When adding storage in Proxmox, the “Content” options define what types of data can be stored on that location.
Choosing the correct content types helps organize your virtualization environment.
Disk Image
A disk image is the virtual hard drive of a virtual machine.
Example:
VM 101
└── Virtual Disk 50GB
The disk image contains the VM operating system, applications, and data.
Enable this if you want to create new virtual machines on the storage.
Container
Containers are used for LXC workloads.
An LXC container is a lightweight alternative to a full virtual machine.
Examples:
- Monitoring server
- DNS server
- Web application
- Development environment
Enable this if you want to create LXC containers on the storage.
VZDump Backup File
VZDump is Proxmox’s backup format.
A backup contains:
- VM configuration
- Virtual disks
- Hardware settings
Example:
vzdump-qemu-101-backup.vma.zst
This is essential for disaster recovery.
If the SSD fails, the VM can be restored from this backup.
ISO Image
ISO storage contains operating system installation files.
Examples:
ubuntu-24.04.iso
debian-12.iso
rocky-linux.iso
These files are used when creating new VMs.
Container Template
Container templates are prebuilt operating system images for LXC containers.
Examples:
debian-12-standard.tar.zst
ubuntu-24.04-standard.tar.zst
They are used when creating new containers.
Snippets
Snippets store custom configuration files and scripts.
Examples:
- Cloud-init configuration
- VM startup scripts
- Automation scripts
Most users do not need this immediately, but it is useful for advanced setups.
Import
The Import option is used when migrating existing virtual disks from other platforms.
Examples:
- VMware VMDK files
- Hyper-V VHD/VHDX files
- VirtualBox disk images
It is not required for normal Proxmox VM creation.
Recommended Content Selection
For a general-purpose Proxmox storage disk:
✓ Disk image
✓ Container
✓ VZDump backup file
✓ ISO image
✓ Container template
✓ Snippets
This allows the storage to support future VM creation, backups, and system management.