OS choice for new server

[Nord1ing]

Hello, can you share your experience and comments on choosing a media‑server OS?
I am looking for the following functionality:

• Bridged network setup ( for VM)
• ZFS
• SMB NAS with easy user management
• Docker containers
• One Windows XP VM
• Policy‑based VPN client (not server)

I currently have a main server running Debian (with GUI + web UI Cockpit and Webmin). These are the pros and cons for that setup:

PROS

•  GUI (much easier file and folder rights/ownership management with Double Commander compared to CLI)
• ZFS management – works fine with Cockpit or zfdash
• VM - easy creation with GUI and use of .raw VM disks and data drives, saved on a specific dataset for easy snapshotting and moving between server and PC
• VPN - setup via GUI
• OS upgrades work smoothly (already performed from DB10 → 12 → 13)
• Timeshift for OS backups
• No ZFS on the OS drive
• Easy migration to new hardware

CONS

• Bridge configuration - haven’t managed to make it work correctly on a new system yet
• ZFS encryption via keys - could not set up; passphrase + cron from file works fine
• ZFS send/receive over network – hard to configure
• Docker: container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset – too difficult to set up

---

Test with HexOS / TrueNAS Scale

PROS

• Bridge setup - easy via the TrueNAS interface
• Docker container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset - works via TrueNAS Web UI
• Easy ZFS management
• ZFS encryption types and ZFS send/receive - work as I want them to
• SMB NAS with easy user management via HexOS - works perfectly (when console do work)
• OS upgrades work smoothly

CONS

• Moving to a new network is not trivial; requires direct console access to set new network parameters
• VM setup is not very clear, though fairly easy
• VMs cannot use .raw files as drives; only datasets can be used, making it hard to copy a VM to another PC
• VPN … hard to setup
• Apart from SMB, rights/owner management is inconvenient via CLI or Web UI
• Currently appears to be a bug: HexOS console refuses to work behind NAT (no server found), so after initial setup the easy SMB management stops working

NEUTRAL

• I have not tested moving to new hardware; it seems potentially time‑consuming

---

Additional question: Maybe there is some Web UI for easy Samba and hypervisor management that can be installed directly on Debian?

[whispous]

Why have your deliberately formatted your post to be unreadable?

[spacepickle]

Oof, that's pretty tough to read. Set your text color to automatic so us Dark Mode homies can tell what it says. The Blue and White is pretty rough too. 

 

Anyways to address your question, it sounds like most of your issues with Debian are, no offense, a skill issue. It sounds like all the stuff you're trying to do is 100% doable but is difficult. The good news is that there are always YouTube tutorials and forums like this and Reddit for when you're struggling. I don't have much experience with these OSes, but I do know that if you're bouncing around to solve specific problems you're just going to run into more problems. Debian is very well-established and well-documented, don't sleep on getting better at the OS you're interested in. 

 

 

 

[gentlemanspot]

why not proxmox? 

[Dedayog]

2 hours ago, Nord1ing said:

Hello, can you share your experience and comments on choosing a media‑server OS?
I am looking for the following functionality:

• Bridged network setup ( for VM)
• ZFS
• SMB NAS with easy user management
• Docker containers
• One Windows XP VM
• Policy‑based VPN client (not server)

I currently have a main server running Debian (with GUI + web UI Cockpit and Webmin). These are the pros and cons for that setup:

PROS

•  GUI (much easier file and folder rights/ownership management with Double Commander compared to CLI)
• ZFS management – works fine with Cockpit or zfdash
• VM - easy creation with GUI and use of .raw VM disks and data drives, saved on a specific dataset for easy snapshotting and moving between server and PC
• VPN - setup via GUI
• OS upgrades work smoothly (already performed from DB10 → 12 → 13)
• Timeshift for OS backups
• No ZFS on the OS drive
• Easy migration to new hardware

CONS

• Bridge configuration - haven’t managed to make it work correctly on a new system yet
• ZFS encryption via keys - could not set up; passphrase + cron from file works fine
• ZFS send/receive over network – hard to configure
• Docker: container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset – too difficult to set up

---

Test with HexOS / TrueNAS Scale

PROS

• Bridge setup - easy via the TrueNAS interface
• Docker container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset - works via TrueNAS Web UI
• Easy ZFS management
• ZFS encryption types and ZFS send/receive - work as I want them to
• SMB NAS with easy user management via HexOS - works perfectly (when console do work)
• OS upgrades work smoothly

CONS

• Moving to a new network is not trivial; requires direct console access to set new network parameters
• VM setup is not very clear, though fairly easy
• VMs cannot use .raw files as drives; only datasets can be used, making it hard to copy a VM to another PC
• VPN … hard to setup
• Apart from SMB, rights/owner management is inconvenient via CLI or Web UI
• Currently appears to be a bug: HexOS console refuses to work behind NAT (no server found), so after initial setup the easy SMB management stops working

NEUTRAL

• I have not tested moving to new hardware; it seems potentially time‑consuming

---

Additional question: Maybe there is some Web UI for easy Samba and hypervisor management that can be installed directly on Debian?

Windows 11.  Easy, you already have it on other devices, and it's easy.

[Thomas53]

Don't use Windows, even Microsoft themselves have better sense. I agree with gentlemanspot, use proxmox,

[anothertealtiger]

2 hours ago, whispous said:

Why have your deliberately formatted your post to be unreadable?

at first i was like "hmmm maybe im just dumb but it's pretty legible to me"
but then

2 hours ago, spacepickle said:

right. i forgot most folks use dark mode and im over here searing my friends retinas when i stream my desktop

 

anyways yeah hell yeah proxmox

it's at the very least a good way to test things quicker, yeah?

