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Environment variables provide the most flexible way to configure container deployments. They override all other settings and can be used for both interactive and automated deployments.

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Basic Usage

Set variables before running any installation script: 
var_cpu=4 var_ram=4096 var_disk=30 bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/community-scripts/ProxmoxVE/main/ct/debian.sh)"
Or export them for multiple deployments: 
export var_cpu=4
export var_ram=4096
export var_hostname=myserver

bash debian-install.sh

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Resource Allocation

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var_cpu
integer
default:"1-4 (app-specific)"
Number of CPU cores allocated to the container
var_cpu=4  # 4 CPU cores
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var_ram
integer
default:"512-4096 (app-specific)"
RAM allocation in megabytes (MB)
var_ram=2048  # 2GB RAM
var_ram=4096  # 4GB RAM
​
var_disk
integer
default:"2-20 (app-specific)"
Disk size in gigabytes (GB)
var_disk=20  # 20GB disk
var_disk=100 # 100GB disk
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var_unprivileged
boolean
default:"1"
Container privilege level
  • 1 = Unprivileged (more secure, recommended)
  • 0 = Privileged (required for Docker/Podman)
var_unprivileged=1  # Unprivileged container
var_unprivileged=0  # Privileged (for Docker)

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Operating System

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var_os
string
default:"debian"
Operating system template
  • debian - Debian Linux
  • ubuntu - Ubuntu Linux
  • alpine - Alpine Linux
var_os=debian
var_os=ubuntu
var_os=alpine
​
var_version
string
default:"13"
OS version number
  • Debian: 12, 13
  • Ubuntu: 22.04, 24.04
  • Alpine: 3.19, 3.20, 3.21
var_version=13      # Debian 13
var_version=24.04   # Ubuntu 24.04
var_version=3.21    # Alpine 3.21

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Network Configuration

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var_brg
string
default:"vmbr0"
Network bridge interface
var_brg=vmbr0  # Default bridge
var_brg=vmbr1  # Alternative bridge
​
var_net
string
default:"dhcp"
Network configuration method
  • dhcp - Automatic IP via DHCP
  • 192.168.1.100/24 - Static IP with CIDR
  • 192.168.1.100/24-192.168.1.200/24 - IP range scan (auto-assign first free IP)
var_net=dhcp                                      # DHCP
var_net=192.168.1.100/24                         # Static IP
var_net=192.168.1.100/24-192.168.1.200/24        # IP range scan
IP Range Scanning: When you specify a range, the system pings each IP and automatically assigns the first available one. Perfect for automated deployments without manual IP tracking.
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var_gateway
string
default:""
Default gateway (required for static IP)
var_gateway=192.168.1.1
​
var_ipv6_method
string
default:"none"
IPv6 configuration method
  • none - Disable IPv6
  • auto - Automatic via SLAAC
  • dhcp - DHCPv6
var_ipv6_method=none  # Disable IPv6
var_ipv6_method=auto  # Auto-configure
​
var_ipv6_static
string
default:""
Static IPv6 address with prefix
var_ipv6_static=2001:db8::1/64
​
var_mtu
integer
default:"1500"
Maximum Transmission Unit size
var_mtu=1500   # Standard
var_mtu=9000   # Jumbo frames
​
var_vlan
integer
default:""
VLAN tag ID
var_vlan=100
​
var_mac
string
default:"auto"
MAC address (auto-generated if not specified)
var_mac=AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF
​
var_ns
string
default:""
DNS nameservers (comma-separated)
var_ns=8.8.8.8,1.1.1.1
​
var_searchdomain
string
default:""
DNS search domain
var_searchdomain=example.com

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Container Identity

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var_hostname
string
default:"[app-name]"
Container hostname
var_hostname=production-web
var_hostname=dev-database
​
var_ctid
integer
default:"auto"
Container ID (auto-assigned if not specified)
var_ctid=100
Ensure the ID is unique across your cluster before setting manually
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var_tags
string
default:"community-script"
Container tags (semicolon-separated)
var_tags="production;web;nginx"
var_tags="development;testing"
​
var_timezone
string
default:"host timezone"
Container timezone
var_timezone=America/New_York
var_timezone=Europe/London
var_timezone=Asia/Tokyo

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Security & Access

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var_ssh
boolean
default:"no"
Enable SSH server
  • yes - Install and enable OpenSSH
  • no - No SSH access
var_ssh=yes
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var_ssh_authorized_key
string
default:""
SSH public key(s) for root access (newline-separated for multiple keys)
var_ssh_authorized_key="ssh-rsa AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAAADAQABAAABAQ... user@host"
​
var_pw
string
default:"auto-generated"
Root password (auto-generated if not specified)
var_pw="SecurePassword123"
Avoid storing passwords in defaults files. Use SSH keys instead.
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var_protection
boolean
default:"no"
Enable container deletion protection
  • yes - Prevent accidental deletion
  • no - No protection
var_protection=yes

