Sunday, January 29, 2023

Deleting a Proxmox cluster

I had put my rack servers (Dell Poweredge R720 and R430) in a cluster together with a Raspberry Pi 4 to give quorom so that I can leave the R430 off when not needed. While there is no problem, I really didn't need to use the features of a high availability cluster, since I don't need to move my VMs around the nodes or have a VM run on another node when a node is down. So I decided to delete the cluster.

Before proceeding, note that deleting a Proxmox cluster can cause irreparable damage if not done properly. I actually have my VMs backed up to another disk, so that if anything happens, I can reinstall Proxmox and restore those backups.

As reference, I watched this YouTube video:

I also use the official Proxmox documentation as a guide.

These are the steps I used.

First, on the main cluster node, which is the R720 for me, I ran
pvecm nodes
to see the names of the nodes.
 
Then, I used the following commands to remove the nodes, replacing NODENAME with the name of the first node (not the main one!) to delete. 
pvecm delnode NODENAME
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/NODENAME
If pvecm delnode NODENAME fails, work around by pvecm expected 1, then try again.

Next, SSH into the node being deleted and run the following commands to stop the cluster on that node.
systemctl stop pve-cluster
systemctl stop corosync
Next, restart the cluster on that node in standalone mode.
pmxcfs -l
Then, delete the corosync configuration files.
rm /etc/pve/corosync.conf
rm -r /etc/corosync/*
Then, restart the service again as a normal service.
killall pmxcfs
systemctl start pve-cluster
Remove the remaining cluster-related files on this node.
rm /var/lib/corosync/*
This separates the node from the cluster.
This node will still have files from the other nodes in the cluster, so you can remove them too.
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/NODENAME
Replace NODENAME with the name of the nodes, other than its own node name. In my case, I started by removing the R430 (nodename pve430) from the cluster, so for this command, I ran the following
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/pve730 (for the R720)
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/pverpi4 (for the Raspberry Pi 4)
 
This removed the R430 from the cluster.
I then repeated the above steps to remove the Raspberry Pi 4 from the cluster.

Once that has been done, my R430 and Raspberry Pi 4 are no longer in cluster configuration.

Finally, to delete the cluster on the main node, I ran the following commands.
First, stop the running cluster.
systemctl stop pve-cluster
systemctl stop corosync
Then, force the node to run in local mode.
pmxcfs -l
Then, delete all the cluster configuration files.
rm -f /etc/pve/cluster.conf /etc/pve/corosync.conf
rm -f /etc/cluster/cluster.conf /etc/corosync/corosync.conf
rm /var/lib/pve-cluster/.pmxcfs.lockfile
rm -r /etc/corosync/*
Next, restart empty cluster service.
killall pmxcfs
systemctl start pve-cluster
Remove the remaining cluster-related files on this node.
rm /var/lib/corosync/*
This separates the main node from the cluster.
This node will still have files from the other nodes in the cluster, so you can remove them too.
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/NODENAME
In my case, my main node is the R720 (nodename pve720), so for this command, I ran the following
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/pve430 (for the R430)
rm -r /etc/pve/nodes/pverpi4 (for the Raspberry Pi 4)
 
There is no need to actually reboot, but I did so anyway just to make sure everything can run.

As you can see, no more cluster! 

Again, remember, deleting a Proxmox cluster can cause irreparable damage if not done properly. Follow these steps at your own risk!! I will not be responsible for any damages or loss arising from anyone following these steps. I am just sharing what I did. It worked for me, but it may not work for you. I recommend reading the official documentation, and watching the video, to get an idea of what you are trying to do, before attempting to actually do anything. Plus backup backup backup!

Posted by Teck at 1/29/2023 03:05:00 PM 0 comments

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Theming XFCE to look like Linux Mint

After installing Proxmox on Linux Mint Debian Edition 5, I installed the XFCE desktop in place of the Cinnamon desktop. But when switching to XFCE, there was a "small" problem. It looked like the generic XFCE desktop, not the one you see when using Linux Mint XFCE edition.

But this could be fixed. After all, it is all about themes and icons, right?

The first thing to do was to move the panel from the top to the bottom of the screen. First, under Settings Manager, I opened Panel and from the dropdown menu, chose "Panel 2" and then the minus button to remove it. Then, select "Panel 1" from the dropdown menu, uncheck the "Lock panel" checkbox. The pane will then show a small handle at the side of the panel, allowing you to drag the panel to the bottom of the screen. Once it is there, check "Lock panel" again to keep it there.

