Proxmox VE – Feature Request Collection (Missed Opportunities)

proxmox-ux-feature-requests.md

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## 1. VM Creation Wizard: Add "Enable Serial Console (ttyS0)" Option
**Use‑case:**  
During OS installation, SSH is unavailable and the noVNC console cannot paste text. 
Users sometimes must manually type long commands, which is error‑prone. Serial + xterm.js solves this perfectly.

**Implementation:**  
- Add a checkbox in the VM creation wizard (System or Network step):  
  **[ ] Enable serial console (ttyS0)**  
- Automatically add `serial0: socket` to the VM config.  
- Optionally display a hint: "Use xterm.js for full copy/paste support."

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2. VM Console: Improve Default Behavior for Text Input

Use‑case:
The default noVNC console cannot paste arbitrary text, making early‑boot configuration painful.

Implementation:

• If a VM has a serial port, default the console viewer to xterm.js.
• Add a tooltip in the console dropdown explaining:
  "xterm.js supports full copy/paste; noVNC does not."

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3. Storage & iSCSI UX: Add Multipath Auto‑Detection and Warnings

Use‑case:
Users can misconfigure iSCSI with multiple portals, leading to duplicate LUNs, unstable LVM activation, or read‑only behavior. Proxmox currently provides no warnings.

Implementation:

• When adding an iSCSI target, detect multiple portals with identical LUNs.
• Display a warning:
  "Multiple paths detected. Consider enabling multipath to avoid duplicate devices."
• Provide a link to documentation or a one‑click "Enable multipath" helper.

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4. LVM-Thin UX: Add Safety Warnings for Destructive Defaults

Use‑case:
LVM-thin activation failures, thin‑pool corruption, or ambiguous activation states can lead to silent data loss. Proxmox currently hides these details.

Implementation:

• When creating LVM-thin storage, show a warning if:
  • thin‑pool metadata is unprotected
  • activation mode is ambiguous
• Add a "Validate thin‑pool health" button that runs:
  lvs -a -o lv_name,lv_health_status

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5. Directory Mappings: Add Safety Guardrails for LXC Bind Mounts

Use‑case:
Bind-mounting host paths like /sys, /proc, or /dev into LXC containers can compromise the host. Proxmox currently allows this silently.

Implementation:

• When adding an LXC mount point, detect dangerous host paths.
• Display a warning:
  "This path exposes host kernel interfaces and may compromise isolation."
• Require explicit confirmation for privileged containers.

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6. VM Creation Wizard: Add "Multipath-Aware iSCSI Storage" Option

Use‑case:
Users connecting to SAN/NAS storage often need multipath from day one. Proxmox requires manual configuration after the fact.

Implementation:

• In the storage creation wizard, add:
  [ ] Enable multipath for this target
• Auto-generate /etc/multipath.conf stanzas for the detected vendor.

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7. Console Viewer Settings: Clarify Capabilities

Use‑case:
Users don’t know which console supports what (clipboard, USB, text paste, etc.).

Implementation:

• Add capability icons next to each viewer in the dropdown:
  • Clipboard
  • USB redirection
  • Text paste
  • Fullscreen
• Example:
  SPICE (clipboard, USB, fullscreen)
  xterm.js (full paste, terminal)
  noVNC (basic GUI only)

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8. Storage Migration UX: Add "Move All Disks" Button

Use‑case:
Users often want to migrate all VM disks from one storage to another. The GUI requires repeated operations.

Implementation:

• Add a button in VM → Hardware:
  Move All Disks…
• Opens a dialog with target storage and delete‑after‑move checkbox.

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9. iSCSI/LVM Health Checks: Add "Test Write/Read" Button

Use‑case:
Users often need to validate that a new LUN is writable and stable before creating VMs. Currently requires manual dd tests.

Implementation:

• Add a button in Storage → iSCSI/LVM-thin:
  Run Storage Health Test
• Performs:
  • 1MB write
  • 1MB read
  • thin‑pool activation check
• Displays results in a modal.

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Summary

These improvements focus on:

• safer defaults
• better visibility
• modern workflows
• reduced manual configuration
• improved installation experience
• fewer footguns for new users

They require minimal backend changes and primarily improve the UI/UX layer.