pve-intro.adoc

   1 Introduction
   2 ============
   3
   4 {pve} is a platform to run virtual machines and containers. It is
   5 based on Debian Linux, and completely open source. For maximum
   6 flexibility, we implemented two virtualization technologies -
   7 Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) and container-based virtualization
   8 (LXC).
   9
  10 One main design goal was to make administration as easy as
  11 possible. You can use {pve} on a single node, or assemble a cluster of
  12 many nodes. All management tasks can be done using our web-based
  13 management interface, and even a novice user can setup and install
  14 {pve} within minutes.
  15
  16 image::images/pve-software-stack.svg["Proxmox Software Stack",align="center"]
  17
  18
  19 [[intro_central_management]]
  20 Central Management
  21 ------------------
  22
  23 While many people start with a single node, {pve} can scale out to a
  24 large set of clustered nodes. The cluster stack is fully integrated
  25 and ships with the default installation.
  26
  27 Unique Multi-Master Design::
  28
  29 The integrated web-based management interface gives you a clean
  30 overview of all your KVM guests and Linux containers and even of your
  31 whole cluster. You can easily manage your VMs and containers, storage
  32 or cluster from the GUI. There is no need to install a separate,
  33 complex, and pricey management server.
  34
  35 Proxmox Cluster File System (pmxcfs)::
  36
  37 {pve} uses the unique Proxmox Cluster file system (pmxcfs), a
  38 database-driven file system for storing configuration files. This
  39 enables you to store the configuration of thousands of virtual
  40 machines. By using corosync, these files are replicated in real time
  41 on all cluster nodes. The file system stores all data inside a
  42 persistent database on disk, nonetheless, a copy of the data resides
  43 in RAM which provides a maximum storage size of 30MB - more than
  44 enough for thousands of VMs.
  45 +
  46 {pve} is the only virtualization platform using this unique
  47 cluster file system.
  48
  49 Web-based Management Interface::
  50
  51 {pve} is simple to use. Management tasks can be done via the
  52 included web based management interface - there is no need to install a
  53 separate management tool or any additional management node with huge
  54 databases. The multi-master tool allows you to manage your whole
  55 cluster from any node of your cluster. The central web-based
  56 management - based on the JavaScript Framework (ExtJS) - empowers
  57 you to control all functionalities from the GUI and overview history
  58 and syslogs of each single node. This includes running backup or
  59 restore jobs, live-migration or HA triggered activities.
  60
  61 Command Line::
  62
  63 For advanced users who are used to the comfort of the Unix shell or
  64 Windows Powershell, {pve} provides a command-line interface to
  65 manage all the components of your virtual environment. This command-line
  66 interface has intelligent tab completion and full documentation
  67 in the form of UNIX man pages.
  68
  69 REST API::
  70
  71 {pve} uses a RESTful API. We choose JSON as primary data format,
  72 and the whole API is formally defined using JSON Schema. This enables
  73 fast and easy integration for third party management tools like custom
  74 hosting environments.
  75
  76 Role-based Administration::
  77
  78 You can define granular access for all objects (like VMs, storages,
  79 nodes, etc.) by using the role based user- and permission
  80 management. This allows you to define privileges and helps you to
  81 control access to objects. This concept is also known as access
  82 control lists: Each permission specifies a subject (a user or group)
  83 and a role (set of privileges) on a specific path.
  84
  85 Authentication Realms::
  86
  87 {pve} supports multiple authentication sources like Microsoft
  88 Active Directory, LDAP, Linux PAM standard authentication or the
  89 built-in {pve} authentication server.
  90
  91
  92 Flexible Storage
  93 ----------------
  94
  95 The {pve} storage model is very flexible. Virtual machine images
  96 can either be stored on one or several local storages or on shared
  97 storage like NFS and on SAN. There are no limits, you may configure as
  98 many storage definitions as you like. You can use all storage
  99 technologies available for Debian Linux.
 100
 101 One major benefit of storing VMs on shared storage is the ability to
 102 live-migrate running machines without any downtime, as all nodes in
 103 the cluster have direct access to VM disk images.
 104
 105 We currently support the following Network storage types:
 106
 107 * LVM Group (network backing with iSCSI targets)
 108 * iSCSI target
 109 * NFS Share
 110 * CIFS Share
 111 * Ceph RBD
 112 * Directly use iSCSI LUNs
 113 * GlusterFS
 114
 115 Local storage types supported are:
 116
 117 * LVM Group (local backing devices like block devices, FC devices, DRBD, etc.)
 118 * Directory (storage on existing filesystem)
 119 * ZFS
 120
 121
 122 Integrated Backup and Restore
 123 -----------------------------
 124
 125 The integrated backup tool (`vzdump`) creates consistent snapshots of
 126 running Containers and KVM guests. It basically creates an archive of
 127 the VM or CT data which includes the VM/CT configuration files.
