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MS-S1 MAX Server

Setup guide for the MS-S1 MAX mini-PC running Ubuntu Server with ZFS, KVM, and Docker.

AI-Generated Content - Not Verified or Tested

This entire documentation site is 100% AI-generated using Claude. The content has not been manually verified or tested.

  • Commands, configurations, and procedures may contain errors or omissions
  • Always review commands before executing them, especially those requiring root/sudo
  • Use at your own risk

This serves as both practical documentation and a demonstration of AI-assisted technical writing.

Project Goals

Build a clean, minimal Ubuntu Server host that:

  • Uses ZFS for all important data
  • Runs full desktop OSes (Windows 11, Linux) via KVM/QEMU with GPU passthrough
  • Runs services (Nextcloud, Plex, etc.) via Docker
  • Remains rebuildable, understandable, and low-maintenance

The Hardware

This guide is built around the Minisforum MS-S1 MAX, a mini-PC featuring AMD's Strix Point APU - a chip that combines CPU and GPU on a single die with access to all system memory.

AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 (Strix Point APU):
+--------------------------------------------------+
|                                                  |
|  +-------------+          +------------------+   |
|  |   Zen 5     |          |    RDNA 3.5      |   |
|  |   16 cores  |          |    40 CUs        |   |
|  |   32 threads|          |    (gfx1151)     |   |
|  +------+------+          +--------+---------+   |
|         |                          |             |
|         +------------+-------------+             |
|                      |                           |
|         +------------v-------------+             |
|         |   Unified Memory         |             |
|         |   128GB DDR5-5600        |             |
|         |   Shared CPU + GPU       |             |
|         +--------------------------+             |
|                                                  |
+--------------------------------------------------+
Component Specification Why It Matters
CPU Ryzen AI Max+ 395 (16 cores) Fast prompt processing
GPU RDNA 3.5 (40 CUs) Accelerated inference
RAM 128GB DDR5-5600 Fits 70B+ models
Architecture Unified memory No VRAM bottleneck

Unlike discrete GPUs limited to 24GB VRAM, the APU shares all 128GB with both CPU and GPU, enabling models that won't fit on any consumer graphics card.

Hardware details Hardware architecture

  • Getting Started

    Hardware specs, architecture overview, and prerequisites

    Get started

  • Ubuntu Server

    Installation, post-install config, networking, and firewall

    Ubuntu setup

  • ZFS Storage

    Pool creation, datasets, and snapshot policies

    ZFS guide

  • Virtualization

    KVM setup, GPU passthrough, and Windows 11 VM

    VMs

  • Docker Services

    Nextcloud, Plex, and other containerized services

    Services

  • Operations

    Backup, recovery, and rebuild procedures

    Ops guide

  • AI & Local LLMs

    Run local LLMs with Ollama, llama.cpp, and AI coding tools

    AI guide

Design Philosophy

Principle Implementation
Host OS is boring Ubuntu Server LTS, no desktop, SSH-only
Data lives outside containers ZFS is the source of truth
VMs are first-class KVM/QEMU with GPU passthrough
Services are containerized Docker + Compose with bind mounts
Everything is recoverable Reinstall host without touching data

What This Project Avoids

  • ZFS on root
  • Desktop environment on the host
  • Manual iptables rules
  • Docker volumes for critical data
  • Nested virtualization
  • "All-in-one" hypervisor distros