How to install GNS3 DataCenter lab from Proxmox backup

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Introduction

Welcome to the STORDIS guide for installing the GNS3 SONiC DataCenter Lab on Proxmox VE.

The GNS3 SONiC DataCenter Lab is distributed as a ready-to-use Proxmox VE backup. Instead of building the GNS3 server and importing the project manually, you restore a single virtual machine that already contains the full spineleaf topology, the SONiC images and the Ansible / ZTP management server.

This guide shows how to copy the backup file to the Proxmox host, restore it from the Proxmox web UI and prepare the restored VM for its first start.

Prerequisites

• The lab package SONiC_GNS3_Datacenter_Lab_by_STORDIS_GNS_Proxmox_v2.2.0.zip. You can download it HERE by filling out the form.
• A running Proxmox VE host with access to the web UI (https://<Proxmox_IP>:8006).
• root SSH access to the Proxmox host (to copy the backup file).
• Enough free space on the Proxmox host for both the backup file in /var/lib/vz/dump and the restored VM disk.
• Hardware virtualization (Intel VT-x / AMD-V) enabled on the Proxmox host.
• GNS3 client installed on your workstation.

Package contents

After extracting the ZIP archive you will find the Proxmox backup file:

SONiC_GNS3_Datacenter_Lab_by_STORDIS_GNS_Proxmox_v2.2.0.zip
└── vzdump-qemu-305-2026_10_28-13_16_23.vma.zst   # Proxmox VM backup (VMA format, zstd compressed)

Copy the backup file to Proxmox

Proxmox reads backup files from the local storage, located at /var/lib/vz/dump. This is the standard location for VZDump backups.

Option A – Extract on your workstation and upload the backup

Step 1: Extract the ZIP archive on your workstation.

Step 2: Copy the backup file to the Proxmox host:

scp vzdump-qemu-305-2026_10_28-13_16_23.vma.zst root@<Proxmox_IP>:/var/lib/vz/dump/

Option B – Upload the ZIP and extract it on Proxmox

Step 1: Copy the ZIP archive to the Proxmox host:

scp SONiC_GNS3_Datacenter_Lab_by_STORDIS_GNS_Proxmox_v2.2.0.zip root@<Proxmox_IP>:/var/lib/vz/dump/

Step 2: Log in to the Proxmox host, extract the archive and remove the ZIP to free up space:

ssh root@<Proxmox_IP>
cd /var/lib/vz/dump
apt install -y unzip        # only if unzip is not installed
unzip SONiC_GNS3_Datacenter_Lab_by_STORDIS_GNS_Proxmox_v2.2.0.zip
rm SONiC_GNS3_Datacenter_Lab_by_STORDIS_GNS_Proxmox_v2.2.0.zip

Verify the file

Confirm that the backup file is in place:

root@pve:~# ls -lh /var/lib/vz/dump/
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root  ... vzdump-qemu-305-2026_10_28-13_16_23.vma.zst

Restore the VM from the Proxmox web UI

Step 1: Log in to the Proxmox web UI: https://<Proxmox_IP>:8006.

Step 2: In the left panel, expand your node and select the local storage.

Step 3: Open the Backups tab. The file vzdump-qemu-305-2026_10_28-13_16_23.vma.zst is listed.

Step 4: Select the backup and click Restore.

Step 5: In the restore dialog set:

• Storage: the target storage for the VM disk (e.g. local-lvm).
• VM: the VM ID. The default is 305. If this ID is already used on your host, enter a free one.
• Unique: enable it to generate new MAC addresses, recommended when the host already runs other VMs.
• Start after restore: leave it disabled. Check the VM hardware first (see the next section).

Step 6: Click Restore and wait for the task to finish. The task log ends with TASK OK.

Check the VM before the first start

Step 1: Select the restored VM and open the Hardware tab.

Step 2: Check the Network Device. The bridge saved in the backup (e.g. vmbr0) must exist on your host. If your host uses a different bridge or VLAN, edit the network device and select the correct one.

Step 3: Check Processors. GNS3 runs the SONiC switches as nested QEMU VMs, so the CPU type should be host.

Start the VM and connect with the GNS3 client

Step 1: Start the VM and open its Console in the Proxmox web UI.

Step 2: Note the IP address of the GNS3 server shown in the console.

Step 3: On your workstation open the GNS3 client and go to Edit → Preferences → Server. Configure a remote server with the IP address from the previous step.

Step 4: Open the SONiC DataCenter project and start all nodes.

Next steps

Once the topology is running, continue with the guides from link below. Make sure to check out latest version of GNS3 DataCenter lab

• STORDIS GNS3 SONiC DataCenter lab

Do You have more questions?

If you have any questions, encounter issues, or if any part of the configuration is unclear, please contact STORDIS Technical Support.

Our team will be happy to assist you.

You can reach us via the support portal:

https://support.stordis.com/hc/en-us

For more free resources, visit: https://stordis.com/free-resources/