Making preparations to setup unraid and do some consolidation.

I have a Windows 11 install I use as my primary pc but want to do so within unraid.

Getting familiar with most of it after reading and watching but not clear on the need for sysprep/acronis in this scenario. I only see that mentioned in the doc and no where else I've found.

I want to create a vm and point it to my existing disk. The dedicated NVME is just the Windows install/recovery/etc and it is currently the only OS on the same machine that I am going to use unraid on. If I don't plan on making it into a vm image and want to retain the ability to dual boot to it if needed, do I have to run sysprep?

It may be that the part I am getting hung up on is that my windows install is using the same hardware so it's not really "moving"

Was hoping I could create the VM, edit the xml like this:


<disk type='block' device='disk'>
<driver name='qemu' type='raw' cache='writeback'/>
<source dev='/dev/disk/by-id/[your-disk-id]'/>
<target dev='hdd' bus='sata'/>
</disk>

pass another unassigned hdd disk I want dedicated, the gpu card, and spin it up.

https://docs.unraid.net/unraid-os/using-unraid-to/create-virtual-machines/vm-conversion-and-migration/

This is a few years old but maybe something there for you:

Thanks!

I've watched that one a couple times (no doubt will a couple more) and is pretty much spot on for what I want to do.

Due to the age and the official doc mentioning the sysprep while the video doesn't, that made me hesitate.

I'll use the video and skip over that part in the doc 🙂

I also need to watch this one a couple more times as it has some good stuff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaB9HhpbDAI

4 minutes ago, kramttocs said:

the official doc mentioning the sysprep

Which "official doc" is that? I don't recall anything about sysprep in Unraid documentation.

https://docs.unraid.net/unraid-os/using-unraid-to/create-virtual-machines/vm-conversion-and-migration/#migrating-a-physical-disk-to-a-vm

I would have expected the sysprep part to be under these two options:

1. The larger heading of Convert a physical disk to a VM > Windows where it lets Unraid do the conversion. Since we are talking about it, it seems like it should explain a bit more of target, source, and at what point Unraid actual does the conversion. But since we are making an image that could be spun up multiple times, sysprep would makes sense here

2. The INFO box under the Migrating section for this part:' Disk image conversion: This converts the physical disk to a virtual disk image (.img) for use in the VM. '

   a. Having this INFO down here is a little confusing since we already went past the physical disk to a vm section.

   b. So I say sysprep makes sense for this but it's really the same as #1. I think?

Edit: this still may be a difference in the Windows install being on the same hardware as unraid will be. So the doc may just not have been written with that scenario in mind.

Edited April 8Apr 8 by kramttocs