Still in the Panel settings, under "Items", add a new item called "Whisker Menu". This is the Whisker menu used by Linux Mint. Then, right click on the original menu button on the panel and remove it. Right click on the Whisker menu button on the panel, select "Properties", then the "Panel Button" pane, which allows you to change the icon. The Linux Mint icons usually start with "linuxmint-logo" and there is a variety to choose from.

Then, go back to Settings Manager, and choose Appearance. Choose the Linux Mint style under "Style" and icons under "Icons". I use "Mint-Y-Legacy-Dark" for both.

Again, return to the Settings Manager, and choose Window Manager, and choose the Linux Mint style you want under "Style". Once again, I am using "Mint-Y-Legacy-Dark".

Finally, from Settings Manager, choose Desktop, which will allow you to set the background. The Linux Mint backgrounds can be found in the folder /usr/share/backgrounds/linuxmint, after which you can choose the one that you like.

All that remains is to add in the launcher buttons of favorite programs to the panel. This can be easily done from the Whisker menu. When you right click on an application, etc. in the Whisker menu, there is a "Add to Panel" option. Use this option to add that menu item to the panel as a launcher. You can move the launcher to its preferred location on the panel by right clicking on the icon, selecting "Move", and then moving it around the panel.
 
This is the result.
 
(After a lot of stuff like launchers and applets have been added to my taste.)

Note: As mentioned in my other post, use
sudo apt install mint-y-icons-legacy mint-themes-legacy
in order to get the legacy icons and themes, which I prefer.

Posted by Teck at 1/29/2023 02:34:00 PM 0 comments

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Saturday, January 28, 2023

Watching Suzume again (5th time)

Starting 28 January 2023, people who watch Suzume at the theaters in Japan are being given a small booklet written by director Shinkai Makoto containing a short story about Serizawa, the character who is Sota's friend.

That's a good enough reason for me to watch Suzume again, which makes this the fifth time watching the movie.

I really like this movie, and it can still move me even though I have already watched it four times.

As for the short story, it gives a bit of background to how Serizawa came to befriend Sota. It is also a portrayal of life for a university student during the COVID-19 pandemic (although most do not end up doing part-time jobs at "host clubs"). It isn't as touching at the first booklet Suzume—Tamaki’s Story (unofficial translation of 小説すずめの戸締まり～環さんのものがたり～), though. I may still translate it if I have time.
 
Update 30 May 2023: I have finally gotten down to translating Serizawa's story!

Posted by Teck at 1/28/2023 09:38:00 PM 2 comments

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Friday, January 27, 2023

Installing Proxmox on Linux Mint Debian Edition 5

Ever since I started using Proxmox, one idea I had was to convert my existing desktop into a Proxmox workstation. Basically, it will run Proxmox with a desktop environment so that I can easily access a Windows VM on it for work, while continuing to use Linux mostly for everything else.

The instructions on the Proxmox website contains steps for installing Proxmox on Debian 11 (Bullseye). My preferred Linux distro, however, is Linux Mint. As luck would have it, Linux Mint has a Debian edition, which is based on the latest version of Debian, so I thought I would give it a try to see if I can install Proxmox on it.

The first step is to install LMDE 5 on my desktop. This is no different from installing any other version of Linux Mint. Basically, download the ISO, burn it to a USB thumb drive, and boot the desktop using the USB thumb drive, and follow the steps to install it.

Next is to follow the steps in "Install Proxmox VE on Debian 11 Bullseye":
1. Adapt sources.list
2. Install the Proxmox VE kernel
3. Install the Proxmox VE packages
4. Remove the Debian kernel
5. Remove the os-prober package (optional)

Also, you need to set a password for root by
sudo passwd root
Otherwise, you are going to have problems trying to access the web interface.
Also, check that /etc/ssh/sshd_config has this
PermitRootLogin yes
in it. This is especially needed if you are ever going to hook up this node to a cluster, as nodes in a Proxmox cluster use ssh to talk to each other.
 
