XEON 5120 cpu - any alternative to setup VM's?

[Manitoba]

Hi

I am a noob to the FreeNAS world, but I am trying very hard to learn and help myself.

However, I have a problem ...
I have a Dell Precision 490 machine with dual Xeon 5120 cpu's. From what I read, these cpu's may not support bhyve for VM's.
When I run grep VT-x /var/run/dmesg.boot - i get:
VT-x: HLT,PAUSE
which I believe means the cpu's do not support the necessary extended tables, etc. (I have turned on everything I can in BIOS to support - I believe).

So ... I would like to try to find a way to run a Windows and a Debian VM on the machine, somehow. And I would like to stick with the hardware I have, if possible. Purchasing new hardware is not an option as I don't really have the money for it at the moment. :(

I am looking to run the vm's to support running an application (MyMedia for Alexa) on the server, which plays music from my music collection (stored on the server) to an Alexa device.

Is it possible to run any alternative vm on FreeNASS 11? Or could I run the Windows and Debian inside a Jail?

I am very grateful for advice and thoughts. Thank you.
--Robert

 

[KrisBee]

You can't run Windows or Debian in a jail. So, if your cpu doesn't support bhyve you're out of luck.

I know zero about Amazon's Alexa devices, but this recent post gives the impression you can stream to an Alexa from Plex.

https://www.techhive.com/article/3257787/speakers/how-to-play-music-you-own-on-an-amazon-echo.html

If this really works then plex running in a jail is a possible solution. Otherwise a piggy in the middle might work. Install your "MyMedia fro Alexa" app on a PC/mac which is mounting a FreeNAS share. Downside is you need two devices to get the music playable on your Alexa.

Google around and you might find other ideas.

 

[Manitoba]

Hi KrisBee

Thank you for the link on techhive - I will give that a try. Sounds like it will be a good option.

Thanks so much
--Robert

 

[Manitoba]

Hi KrisBee

I followed the techhive instructions, and a few other forum articles, and I now have Plexmedia server running and streaming to my Alexa.
Awesome - thank you so much for the idea. :)

--Robert

 

[KrisBee]

Hi Robert,

Good news. If you have time a little write up might be a useful resource for other FreeNAS users.

 

[Manitoba]

That's a good idea - I will do a write up this weekend. :)
--Robert

 

[Manitoba]

All

I thought of doing a write up, however, as a noob to FreeNas I was worried I might confuse others. My understanding of all the terms and such is still very limited.

So instead - here is the link to the video I watched and used to do my install. https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=Hu4CIMop9OE
This was the key for me and made it so much easier to install and get working. The big thing is to remember to restart/reboot the FreeNAS server once Plex is installed.

If anyone does have questions - please don't hesitate to PM me - I'd be happy to try to help. :)
--Robert