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Container Features

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var_nesting
boolean
default:"1"
Enable container nesting (required for Docker, Podman, LXC inside LXC)
  • 1 = Enabled
  • 0 = Disabled
var_nesting=1  # Enable Docker support
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var_fuse
boolean
default:"no"
Enable FUSE filesystem support (required for rclone, mergerfs, AppImage)
  • yes = Enabled
  • no = Disabled
var_fuse=yes  # Enable for rclone
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var_tun
boolean
default:"no"
Enable TUN/TAP device support (required for VPN apps: WireGuard, OpenVPN, Tailscale)
  • yes = Enabled
  • no = Disabled
var_tun=yes  # Enable for VPN
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var_keyctl
boolean
default:"0"
Enable keyctl syscall (required for Docker containers and systemd-networkd)
  • 1 = Enabled
  • 0 = Disabled
var_keyctl=1  # Enable for Docker
Automatically enabled for unprivileged containers
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var_mknod
boolean
default:"0"
Allow device node creation (experimental, requires kernel 5.3+)
  • 1 = Enabled
  • 0 = Disabled
var_mknod=1
​
var_gpu
boolean
default:"no"
Enable GPU passthrough (auto-detects Intel/AMD/NVIDIA GPUs)
  • yes = Enable hardware acceleration
  • no = No GPU access
var_gpu=yes  # For Plex, Jellyfin, AI/ML
​
var_mount_fs
string
default:""
Mount host filesystem paths (comma-separated)
var_mount_fs="/mnt/data,/mnt/media"

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Storage

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var_container_storage
string
default:"local"
Storage location for container root filesystem
var_container_storage=local
var_container_storage=local-lvm
var_container_storage=pve-thin
​
var_template_storage
string
default:"local"
Storage location for OS templates
var_template_storage=local
var_template_storage=nfs-templates

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Package Management

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var_apt_cacher
boolean
default:"no"
Use APT Cacher-NG proxy (speeds up package downloads)
  • yes = Use caching proxy
  • no = Direct downloads
var_apt_cacher=yes
​
var_apt_cacher_ip
string
default:""
APT Cacher-NG server IP address
var_apt_cacher_ip=192.168.1.50

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Debugging

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var_verbose
boolean
default:"no"
Enable verbose output during installation
  • yes = Show detailed logs
  • no = Standard output
var_verbose=yes

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Complete Example

Here’s a production-ready deployment with commonly used variables: 
#!/bin/bash
# Production Debian container with all features

var_unprivileged=1 \
var_cpu=4 \
var_ram=4096 \
var_disk=30 \
var_os=debian \
var_version=13 \
var_hostname=production-app \
var_brg=vmbr0 \
var_net=192.168.1.100/24 \
var_gateway=192.168.1.1 \
var_ipv6_method=none \
var_ssh=yes \
var_ssh_authorized_key="ssh-rsa AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAAADAQABAAABAQ... admin@workstation" \
var_nesting=1 \
var_fuse=yes \
var_tun=yes \
var_tags="production;web;automated" \
var_timezone=America/New_York \
var_protection=yes \
var_verbose=no \
  bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/community-scripts/ProxmoxVE/main/ct/debian.sh)"

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Common Patterns

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Docker Host

var_unprivileged=0 \
var_nesting=1 \
var_keyctl=1 \
var_cpu=4 \
var_ram=8192 \
var_disk=50 \
var_hostname=docker-host \
  bash docker-install.sh

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VPN Gateway

var_tun=yes \
var_cpu=2 \
var_ram=1024 \
var_disk=10 \
var_hostname=wireguard \
var_tags="vpn;network" \
  bash wireguard-install.sh

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Media Server with GPU

var_gpu=yes \
var_unprivileged=1 \
var_cpu=6 \
var_ram=8192 \
var_disk=100 \
var_hostname=plex \
var_tags="media;transcoding" \
  bash plex-install.sh

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High-Availability Web Server

var_cpu=4 \
var_ram=4096 \
var_disk=20 \
var_hostname=web-prod-01 \
var_net=192.168.1.50/24 \
var_gateway=192.168.1.1 \
var_protection=yes \
var_tags="production;web;ha" \
  bash nginx-install.sh

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Variable Validation

Only whitelisted variables are accepted for security reasons. Setting unknown variables will have no effect.
Allowed Variable Prefixes:
  • All variables must start with var_
  • Custom variables are ignored
  • See the complete list above for all supported variables

Defaults System

Save variables as reusable defaults

Unattended Deployment

Automate deployments with variables

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