[spacepickle]

6 minutes ago, anothertealtiger said:

right. i forgot most folks use dark mode and im over here searing my friends retinas when i stream my desktop

I like light mode for readability but man at night it's just too much. My phone auto-switches lol

[SundaySilence69]

5 hours ago, Nord1ing said:

Hello, can you share your experience and comments on choosing a media‑server OS?
I am looking for the following functionality:

• Bridged network setup ( for VM)
• ZFS
• SMB NAS with easy user management
• Docker containers
• One Windows XP VM
• Policy‑based VPN client (not server)

I currently have a main server running Debian (with GUI + web UI Cockpit and Webmin). These are the pros and cons for that setup:

PROS

•  GUI (much easier file and folder rights/ownership management with Double Commander compared to CLI)
• ZFS management – works fine with Cockpit or zfdash
• VM - easy creation with GUI and use of .raw VM disks and data drives, saved on a specific dataset for easy snapshotting and moving between server and PC
• VPN - setup via GUI
• OS upgrades work smoothly (already performed from DB10 → 12 → 13)
• Timeshift for OS backups
• No ZFS on the OS drive
• Easy migration to new hardware

CONS

• Bridge configuration - haven’t managed to make it work correctly on a new system yet
• ZFS encryption via keys - could not set up; passphrase + cron from file works fine
• ZFS send/receive over network – hard to configure
• Docker: container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset – too difficult to set up

---

Test with HexOS / TrueNAS Scale

PROS

• Bridge setup - easy via the TrueNAS interface
• Docker container‑per‑dataset and Compose stored on the same dataset - works via TrueNAS Web UI
• Easy ZFS management
• ZFS encryption types and ZFS send/receive - work as I want them to
• SMB NAS with easy user management via HexOS - works perfectly (when console do work)
• OS upgrades work smoothly

CONS

• Moving to a new network is not trivial; requires direct console access to set new network parameters
• VM setup is not very clear, though fairly easy
• VMs cannot use .raw files as drives; only datasets can be used, making it hard to copy a VM to another PC
• VPN … hard to setup
• Apart from SMB, rights/owner management is inconvenient via CLI or Web UI
• Currently appears to be a bug: HexOS console refuses to work behind NAT (no server found), so after initial setup the easy SMB management stops working

NEUTRAL

• I have not tested moving to new hardware; it seems potentially time‑consuming

---

Additional question: Maybe there is some Web UI for easy Samba and hypervisor management that can be installed directly on Debian?

Use arch Linux,and also why you text Set to The Blue and White?That pain my eyes.

[ieleja]

7 hours ago, Nord1ing said:

Bridged network setup ( for VM)

use such network configuration on server, but then I move to NAT, it is less resource eating (IRQs) and works fine:

Idle Latency:     3.50 ms   (jitter: 0.25ms, low: 3.39ms, high: 3.92ms)
    Download:   930.56 Mbps (data used: 478.1 MB)                                                   
                 10.88 ms   (jitter: 18.38ms, low: 5.32ms, high: 246.55ms)
      Upload:   837.59 Mbps (data used: 1.1 GB)                                                   
                  1.84 ms   (jitter: 0.81ms, low: 1.09ms, high: 19.01ms)

CLI netspeed, Debian host, Ubuntu guest VM (ISP 1/1 GBps)

 

[Nord1ing]

8 hours ago, spacepickle said:

 

 

I used qownnotes mardown to write it.

Seems like they are not very compatible with forum

 

As for skill issue, for sure everything is doable.

 

But I am on limits of effort I want to put into new setup I have another hobbies

So, maybey where is nice webui for Debian for samba managment (not cockpit or Webmin what I have already)?

Any good gui/webui for zfs send/receive? (truenas type  is good enough)

[Nord1ing]

7 hours ago, gentlemanspot said:

why not proxmox? 

does proxmox allow use of .raw as disk for vm? (one of my main issue with truenas?

How is zfs managment (especially backup with zfs send receive to another network pc)?

[DraconisMaximus]

On 3/22/2026 at 7:57 PM, Dedayog said:

Windows 11.  Easy, you already have it on other devices, and it's easy.

TIL that there are comedians in the homelab forum.

[DraconisMaximus]

On 3/22/2026 at 10:54 PM, SundaySilence69 said:

Use arch Linux

If you're having trouble with Debian, Arch will be worse, there is a reason its fans are so smug.

 

On 3/22/2026 at 5:41 PM, Nord1ing said:

• Moving to a new network is not trivial; requires direct console access to set new network parameters

As a server OS it is not expected to move much.

If your router allows DHCP reservations you should be fine to rely on that, at least in a home lab. If it doesn't, I would suggest upgrading your network before bothering with your server.

On 3/22/2026 at 5:41 PM, Nord1ing said:

• VMs cannot use .raw files as drives; only datasets can be used, making it hard to copy a VM to another PC

AFAIK it is impossible. You will have to rebuild them unless the guest OS has an independent backup / restore feature. But that is going to be the case with any change of host type e.g. moving to Windows HV or VMWare.

On 3/22/2026 at 5:41 PM, Nord1ing said:

• VPN … hard to setup

Yes, that is a major limitation of TrueNAS.

If possible, I would use a router integrated VPN config.

 

On 3/22/2026 at 5:41 PM, Nord1ing said:

• Currently appears to be a bug: HexOS console refuses to work behind NAT (no server found), so after initial setup the easy SMB management stops working

What exactly are you trying / failing to accomplish here? By default, TrueNAS blocks non local administration for security. It can be overridden but that is not recommended for most people. The preferred method is usually to run a point to point VPN on your gateway.

 

On 3/22/2026 at 5:41 PM, Nord1ing said:

• I have not tested moving to new hardware; it seems potentially time‑consuming

Note that TrueNAS cannot import disks from other OS'. They will need to be blank when you start.