Draw the lab. ProxFlow builds it.

A map and lab builder for Proxmox VE. Put a domain controller, Windows and Linux servers, containers and nested ESXi on a canvas, and ProxFlow builds each one from the ISOs, boxes and templates already on your storage. It needs no internet.

Download for Windows

v0.1.1 · 35 MB zip · Node.js inside, nothing to install

Project: proxflow
Title: AD lab, as built
Rev: 0.1.1
Sheet: 1 of 1
Scale: NTS
Runtime: Node.js 24.22.2
Drawn: demo mode
Zone: —

What's in the zip

PF-02 · Parts list

Item	Part	What it is	Size
1	`node\node.exe`	The official Node.js 24.22.2 runtime for Windows	89.6 MB
2	`app\proxflow.mjs`	The server and every library it uses, in one file	2.6 MB
3	`app\web\`	The web UI your browser opens	0.7 MB
4	`ProxFlow.cmd`	Starts ProxFlow and opens your browser	1 KB
5	`ProxFlow-demo.cmd`	The same, against a simulated Proxmox	1 KB
6	`README.txt`, licenses	Setup notes, Node.js license, third-party notices	0.3 MB

Right-click the zip, Properties, tick Unblock.
Extract it anywhere. No installer, no admin rights.
Double-click ProxFlow.cmd. Your browser opens ProxFlow.

Windows 10 or Server 2016 and newer, x64, with Edge, Chrome or Firefox. ProxFlow-demo.cmd runs everything against a simulated Proxmox, so you can try a whole lab at home first.

Or from PowerShell:

[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = 'Tls12'; $ProgressPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'; irm https://github.com/Real-Fruit-Snacks/proxflow/releases/latest/download/proxflow-windows-x64.zip -OutFile proxflow.zip; Expand-Archive proxflow.zip .

Release notes and SHA-256 checksums

How a lab gets built

PF-03 · General notes

Nothing is downloaded unless you ask. Every machine comes from ISOs, boxes (backups and templates) and disk images already on Proxmox storage, local or shared. An official cloud image is a separate, opt-in source and needs internet on the node.
The plan is checked before anything exists: permissions, storage, free addresses, names and passwords. Nothing is created until you press Deploy.
A box stored as a backup is restored once and kept as a template tagged pf-box. The next lab clones it instead of restoring it again.
Settings travel on a small generated CD: an answer file for Windows Setup, a cloud-init seed for Linux, a kickstart file for ESXi. It holds passwords, so it is ejected and deleted once the machine is ready.
Readiness comes from the QEMU guest agent. A box without one is checked over SSH, RDP or LDAP on its static address instead.
Destroy lab removes exactly what the deployment created, and keeps restored boxes for next time.

PF-04 · Equipment schedule

Mark	Machine	Built from	Set up by	Ready when
DC	Domain controller	Windows Server 2019, 2022 or 2025 ISO	Unattended install, then a new AD forest	The agent reports the domain is up, or LDAP answers
WS	Windows Server	The ISO, or a Windows box or template	Unattended install, or a script sent through the guest agent	The agent reports it joined, or RDP answers
LX	Linux VM	A box, template or disk image	A cloud-init seed; realmd joins the domain	cloud-init reports done, or SSH answers
CT	Container	A container template or backup	Proxmox container settings	Proxmox reports its address
EX	ESXi host	The ESXi installer ISO	A kickstart CD and nested virtualization	HTTPS answers on its address

The app

PF-05 · Details A–D, from demo mode

The Build screen after a deploy: dc01 on top with ws01, ws02 and linux01 joined to its domain, and a panel listing all four machines as ready with their addresses and login lines — **Build.** The lab on this sheet, in the app: four machines deployed, each with its address and the line to log in with.

The Map: node pve1 with its guests, bridges and local storage, node pve2 beside it, shared storage below, and dc01 selected with its inspector open — **Map.** Every node, guest, bridge and storage in the cluster. Selecting dc01 traces its network card to vmbr0 and its disk to local-lvm, next to power actions and snapshots.

The Review and deploy dialog: four machines with their VMIDs, addresses and how ProxFlow will know each is ready, the files it will upload or reuse, and a note about realmd for the Linux join — **Review and deploy.** What will be created, what is reused from storage, and how each machine will be confirmed.

The Connections dialog after Test: the host uses a self-signed certificate; its issuer, names, expiry and SHA-256 fingerprint are shown with a Trust this certificate button — **Test connection.** A self-signed certificate, with the fingerprint to compare in Proxmox before you pin it.

Connecting to Proxmox

PF-06 · Connection and options

In Proxmox, open Datacenter, Permissions, API Tokens and add one, for example root@pam!proxflow.
Give it PVEAuditor on / for the map. To build labs, add PVEVMAdmin on /, PVEDatastoreAdmin on /storage and, on Proxmox 8 or later, PVESDNUser on /sdn/zones/localnetwork.
In ProxFlow, add the connection and press Test. A wrong port, an unknown name, a rejected token or a missing permission is named, with what to change.
Compare the certificate's fingerprint with the node's System, Certificates page in Proxmox, then trust it. ProxFlow pins that exact certificate.

Option	Does
`--port 8080`	Serves on another port. The default is 3001, or the next free one.
`--host 127.0.0.1`	Lets only this computer open ProxFlow.
`--data-dir <path>`	Keeps connections and lab history elsewhere. The default is `data` next to `ProxFlow.cmd`.
`--demo`	Uses the simulated Proxmox.
`PVE_URL`	Adds a host from the environment, with `PVE_TOKEN_ID` and `PVE_TOKEN_SECRET`.

PS C:\Tools\proxflow> .\ProxFlow-demo.cmd

  ProxFlow 0.1.1  —  DEMO MODE (simulated Proxmox, nothing real is touched)

  Open:   http://localhost:3001
  Data:   C:\Tools\proxflow\data\demo

  Leave this window open while you use ProxFlow. Press Ctrl+C to stop.

What has been tested

PF-07 · Verification and open items

Verified on

Windows 11 Pro, running the release zip with its bundled Node.js 24.22.2.
GitHub Actions windows-latest on every release: a fresh extract with no Node.js on PATH, a 10-machine lab, and a read-only install folder.
The simulated Proxmox VE 8.4 API in demo mode: an AD forest, Windows and Linux boxes with and without the guest agent, containers, nested ESXi, and 37 connection checks.

Not yet tested on a real Proxmox host. Everything above ran against the simulated API.

Open items

Reading the config inside backups, importing disk images (Proxmox 8.3+) and Proxmox 9's guest-agent permission names follow the documentation and haven't met real hardware yet.
Nested ESXi types its boot option at the installer menu. If that is missed, press Shift+O in the console and add ks=cdrom:/KS.CFG.
The Windows edition list assumes Microsoft's usual image order inside the ISO.
A Linux box joins the domain only if realmd, sssd and adcli are already in the image.
ProxFlow has no login of its own. On a shared network, start it with --host 127.0.0.1.

Rev	Date	Description
0.1.1	2026-11-05	Fixes: safer Destroy and snapshot deletes, maps for VM-admin tokens, Windows and Rocky readiness, lab history. Download
0.1.0	2026-11-05	First release: map, connections, lab builder, Windows zip.