Installing TrueNAS SCALE on Proxmox

This guide shows you how to install TrueNAS SCALE as a virtual machine on Proxmox VE, configure ZFS storage pools, and set up NFS/SMB shares for your homelab. You'll create a centralized network storage solution accessible by all your services.

What You'll Build

A complete NAS solution featuring:

ZFS storage pool with data integrity checking
NFS shares for Linux/Unix systems
SMB shares for Windows compatibility
Centralized media storage for Jellyfin
Web-based management interface

System Specifications

Virtual Machine Configuration

VM ID: 111
CPU: 4 cores (x86-64-v2-AES)
RAM: 8192 MB (no ballooning for ZFS)
OS Disk: 16 GB (local-lvm)
Data Disk: 884 GB (passed through or virtual disk)
Network: Bridged (vmbr0)

Software Stack

Hypervisor: Proxmox VE
NAS OS: TrueNAS SCALE 25.04.1
Filesystem: ZFS
Sharing Protocols: NFS, SMB

Network Configuration

TrueNAS IP: ${TRUENAS_IP} (example: 192.168.0.111)
Mount Path: /mnt/vault-111

Prerequisites

Before starting:

Proxmox VE installed and running
ISO storage configured in Proxmox
Storage disk(s) available for TrueNAS
Network access to Proxmox web interface

Part 1: Download and Prepare ISO

Step 1: Download TrueNAS SCALE

Download TrueNAS SCALE 25.04.1

Verify SHA256 checksum:

Expected: 0719DFE4B1C7BD36AE1D6084F674CFB1AD87B749B407B4BF4801511CA401ED4A

Step 2: Upload ISO to Proxmox

In Proxmox web interface, go to your node
Click local storage → ISO Images
Click Upload and select TrueNAS ISO
Wait for upload to complete

Part 2: Create Virtual Machine

Step 3: Create VM in Proxmox

Navigate to your Proxmox node and click Create VM. Use these settings:

General Tab:

Node: proxmox
VM ID: 111
Name: truenas

OS Tab:

Storage: local
ISO Image: TrueNAS-SCALE-25.04.1.iso
Type: Linux
Version: 6.x - 2.6 Kernel

System Tab:

Graphics card: Default
Machine: q35
BIOS: OVMF (UEFI)
☑ Add EFI Disk
EFI Storage: local-lvm
☐ Pre-Enroll keys
SCSI Controller: VirtIO SCSI single
☑ Qemu Agent
☐ Add TPM

Disk Tab:

Bus/Device: VirtIO Block 0
Storage: local-lvm
Disk Size: 16 GiB
☑ Discard
☑ IO thread

CPU Tab:

Sockets: 1
Cores: 4
Type: x86-64-v2-AES

Memory Tab:

Memory (MiB): 8192
☐ Ballooning Device (important for ZFS!)

Network Tab:

Bridge: vmbr0
VLAN tag: none
☑ Firewall
Model: VirtIO (paravirtualized)
MAC address: auto

Click Finish to create the VM.

Part 3: Add Storage Disk

Step 4: Add Data Disk to VM

Select VM 111 (truenas) in Proxmox
Go to Hardware tab
Click Add → Hard Disk

Configure disk:

Bus/Device: VirtIO Block 1
Storage: vault-111 (or your storage)
Disk Size (GiB): 884 (or your size)
☑ Discard
☑ IO thread

Click Add.

Part 4: Install TrueNAS

Step 5: Start VM and Install

Select the VM and click Start
Open Console
TrueNAS installer will boot automatically
Follow installation wizard:
- Select install disk (16 GB VirtIO disk)
- Set root password
- Choose administrative user
- Confirm installation
When complete, remove installation media and reboot

Part 5: Initial Configuration

Step 6: Access TrueNAS Web Interface

After reboot:

TrueNAS console shows IP address (via DHCP)
In browser, navigate to: http://${TRUENAS_IP}:80
Log in with root credentials from installation

Step 7: Set Static IP (Optional but Recommended)

Navigate to Network → Global Configuration
Configure:
- IPv4 Default Gateway: ${GATEWAY_IP}
- DNS Servers: ${PIHOLE_IP}
Go to Network → Interfaces
Edit interface, set:
- Type: Static
- IP Address: ${TRUENAS_IP}/24
Test changes, then save permanently

Part 6: Create Storage Pool

Step 8: Create ZFS Pool

Go to Storage → Create Pool
Configure pool:
- Name: vault-111
- Layout: Striped (single disk) or Mirror (multiple disks)
- Select your 884 GB disk(s)
- ☑ Allow non-unique serial disks (if needed in VM)
Click Create

Note: For production, use mirrored or RAIDZ layouts for redundancy. Striped is OK for testing.

