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Rebuild Checklist¶

When to Use¶

Use this checklist when:

Host OS is corrupted
Major OS upgrade (fresh install preferred)
Hardware replacement

Prerequisites¶

ZFS pool is healthy (zpool status tank)
Recent backups verified
Ubuntu Server ISO ready
SSH keys backed up

Phase 1: Prepare¶

# Export pool cleanly (if possible)
sudo zpool export tank

# Document current state
zfs list > ~/zfs-datasets.txt
zpool status > ~/zpool-status.txt
docker ps -a > ~/docker-containers.txt
virsh list --all > ~/vm-list.txt

Phase 2: Install Ubuntu¶

Boot from USB
Install Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS
Use same partition layout:
- 512 MB EFI
- 1 GB /boot (ext4)
- ~1 TB / (ext4)
- Leave remaining space for ZFS
Create same user account
Enable SSH

Phase 3: Base Configuration¶

# Update system
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

# Set timezone
sudo timedatectl set-timezone Europe/Oslo

# Install essentials
sudo apt install -y vim htop tmux git curl wget

# Restore SSH keys
# Copy from backup to ~/.ssh/

Phase 4: Import ZFS Pool¶

# Install ZFS
sudo apt install -y zfsutils-linux

# Import pool
sudo zpool import tank

# Verify
zpool status tank
zfs list

Phase 5: Install Virtualization¶

# Install KVM stack
sudo apt install -y qemu-kvm libvirt-daemon-system libvirt-clients \
    bridge-utils virtinst ovmf

# Add user to groups
sudo usermod -aG libvirt $USER
sudo usermod -aG kvm $USER

# Enable libvirt
sudo systemctl enable --now libvirtd

# Recreate storage pool
virsh pool-define-as vm-pool dir - - - - /mnt/tank/vm
virsh pool-start vm-pool
virsh pool-autostart vm-pool

Phase 6: Restore GPU Passthrough¶

# Edit GRUB
sudo vim /etc/default/grub
# Add: amd_iommu=on iommu=pt

# Create VFIO config
sudo vim /etc/modprobe.d/vfio.conf
# Add: options vfio-pci ids=1002:xxxx,1002:yyyy

# Create modules config
sudo vim /etc/modules-load.d/vfio.conf
# Add: vfio-pci, vfio, vfio_iommu_type1

# Blacklist AMD drivers
sudo vim /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist-amd.conf
# Add: blacklist amdgpu, blacklist radeon

# Update and reboot
sudo update-grub
sudo update-initramfs -u
sudo reboot

Phase 7: Install Docker¶

# Add Docker repository
sudo apt install -y ca-certificates curl
sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings
sudo curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc

echo \
  "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc] https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu \
  $(. /etc/os-release && echo "$VERSION_CODENAME") stable" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

# Install Docker
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

# Add user to docker group
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

Phase 8: Restore Services¶

# Clone or restore compose files
cd ~
git clone <your-docker-configs-repo> docker

# Start services
cd ~/docker/nextcloud && docker compose up -d
cd ~/docker/plex && docker compose up -d

Phase 9: Restore VMs¶

# VMs should still be defined if pool was imported
virsh list --all

# If not, redefine from XML backups
virsh define /path/to/win11.xml

# Start VMs
virsh start win11

Phase 10: Configure Firewall¶

sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw default allow outgoing
sudo ufw allow OpenSSH
sudo ufw enable

Verification Checklist¶