 128
 129 KVM live backup works for all storage types including VM images on
 130 NFS, CIFS, iSCSI LUN, Ceph RBD. The new backup format is optimized for storing
 131 VM backups fast and effective (sparse files, out of order data, minimized I/O).
 132
 133
 134 High Availability Cluster
 135 -------------------------
 136
 137 A multi-node {pve} HA Cluster enables the definition of highly
 138 available virtual servers. The {pve} HA Cluster is based on
 139 proven Linux HA technologies, providing stable and reliable HA
 140 services.
 141
 142
 143 Flexible Networking
 144 -------------------
 145
 146 {pve} uses a bridged networking model. All VMs can share one
 147 bridge as if virtual network cables from each guest were all plugged
 148 into the same switch. For connecting VMs to the outside world, bridges
 149 are attached to physical network cards and assigned a TCP/IP
 150 configuration.
 151
 152 For further flexibility, VLANs (IEEE 802.1q) and network
 153 bonding/aggregation are possible. In this way it is possible to build
 154 complex, flexible virtual networks for the {pve} hosts,
 155 leveraging the full power of the Linux network stack.
 156
 157
 158 Integrated Firewall
 159 -------------------
 160
 161 The integrated firewall allows you to filter network packets on
 162 any VM or Container interface. Common sets of firewall rules can
 163 be grouped into ``security groups''.
 164
 165 include::hyper-converged-infrastructure.adoc[]
 166
 167
 168 Why Open Source
 169 ---------------
 170
 171 {pve} uses a Linux kernel and is based on the Debian GNU/Linux
 172 Distribution. The source code of {pve} is released under the
 173 https://www.gnu.org/licenses/agpl-3.0.html[GNU Affero General Public
 174 License, version 3]. This means that you are free to inspect the
 175 source code at any time or contribute to the project yourself.
 176
 177 At Proxmox we are committed to use open source software whenever
 178 possible. Using open source software guarantees full access to all
 179 functionalities - as well as high security and reliability. We think
 180 that everybody should have the right to access the source code of a
 181 software to run it, build on it, or submit changes back to the
 182 project. Everybody is encouraged to contribute while Proxmox ensures
 183 the product always meets professional quality criteria.
 184
 185 Open source software also helps to keep your costs low and makes your
 186 core infrastructure independent from a single vendor.
 187
 188
 189 Your benefits with {pve}
 190 ------------------------
 191
 192 * Open source software
 193 * No vendor lock-in
 194 * Linux kernel
 195 * Fast installation and easy-to-use
 196 * Web-based management interface
 197 * REST API
 198 * Huge active community
 199 * Low administration costs and simple deployment
 200
 201 include::getting-help.adoc[]
 202
 203
 204 [[intro_project_history]]
 205 Project History
 206 ---------------
 207
 208 The project started in 2007, followed by a first stable version in
 209 2008. At the time we used OpenVZ for containers, and KVM for virtual
 210 machines. The clustering features were limited, and the user interface
 211 was simple (server generated web page).
 212
 213 But we quickly developed new features using the
 214 https://corosync.github.io/corosync/[Corosync] cluster stack, and the
 215 introduction of the new Proxmox cluster file system (pmxcfs) was a big
 216 step forward, because it completely hides the cluster complexity from
 217 the user. Managing a cluster of 16 nodes is as simple as managing a
 218 single node.
 219
 220 We also introduced a new REST API, with a complete declarative
 221 specification written in JSON-Schema. This enabled other people to
 222 integrate {pve} into their infrastructure, and made it easy to provide
 223 additional services.
 224
 225 Also, the new REST API made it possible to replace the original user
 226 interface with a modern HTML5 application using JavaScript. We also
 227 replaced the old Java based VNC console code with
 228 https://kanaka.github.io/noVNC/[noVNC]. So you only need a web browser
 229 to manage your VMs.
 230
 231 The support for various storage types is another big task. Notably,
 232 {pve} was the first distribution to ship ZFS on Linux by default in
 233 2014. Another milestone was the ability to run and manage
 234 https://ceph.com/[Ceph] storage on the hypervisor nodes. Such setups
 235 are extremely cost effective.
 236
 237 When we started we were among the first companies providing
 238 commercial support for KVM. The KVM project itself continuously
 239 evolved, and is now a widely used hypervisor. New features arrive
 240 with each release. We developed the KVM live backup feature, which
 241 makes it possible to create snapshot backups on any storage type.
 242
 243 The most notable change with version 4.0 was the move from OpenVZ to
 244 https://linuxcontainers.org/[LXC]. Containers are now deeply
 245 integrated, and they can use the same storage and network features
 246 as virtual machines.
 247
 248 include::howto-improve-pve-docs.adoc[]
 249 include::translation.adoc[]
 250