Part 7: Create Dataset

Step 9: Create Media Dataset

Go to Datasets
Click pool name (vault-111)
Click Add Dataset

Configure:

Name: media (or your preferred name)
Share Type: Generic (for flexibility)

Click Save

Step 10: Set Dataset Permissions

Click the dataset (vault-111/media)
Go to Permissions tab
Click Edit
Set:
- Owner: Your username (create user first if needed)
- Group: Your group
- Permissions: rwxrwxrwx or adjust as needed
Click Save

Part 8: Configure NFS Share

Step 11: Enable NFS Service

Go to System Settings → Services
Find NFS service
Toggle to Running
Click ⚙ (configure) icon
Ensure NFSv3 and NFSv4 are enabled
Click Save

Step 12: Create NFS Share

Go to Sharing → Unix (NFS) Shares
Click Add

Configure:

Path: /mnt/vault-111/media
Description: Media Storage
Authorized Networks: ${ALLOWED_NETWORK}/24 (e.g., 10.0.0.0/24)
Access: Add network with Read/Write

Click Save

Part 9: Configure SMB Share (Optional)

Step 13: Enable SMB Service

Go to System Settings → Services
Find SMB service
Toggle to Running

Step 14: Create SMB Share

Go to Sharing → Windows (SMB) Shares
Click Add

Configure:

Path: /mnt/vault-111/media
Name: Media
Purpose: Default share parameters

Click Save

Part 10: Mount Shares on Client VMs

Step 15: Mount NFS Share on Linux

On your client VM (e.g., Jellyfin server):

Install NFS client:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y nfs-common

Create mount point:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/vault-111

Mount the share:

sudo mount -t nfs ${TRUENAS_IP}:/mnt/vault-111/media /mnt/vault-111

Verify mount:

df -h | grep vault

Step 16: Make Mount Persistent

Edit fstab:

sudo nano /etc/fstab

Add line:

${TRUENAS_IP}:/mnt/vault-111/media   /mnt/vault-111   nfs   defaults,_netdev   0  0

The _netdev option ensures mount waits for network.

Test fstab:

sudo umount /mnt/vault-111
sudo mount -a

Troubleshooting

Issue: Can't access TrueNAS web interface

Solutions:

Check VM is running in Proxmox
Verify IP address from TrueNAS console
Ensure firewall allows port 80/443
Try accessing via direct IP, not hostname

Issue: Can't create ZFS pool

Solutions:

Verify disk is visible in TrueNAS (Storage → Disks)
Check disk hasn't been previously used (wipe if needed)
Ensure disk is not mounted elsewhere
For VM disks, confirm "Discard" is enabled in Proxmox

Issue: NFS mount fails on client

Solutions:

Verify NFS service is running on TrueNAS
Check firewall rules allow NFS (ports 2049, 111)
Confirm client IP is in authorized networks
Test mount manually first before adding to fstab
Check network connectivity: ping ${TRUENAS_IP}

Issue: Permission denied when accessing share

Solutions:

Check dataset permissions match client user UID/GID
Verify NFS export allows read/write
On client, check mount options: mount | grep vault
Consider using maproot or mapall in NFS share settings

Performance Tips

For better performance:

Enable IO thread on all disks in Proxmox
Use VirtIO drivers for network and disks
Disable memory ballooning for ZFS (already done in guide)
Consider PCI passthrough for storage controller if available
Allocate adequate RAM (ZFS loves RAM for ARC cache)

Maintenance

Check Pool Health

# From TrueNAS shell
zpool status

Scrub Pool (Data Integrity Check)

From web interface:

Storage → Pools
Click pool → Scrub Pool
Schedule regular scrubs (monthly recommended)

Update TrueNAS

System Settings → Update
Check for updates
Download and apply (backup config first!)

Conclusion

You now have a fully functional TrueNAS NAS server running on Proxmox with:

✓ ZFS storage pool for data integrity
✓ NFS shares for Unix/Linux clients
✓ SMB shares for Windows compatibility
✓ Centralized storage for your homelab services
✓ Web-based management interface

Your Jellyfin server and other VMs can now access centralized, reliable storage for media and data.

Next steps:

Configure automatic snapshots for backups
Set up replication to another TrueNAS instance
Explore TrueNAS apps for additional services
Implement proper backup strategy (3-2-1 rule)