CloudBoot functionality is a method of compute resource installation without the presence of a local disk or other local storage, utilizing the PXE and DHCP servers.

This allows users to both lower their hardware requirements on the compute resources (no local storage is required to boot a compute resource), as well as make the process of adding new compute resources to the cloud more efficient:

  • No manual admin work required to boot compute resources
  • No local storage needed to boot compute resources
  • Self-discovery of new compute resources added to the cloud
  • Ability to move compute resources quickly between zones

To start using CloudBoot, you must enable CloudBoot and Storage in the system configuration first (Settings > Configuration > CloudBoot). Visit Configuration Settings chapter for more details.

It’s recommended to use a separate network for compute resources when using the CloudBoot system to prevent errors of other servers (not compute resources) on the cloud to boot into the CloudBoot network.

All compute resources must reside on the same VLAN (this concerns compute resources only, not the VS’s themselves).


For details on how to create a CloudBoot compute resource, refer to the Create CloudBoot compute resource section.

For details on how to create and collect kernel crash dumps on the CloudBoot compute resources, refer to the Kernel Crash Dumping Mechanism on KVM Compute Resources section.