How to create a VM (Win10) with iohive + FreeNAS-9.10.2-U2

[Sergio Pavao]

Hi all!
First: I am absolutely non-tech profile, but thanks to this great Freenas community I build my own 16Tb Freenas Server which is mainly used for multimedia storage (Pictures, Movies and Plex Media).
Before recent upgrades I created my VMs (Ubuntu, Win7 and Win10) that were working as expected, but now IOHYVE is required.
I searched on Freenas forums, but I could find only one video explaining how to create a VM with iohyve. I tried to follow the video steps but using a Win10 ISO file. In the end nothing worked and I realized the console does not support graphics.

Some questions:
a) Is it possible to have a Windows VM created with Iohyve that works like my previous VM (based on a VirtualBox)?
b) Is there a step-by-step on how to create a Windows VM with Iohyve using FreeNAS-9.10.2-U2 (e1497f2) ?
c) If answer "a" is "yes" can this VM:
c.1) connect to my network allowing internet navigation and recognize my peripherals (ie wireless printer, external HDs connected via USB 3.0 ports in my Freenas Server) ?
c.2) my motherboard has 01 VGA (already connect to a monitor to follow Freenas upgrades) and 01 HDMI. Can Windows VM "see" this HDMI port and send video to a 2nd monitor as a normal computer?
c.3) if I add another video board (besides the onboard videocard), can Windows 10 in a VM recognize the additional video ports for multi monitors porpoise like a standard Win does? I have no idea if the VM created with iohyve will "lock" Windows in a shell that it cannot use my hardware (video ports, Lan, USB 3.0, onboard wi-fi).

I really thank if someone could spend some time to clarify my points.

Kind regards and success for this amazing and reliable system!
SP

 

[colmconn]

Frost let me preface this by saying that I've only installed freebsd 10.3, and ubuntu VMs using iohyve. The former was very straight forward. The latter was complicated by my initial choice to use the desktop installer which will absolutely not work with iohyve in freenas 9.10 since it does not support virtual graphical consoles. Changing the ubuntu installer to the server/minimal iso that does not the same gui as the desktop installer permits installation of ubuntu in a bhyve VM. A similar problem arrises with windows.

There are a couple of websites that document setting up windows VMs in byhve. but not being a windows user, I've had no need to follow either. https://github.com/pr1ntf/iohyve/wiki/Running-Windows-Under-iohyve
https://wiki.freebsd.org/bhyve/Windows

I suggest that before you dive into the windows route that you install that you try installing something simple like freebsd so that you can get a feel for iohyve first.

As for you question about USB, I've not tried to connect USB peripherals to any of my VMs so can't comment.

With respect to your graphics card question, I'd be astonished if the device could be shared between two OS in the fashion you envisage. I suspect that once windows is installed the only way you will have to connect to its GUI is via RDP (Windows Remote Desktop). While bhyve can support PCI pass through permitting the exclusive use of a device by the guest (https://wiki.freebsd.org/bhyve/pci_passthru). I've never tried it as I'm happy with ssh access only.

 

[Sergio Pavao]

Colmconn... thank you for your repply!
As I could understand, FreeBSD is some steps ahead Freenas concerning plugins, other OSs virtualization, etc.
Following the links you provided I found this youtube video where a Russian guy installs Win10 in FreeBSD and it seems to work pretty well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4_8Zyu-r7Y

Unfortunately for me to install FreeBSD will require lots of tech knowledge that I don't have because it has no friendly interface.
I need to wait what Freenas 10 will deliver in this matter.

Kind regards,
Sergio

 

[m0nkey_]

As it stands, the base OS of FreeNAS 9.10.2 is FreeBSD 10.3. But that will change in the not too distant future.

FreeBSD 10.3 does not support VGA consoles. FreeNAS 10 is based on FreeBSD 11 which does support VGA consoles, allowing you to install Windows as a VM. The FreeBSD 11 base is coming to FreeNAS 9.10.x along with a new VM tab in the GUI. You can see this for yourself in the latest 9.10 nightly train.