pct-create

creates a new LXC container in Proxmox VE from a template image

TLDR

Create container with disk size

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4

Create with memory limit

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4 --memory 8192

Create with hostname and password

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4 --hostname name --password pass

Create with network

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4 --net0 name=eth0,bridge=vmbr0,ip=dhcp

Create unprivileged container with CPU and swap limits

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4 --unprivileged 1 --cores 2 --swap 512

Create and start immediately

$ pct create 100 local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst --rootfs local-lvm:4 --start

SYNOPSIS

pct create vmid template [OPTIONS]

DESCRIPTION

pct create creates a new LXC container in Proxmox VE from a template image. It configures storage, networking, resources, and other container properties during creation.

PARAMETERS

vmid

The numeric ID for the new container

template

Path to the container template (e.g., local:vztmpl/distro.tar.zst)

--rootfs storage:size

Root filesystem storage and size in GB

--memory megabytes

Memory limit in MB

--hostname name

Container hostname

--password password

Root password for the container

--netN config

Network interface configuration

--cores number

Number of CPU cores assigned to the container

--swap megabytes

Swap memory limit in MB (default: 512)

--unprivileged 0|1

Create as unprivileged container (1, recommended for security)

--ssh-public-keys filepath

SSH public keys for root user authentication

--features list

Enable features like nesting, keyctl, fuse, mknod

--start

Start container after creation

CAVEATS

Templates must be downloaded or uploaded to Proxmox storage first. The container ID must be unique across the cluster. Enable nesting for containers that run Docker or other containers inside.

HISTORY

pct create is part of the Proxmox VE virtualization platform for managing LXC containers.