, and click on “Storage”.

Go to the Storage section from the Datacenter Tab on the left sidebar of your Proxmox GUI
Go to Storage Section

Click on "Add" and select NFS in the dropdown menu:

After clicking on "Add" button, select NFS option from the resulting dropdown list. It will give the "Add: NFS" box
Select NFS from the Dropdown

ID can be whatever you want the name of your storage to be to Proxmox. Server is the IP of the NAS or storage device being used. Export is the full path to the shared directory being used for storage. For content, highlight everything that you want to enable this storage device for (ISOs, VMs, CTs, etc).. Everything else can be left default:

On the "Edit: NFS" box, enter the details for important fields like ID, Server, Export, Content, etc.
Edit NFS to add details

The storage device is now available in the datacenter tab alongside the internal storage of your server. Let's test it out by moving a virtual machine to it. Click on your VM and click on the Hardware tab. Click and highlight "Hard Disk" and then press the button on the top that says "Disk Action". Click "Move Storage":

Click on Move Storage in Proxmox

Select your new storage device (in my case it was the NAS device), and delete the source if desired. Then click on "Move Disk":

Select the new storage device on target storage option and delete the source if desired. Now, click on "Move Disk" button
Click on Move Disk

Once the status window displays "TASK OK" you're done. Continue migrating your other VMs.

The process status is displayed on a status window. Once it shows "TASK OK", you are done
Status Window

I hope you like this quick Proxmox tutorial. Stay tuned for more as I'll discuss backing up and restoring VMS, upgrading the Proxmox version, cloning and templating.

✍🏻
Doron is a long-time system mangler who got his first taste of Linux compiling and configuring ircd servers from source in the mid 90s. He then dwelled into web hosting operations through reseller accounts and dedicated servers. Offline he plays bass, and is an avid music lover. He co-owns an internet radio station called Genesis Radio which plays all kinds of music 24X7 and features events and live shows. If you need hosting services, you can check out his current business, Genesis Hosting
Doron Beit-Halahmi
Doron Beit-Halahmi

I'm an experienced System Administrator with a focus on transitioning into a Computer Systems Analyst role.

New York, USA