Confirm the machine presents two disks
The default disks on the order are 2×1TB NVMe, with no hardware RAID, each direct-attach. Read usable capacity as 2TB, not the 1TB left after a RAID-1 mirror. Before installing Proxmox, check the memory size and the system choice in the console so a 128GB order is not mixed with a 256GB order, and so Windows is not installed when the plan is virtualization.
Direct-attach means each disk appears under its own device name. The controller does not wrap them into one logical volume. The Proxmox installer, Debian lsblk, and the storage screen later all show two NVMe devices near 1TB. If the count does not match, stop and compare the order. Do not keep partitioning when only one disk is visible.
Memory is DDR4-3200 ECC RDIMM, chosen at order time as 128GB or 256GB. Proxmox itself uses little of it. The virtual machine count is what consumes memory. Splitting disks changes where virtual machine disks live. It does not change the memory size.
| Device seen | Suggested use | Do not treat it as |
|---|---|---|
| First 1TB NVMe | Proxmox system and local system disk | The landing place for every VM disk |
| Second 1TB NVMe | VM disk directory or single-disk storage | A hardware mirror copy |
| Added 2TB | Another direct-attach data disk | A member that joins an array on its own |
Handle each disk separately in the installer
Boot the Proxmox VE 8 or 9 install media. Select only one of the 1TB disks as the target. The filesystem can be the installer's default ext4, or ZFS on that single disk. Either choice applies only to the selected disk. The second disk is not pulled into the same pool.
When the installer asks for a disk, note the model and the serial or device path of both. Choosing the wrong disk clears existing partitions. On a new install both disks are empty. Still keep a fixed rule: the first disk in the installer list, or the lower serial, is the system disk. Leave the second unused until storage is added after install.
During install, write one management address. The default order includes 1 IPv4. Extra addresses are priced each, and they are a separate matter from disks. The management address opens the Proxmox web interface. Service addresses for virtual machines can be assigned later from the same set. How addresses are counted is a different note. Disks and addresses are not one step.
- Boot the install media and confirm two NVMe devices near 1TB.
- Install Proxmox on only one of them. Leave the other unused.
- Set the hostname, management address, and root password. Keep that password apart from the initial console password.
- After install, log in with SSH, then add the second disk in the storage screen.
Turn the second disk into its own storage
Once the system is up, find the NVMe that is not yet attached to Proxmox storage in the node's disk list. Two common layouts are enough. Pick one.
The first is directory storage. Create a partition and a filesystem on the second disk, mount it at a path such as /mnt/vmdata, then add a Directory in Datacenter storage that points at that mount. Enable disk image and backup content. Virtual machine disk files land on this disk, apart from the system disk's local and local-lvm. A full system disk does not absorb VM disks, and the reverse is also true.
The second is single-disk ZFS. Create a pool on the second disk alone. Do not add the first system disk to that pool. Name the pool differently from the system disk, for example vmdata. Proxmox will see it as ZFS storage. Single-disk ZFS gives checksums and a later path to add disks. It is not a mirror between the two disks. A mirror needs at least two members. The goal here is to use the full capacity, not to fold 2TB down to 1TB.
When a virtual machine is created, its system disk can stay on local-lvm of the first disk, and its data disk can move to storage on the second. A database virtual machine is a better fit for the second disk, so it does not share writes with Proxmox logs, ISOs, and templates.
There is no hardware array. A software array is a separate decision.
The order has no hardware RAID. If the installer or a board screen offers an array wizard, do not bind the two NVMe disks into RAID-1 or RAID-0 there. After that bind, the operating system sees one logical disk. Proxmox can no longer separate system and data, and the capacity math changes.
If the workload requires a mirror, build it in software only after the halved capacity is recorded in a change note. The default delivery does not include that step. Backups belong on another disk, another machine, or a scheduled export. A second partition on the same disk is not a backup.
An added 2TB NVMe is also direct-attach and does not join a hardware array. An order can add at most two, at $71 each per month. Added disks show up as extra device names. Build them as a new directory or a new single-disk pool. Do not zpool add them into a pool that is already running virtual machines without a plan. Extending a pool and creating a pool are different. The first changes the structure of a pool that already exists.
The memory size sets how many virtual machines fit
After the disks are split, check whether memory is enough to divide. 128GB and 256GB are two models. Memory is not added after the machine is installed. The Proxmox node keeps some memory for the host and cache. The rest is assigned to virtual machines. A database that needs 64GB leaves a 128GB machine with room for only a few small guests after the host reserve. Many small site guests often fit in 128GB. A database plus several guest groups on the same host starts with the 256GB model.
The processor is AMD EPYC 7543P, 32 cores / 64 threads, 2.8–3.7 GHz, 256MB L3. Cores can be given to several virtual machines. Memory should not be overcommitted until the host is starved. Extra disks do not stand in for memory. Set the memory size first, then decide whether VM disks live on the second NVMe or on an added disk.
The two OSFP Cloud monthly rates are $462 and $595. The facility is in Tokyo, Japan. Amount due is the monthly rate times the months. An added disk's monthly price joins the monthly rate first. Proxmox VE 8 or 9 can be selected, and neither adds an OS charge. Bandwidth defaults to 250M, unmetered. 1G or 2G is a network option and does not change the disk split.
Check these items after install
Log in to the node with SSH, not only the web screen. The web screen can create virtual machines. Troubleshooting still looks at devices in the shell. Check in this order.
- Both default NVMe disks are present, each near 1TB, and they have not been collapsed into one 1TB logical disk.
- System storage and data storage point at different devices. Create a test virtual machine disk on the second disk and confirm the file or zvol is not on the system disk.
- If extra disks were ordered, the device count equals 2 plus the number added. A missing disk is an order and cabling check, not a reason to stretch the disks that remain.
- The management address opens the interface on port 8006. Service addresses, once assigned, are configured inside the virtual machine. Do not mix them onto the host's same address unless a bridge plan says so.
- Put ISO and backup directories on the disk with more free space, so images and backups do not fill the system disk and block node updates.
This split fits Proxmox installed on the whole machine, with virtual machines created by this account. It does not depend on a hardware array, and it does not hide the second disk inside a mirror. Capacity, backup, and memory size are three separate accounts. Kept apart, 2TB is not turned into 1TB, and a database is not written onto the same disk as system logs.
Install Proxmox on the chosen memory size
128GB or 256GB, default 2×1TB NVMe, direct-attach. The system can be Proxmox VE 8 or 9.
From $462 / month
- EPYC 7543P, 32 cores / 64 threads
- 128GB or 256GB DDR4-3200 ECC RDIMM
- 2×1TB NVMe, direct-attach
- Tokyo, Japan · SSH / RDP · no setup fee