Deploying NetAlertX as a Virtual Machine on My Proxmox Cluster

Overview

NetAlertX has become one of my favorite tools for keeping a pulse on my home network. Instead of running it on a Raspberry Pi or as a lightweight container, I deployed it as a dedicated virtual machine inside my Proxmox cluster. This approach gives me more control over performance, storage, and reliability, and it integrates cleanly with the rest of my homelab infrastructure.

This project highlights how I designed, deployed, and optimized NetAlertX as a VM, and how it now serves as a centralized monitoring dashboard for all connected devices in my environment.

Why run NetAlertX as a VM?

NetAlertX is flexible — it can run on Docker, bare metal, or small single-board computers — but running it as a VM on Proxmox offered several advantages:

• Resource isolation: Guaranteed CPU and RAM allocation for consistent performance.
• Snapshot support: Easy rollback during configuration changes or upgrades.
• Centralized management: Managed alongside the rest of my homelab VMs.
• High availability options: Ability to migrate the VM across nodes during maintenance.
• Better storage options: Using ZFS-backed storage for reliability and checksumming.

Treating NetAlertX as a first-class VM gives it the same level of resilience as my other critical services.

VM configuration on Proxmox

I created a lightweight Ubuntu Server VM dedicated to NetAlertX with the following specs:

• 2 vCPUs
• 2–4 GB RAM (tunable depending on load)
• 20 GB ZFS-backed virtual disk
• VirtIO network interface for low overhead and good performance

Once the VM was online and updated, I installed Docker and deployed NetAlertX inside a container on that VM. This setup gives me the convenience of Docker with the isolation, snapshots, and storage management of a full virtual machine.

NetAlertX setup and optimization

After deployment, I configured NetAlertX to monitor my entire network, including multiple VLANs and segmented subnets routed through my pfSense gateway. The goal was to build a single pane of glass for device activity, changes, and anomalies.

Device discovery and tracking

NetAlertX continuously scans the network and logs:

• New devices joining the network
• MAC and IP address changes over time
• Vendor identification based on MAC addresses
• Online/offline history for each device

This gives me a real-time view of everything that connects to my environment and helps validate that segmentation is working as intended.

Alerting and notifications

I configured alerts for:

• Unknown or unclassified devices
• Devices appearing on the network outside expected hours
• Network changes or anomalies that might indicate misconfigurations

These alerts have already helped me catch misconfigured IoT devices and DHCP issues before they turned into bigger problems.

Dashboard customization

I customized the NetAlertX dashboard to surface:

• High-value devices (firewall, core services, storage)
• Network segments grouped by VLAN
• Historical trends for device presence
• Device categories such as IoT, user devices, servers, and lab gear

Running NetAlertX on a VM gives me enough headroom to keep the dashboard responsive even during more intensive scans.

Integration with the Proxmox cluster

Running NetAlertX on Proxmox ties it into the rest of my homelab lifecycle. I treat it like any other important service:

• Snapshots: I take snapshots before major updates or configuration changes.
• Backups: The VM is included in my regular Proxmox backup schedule.
• Maintenance: I can migrate the VM between nodes during host maintenance.
• Monitoring: Proxmox’s built-in metrics help me track CPU, memory, and disk usage over time.

This integration means NetAlertX benefits from the same operational discipline as the rest of my infrastructure.

What I learned

This project reinforced several skills I care about as a builder of reliable systems:

• Designing lightweight, service-focused VMs that are easy to manage and back up.
• Running Docker-based workloads inside virtualized environments without losing observability.
• Troubleshooting network discovery across VLANs and routed subnets.
• Structuring monitoring tools as long-lived, production-style services rather than “lab experiments.”
• Integrating third-party tools into an existing Proxmox and pfSense-based homelab architecture.

It also underscored how valuable it is to treat even “small” monitoring services with production-grade practices.

Outcome

NetAlertX now runs as a stable, reliable VM in my Proxmox cluster, providing:

• Real-time device monitoring and discovery
• Historical tracking of when devices appear and disappear
• Automated alerts for unexpected changes and unknown devices
• A centralized, visual dashboard for network visibility

This setup has become a core part of my homelab observability stack and continues to evolve as I refine my network design.