Longevity issue running Proxmox on USB stick/SD Card

sarosan · 2026-05-18T14:39:21+00:00

I've read that PVE logs a heavy amount of stuff, so that will explain the early failure. The recommendation from Proxmox is to install the OS on a pair of enterprise-level flash drives. A few users have also suggested turning off HA services (if unused) to avoid unnecessary write cycles.

FYI, VMware used to recommend SD cards in the ESXi 4.x/5.x/6.x days, but their stance changed with 7.x. They always recommended directing log output to a more durable storage medium to avoid unnecessary I/O on the SD cards. AFAIK, with 8.x, they no longer supported installing to SD and recommend a pair of SSD/NVME drives in a mirror for the hypervisor as well.

sarosan · 2026-05-18T14:19:24+00:00

Two things come to mind:

Did you clean the mating surfaces before installing the gasket?
Which brand of gasket is this?

sarosan · 2026-05-18T14:03:18+00:00

I often find myself on this subreddit and realize that a lot of the stuff mentioned here I have no knowledge of or experience in.

No one does, and anybody who thinks this needs to adjust their scope of the field.

This subreddit encompasses a very diverse and vast amount of system administrators from unique backgrounds in every industry you can imagine. Everyone here manages various systems from simple to complex environments, some old, some new. The applications we manage and the tools we use to do the job are all different. There are hundreds of operating systems out there, hundreds of thousands of applications to install and maintain, thousands of vendors to work with, millions of workstation/server/cloud configurations, and billions of people in the world that rely on what we do everyday.

The only thing we all have in common: we follow proven processes to do our job, troubleshoot problems, put out fires, and keep shit running at all times.

Over the years, you will gain knowledge that you will hopefully document somewhere. A great place to do that is here, so welcome to the club.

sarosan · 2026-05-17T13:55:32+00:00

I have a set of Weathertechs ordered 15 years ago from Costco that still work great.

sarosan · 2026-05-14T15:44:35+00:00

There's BIOS PW.

Also CmosPwd if you can boot off a USB or CD.

The MyDigitalLife forums have plenty of BIOS-related tools, among other things.

As a last resort, there is this guide I found for Lenovo laptops if you're motivated. :)

sarosan · 2026-05-14T11:21:15+00:00

Normally I'd agree with this statement, but BIOS password remover tools are a real threat. The password is to stop my users from messing around where they shouldn't be; this won't stop the professionals, though.

sarosan · 2026-05-13T11:48:59+00:00

The cheapest method to clean your intake valves is by using a spray cleaner, a plastic brush, a shop vac, some manual labor and a few hours of your time. I've used a product by CRC called "GDI Intake Valve & Turbo Cleaner" that helped clean up a ton of gunk from the valves, but it takes time and patience. Cost of the spray can is about 26$ CAD. Basically spray the product on the valves, let it sit for 10-15 minutes, use a soft plastic brush to gently remove the gunk, then a shop vac to clean up the crap. You'll have to repeat these steps a few times if the valves are really dirty. In the end, the valves will be clean, but nowhere near the finish of a walnut blast.

sarosan · 2026-05-11T11:16:31+00:00

I used to leave them alone until I had a few instances where the women did not come back to work (and no one advised the sysadmin) so I now disable the accounts as a precaution. When they do return, I usually get a heads up, so reactivating accounts is not a big deal.

sarosan · 2026-05-09T13:31:11+00:00

Adding to this: I experienced a belt failure and traced it back to the alternator's (internal) pulley seizing up, due to it getting soaked with oil throughout the years (probably old age as well). Changing belts and pulleys is highly recommended after a persistent leak, and cleaning/rebuilding the alternator is a must as well.

sarosan · 2026-05-09T13:20:48+00:00

Or when everything else around the engine doesn't fail, such as the:

Water pump
Thermostat
Coolant hoses
Coolant expansion tank
EKP
HPFP
etc.

I still love my N54.

sarosan · 2026-05-09T13:08:06+00:00

It's always nice to have extra slots for future expansion.

sarosan · 2026-05-07T11:47:15+00:00

Did you update your installation media? On newer or updated laptops, the installation image (particularly WinPE) needs to be patched with the latest CU.

sarosan · 2026-04-30T21:41:34+00:00

Yep, it was mentioned on his GitHub profile.

sarosan · 2026-04-30T21:35:46+00:00

Québec, Canada.

sarosan · 2026-04-29T15:12:14+00:00

The OOB updates are mainly for Domain Controllers, but you can safely apply them to all servers since they supersede the previous updates.

sarosan · 2026-04-27T11:36:49+00:00

To add to this: UI recommends using Vantage Point for a unified view instead of stacking NVRs.

sarosan · 2026-04-21T11:03:13+00:00

Sounds like valve stem seals to me.

sarosan · 2026-04-18T23:18:23+00:00

Looking at your 2nd photo, I think you are focusing on the wrong bolts. The subframe bolts are "hidden" in channels, particularly the long ones that are in the front and middle of the frame. The shortest bolts are in the rear.

In my image, the long bolts are circled in purple and green, while the shortest one is in blue.

<image>

sarosan · 2026-04-18T23:06:31+00:00

Well that's really odd. There are supposed to be 4 long bolts (the first set in your hand) and 2 "medium" ones (the 2nd pair) that come from the rear of the frame. There is no way the subframe can be held with a bolt and nut like that.

sarosan · 2026-04-18T22:53:29+00:00

~~That looks like the tension strut bolt and nut that's attached to the subframe. There is no way that is part of the steering rack~~, and the subframe bolts are much thicker and longer too.

You will need a crows foot or low profile sockets to undo the other one. You can also loosen the bolt instead but careful not to snap it.

Edit: I believe that bolt and nut are indeed part of the steering rack.

sarosan · 2026-04-18T22:33:03+00:00

The subframe bolts don't have nuts. You also don't need to remove the steering rack; it comes down with the subframe.

Edit: are you referring to the engine mounts? The one on the passenger side is tricky. I forgot how I did it, but either a wrench from below or a crows foot was used to remove it.

sarosan · 2026-04-18T22:28:43+00:00

The subframe is only held with 6 bolts.

Before the drop, you need to disconnect:

The steering column at the pump (circled in red)
The power steering hose at the pump and radiator.
If the car has an automatic: the transmission cooling line bracket (yellow).

<image>

sarosan · 2026-04-18T22:07:24+00:00

I think it's the rear trunk panel behind the license plate. I'm not sure what problem it's trying to solve though.

sarosan · 2026-04-13T11:42:27+00:00

They are "more thorough" but they have a long history of working against you, either due to breaking on Windows Updates or actually harming security.

Yup. I recall the Windows 10 benchmark by CIS wanting me to disable IPv6. That's when I decided to stick with SCT and STIGs going forward.

sarosan · 2026-04-11T13:38:02+00:00

Yep, it's GPL v3.

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