And do not reboot yet! There is still one more thing to do, which is to create a bridge interface as mentioned here. This is because Proxmox disables NetworkManager, which means you will not be able to connect your computer to the outside world if you do not create a bridge first. So, open a web browser (LMDE comes with Firefox) and go to https://127.0.0.1:8006/ to access the Proxmox web interface, and from there, select your node, look for "Network", and create a "Linux Bridge" using the web interface.

I also had to follow some steps here to get Bluetooth working, since the Proxmox kernel is not compatible with the firmware-iwlwifi package.
wget http://ftp.debian.org/debian/pool/non-free/f/firmware-nonfree/firmware-iwlwifi_20210315-3_all.deb
sudo dpkg -x firmware-iwlwifi_20210315-3_all.deb firmware-iwlwifi
sudo cp -r firmware-iwlwifi/lib/firmware/* /lib/firmware/
sudo update-initramfs -k all -u

Also, Proxmox does not recognise the version codename "Elsie" (which is LMDE 5). It causes the error message "unknown Debian code name 'elsie' (500)" and so I had to edit /usr/lib/os-release and change
VERSION_CODENAME=elsie
to
VERSION_CODENAME=bullseye

By default, LMDE 5 comes with Cinnamon. But recently, I have come to like XFCE more, so I decided to switch Cinnamon for XFCE.
sudo apt install task-xfce-desktop
sudo dpkg-reconfigure lightdm
Once this is done, reboot, and at the login screen, click on the icon next to the user name to get a menu that allows you to choose between Cinnamon and XFCE. Choose XFCE, then enter your password to log in.
 
Running neofetch:

As you can see, I chose to opt into the newer 5.19 kernel by using
sudo apt install pve-kernel-5.19
(instead of sudo apt install pve-kernel-5.15)
 
Oh, I also had to do
sudo apt install mint-y-icons-legacy mint-themes-legacy
in order to get the legacy icons and themes, which I prefer.

Next, I hope to test out the steps here to install Proxmox VE first, then installing a desktop environment onto it. Before that, I need to import my previous Windows VM (qcow2 file) into this new Proxmox instance using the steps here. Wish me luck!
 
Update 29 January 2023: I tried to import my Windows VM (qcow2 file) that was on my desktop previously. That VM had some issues, which was why I stopped using it. But I decided to try to see if importing it will make it work. Conclusion: That VM is buggy and keeps rebooting randomly and I don't have the time to troubleshoot.
 
Anyway, for anyone interested, I followed the steps here to import the VM.
qm create 100
qm importdisk 100 windowsVM.qcow2 local
(local is the name of the Proxmox storage to use for this VM)
Then, I used the web UI to configure the VM. It worked, the VM could run and such, but because the VM was faulty in the first place (I think I messed up a Windows update previously...), it keeps rebooting randomly.

In the end, I took a working VM on my R720 server, made a backup of it, and copied that backup file (with the extension zst) to this new "server". I then restored the VM on this server, making sure to set the SMBIOS UUID to the one I previously used so that Windows can detect the license activation. I also changed the MAC address too. Once I "restored" the VM, I booted it up and made the changes to the network settings (so that it used another network address than the VM on the R720) and changed its name too.

Update 6 February 2023: The "cloned" VM kept giving me issues with GPU passthrough. Somehow, it just won't use the GPU for apps. I have therefore deleted the "cloned" VM and am installing a Windows 10 VM from scratch to see if it works... sigh...
 
Update 18 February 2023: After reinstalling the Windows 10 VM, and making sure to set Display to None, I managed to get the GPU passthrough working. I even managed to play Fortnite at 1440p (using Performance mode with all settings at Low except view distance at Epic).
 
Update 21 January 2024: For those who installed Proxmox VE 7 on Linux Mint Debian Edition 5 (LMDE 5), I managed to do a dual in-place upgrade from Proxmox VE 7 to 8, and LMDE 5 to 6. Details can be found here.
Dual upgrade: Proxmox 7 to 8 and Linux Mint Debian Edition 5 to 6


Posted by Teck at 1/27/2023 08:17:00 PM 5 comments

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Thursday, January 26, 2023

Cold...

It has been really cold these two days.

So much so that the R720 rack server is complaining.

😅

Posted by Teck at 1/26/2023 11:38:00 AM 0 comments

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Wednesday, January 11, 2023

5th anniversary of Violet Evergarden anime series

Today marks the 5th anniversary since Violet Evergarden anime series aired in Japan.

(A bit about dates... the series started showing on 10 January 2018 at 24:00, or 0:00 of 11 January 2018. This means the actual anniversary is 11 January, but in Japan, shows that start at midnight or later are counted based on the previous date, using times like 24:00 for midnight and 25:00 for 1:00 the next day. So depending on who you ask, it can either be 10 January, or 11 January.)

I recently caught Violet Evergarden The Movie in a cinema again because there was a special screening. Hopefully, the entire series comes back for a rebroadcast on TV, instead of just the special cut that was shown on Nippon TV in October 2021.

Oh, KyoAni has been conducting 10th anniversary events and such for its past series like Hyouka, so we can probably expect something for Violet Evergarden series in 2028. Five more years to wait!

My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie.

Events:
 
Translations of short stories:
Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) 
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形)
 
 
Insights on the movie:
The dog stuffed toy in Violet Evergarden 
 
Audio commentary notes:

 
All posts related to Violet Evergarden.

Posted by Teck at 1/11/2023 12:00:00 AM 0 comments

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Friday, January 06, 2023

Watching Violet Evergarden the Movie at a LIVE ZOUND cinema (15th viewing)

What better way to start 2023 than by watching Violet Evergarden the Movie at a cinema?

So when I found out that a cinema in the next city will be holding a special screening of Violet Evergarden the Movie, I blocked off the date in my calendar, booked a ticket, and made my way there. It was my 15th viewing of the movie at a cinema, after the 14th viewing more than a year ago.

It was my first time going to Cinecitta in Kawasaki.

There was even this fountain show in front of the place, and when I arrived, it was just in time for the show.


This cinema has a special sound and projection system that uses its original LIVE ZOUND system based on concert hall speaker technology and a 4K RGB laser projection system. This is my first time watching the movie in this different "format".

My thoughts about the movie can be found in other posts linked below. Here, I will touch on the LIVE ZOUND version. First, the sound. I think the sound system is kind of better than what you would get from a "normal" cinema. However, it is not that noticeably better, not like a Dolby Cinema. You do get to enjoy the small little sounds, like people in the background, the wind, rain, clock ticking, and stuff like that. But I feel it kind of lacked the "boom"... no real impact? may be the word.

What really irked me was the visual part of the movie. Although the cinema advertises its 4K RGB laser projection system as part of the LIVE ZOUND package/format, well, this is only going to be meaningful if you use video source that has been properly remastered for that colour range and resolution. Watching the movie, it didn't feel that way. The colours were kind of washed out, making the brighter scenes look too bright (lack of contrast), while the darker scenes kind of had this white/gray filter look. It was not as noticeable for brighter landscape scenes, but those with faces of people up close... the faces ended up either too bright or too bland. I don't think it is even worth comparing with the vivid colour contrast that I enjoyed at the local Dolby Cinema. I don't think the "normal" cinema version was even this bland. In a way, it reminded me of trying to watch the HDR version of the movie on a SDR monitor.

Still, I am glad that the cinema took the effort to offer a special screening of the movie, more than two years after its release in September 2020. I am sure other fans shared that sentiment, since there was a round of applause when the movie ended.

They even put up Violet's "uniform" on display, although I didn't see it when I arrived, and only managed to take a few photos when I was leaving.


(On my way back, there was an accident on the JR lines. Someone got injured and so most of the trains in the area were suspended. I ended up having to take the Keikyu line and Yokohama municipal subway to get home... a long detour that had me a bit worried because it was really late and I didn't know if I would make the last trains.)

I think my favorite is still the Dolby Cinema version of the movie. Hopefully, Violet Evergarden the Movie will come back for a special "revival" screening at the nearby Dolby Cinema. 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

My overall thoughts on Violet Evergarden The Movie.

Events:
 
Translations of short stories:
Gilbert Bougainvillea and the Fleeting Dream (unofficial translation of "ギルベルト・ブーゲンビリアと儚い夢")
The Starry Night and the Lonely Two (unofficial translation of 星降りの夜とさみしいふたり)
Diethard Bougainvillea's If (unofficial translation of ディートフリート・ブーゲンビリアIf) 
The Tailor and the Auto-Memories Doll (unofficial translation of 仕立て屋と自動手記人形)
 
Insights on the movie:
 
Audio commentary notes:

 
All posts related to Violet Evergarden.

Posted by Teck at 1/06/2023 11:30:00 PM 0 comments

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