Hello everyone, I am Xiao Ji Jun~

Recently, the new Z4 also supports virtual machine functionality!! Currently, the models that can play with virtual machines include Z4S, Z4S (flagship version), and new Z4 (devices starting with SNZ041). Today, Xiao Ji will share a virtual machine setup tutorial to unlock more uses for your home NAS.

Thanks to @晋升奶爸的垃圾佬 for the shared content, this tutorial is for reference only~

— Preparations Before Starting the Virtual Machine

1. Upgrade the device to the latest version of the system

The device used for this demonstration is the flagship version of the Extreme Space Z4S. After updating the system, you should see an icon for the virtual machine function on your NAS, but it cannot be activated immediately. After clicking the icon, you will be prompted again to agree to the upgrade.

This upgrade involves underlying modules, and the complete upgrade process takes about 15 minutes.

2. Expand hardware by adding M.2 SSD

The virtual machine must be used with M.2 SSD, which needs to be set as high-speed storage. It is recommended to use a PCIe3.0 M.2 solid-state drive of 1TB or more. On one hand, SSDs have inherent advantages such as noiseless operation and good random read/write performance, making them very suitable for scenarios with a large number of random small file reads and writes, fast transmission needs, and long-term seeding; on the other hand, applications like Docker that may affect the sleep of the machine (hard drives) can be placed in high-speed storage, eliminating the sound of HDDs working hard.

3. First Encounter with Extreme Space Virtual Machine

The interface of the virtual machine function in Extreme Space is simple and clear, showing the running status and resource usage of the virtual machine at a glance.

In addition to common virtual machine management functions, Extreme Space also provides cloning, exporting, migrating, manual snapshots, snapshot management, and other functions. Cloning is equivalent to copying a virtual machine on the local machine; exporting can be used for sharing with other users, or for personal backup; migrating is for moving to another solid-state drive when two are available; manual snapshots save the current state of the virtual machine, making it easier for users to recover during debugging.

— Practical!! How to Deploy OpenWRT Bypass Router

Go to the koolcenter (formerly koolshare) firmware download server and download the image.

Directly clicking the hyperlink to download may encounter a 404 error, so it is recommended to copy the link address and download it using the built-in Thunder app in Extreme Space.

When creating a new virtual machine, choose the practical virtual hard disk installation item (IMG image).

As always, allocate system resources for the virtual machine.

Still 20GB space

Note that, unlike other virtual machines like ikuai, you cannot select a network port that is currently in use and connected to the network.

If you do use it, the following prompt will appear, but in reality, it cannot be created successfully and cannot be started.

You must set the virtual network to another “idle” network port to set it up successfully, and we need to pull another line from the router to connect to the originally “idle” network port.

After the virtual machine starts, when the command line stops running, hit the “Enter key” to bring up the interface shown below.

Input vi /etc/config/notwork to modify the LAN IP address of OpenWRT.

After entering the following interface, press “i” to edit. At the position marked by the red box, change the IP address to one that is in the same subnet as the Extreme Space NAS and is not occupied.

After modification, press the “ESC” key and enter “:wq” to save.

Next, restart the virtual machine by entering reboot, or directly restart through the Extreme Space virtual machine management software.

Then, we can access the OpenWRT bypass router, with the default password being “openwrt”.

The virtual machine runs normally.

If using a dual soft router configuration of OpenWRT+ikuai, you need to modify the default IP of the LAN port. I strongly advise against doing this.

Then we can enjoy various services from OpenWRT. Note that devices like computers/NAS that need to access the bypass router need to configure the default gateway to point to the OpenWRT address, and with that, the task is complete.

To be honest, the addition of the virtual machine function in Extreme Space is quite surprising, and it still highlights the advantages of Extreme Space being user-friendly and easy to use:

• 1. The built-in VNC remote access function allows direct access to the virtual machine from outside without a public IP and network configuration;

• 2. The option to “keep the previous running state” makes the virtual machine startup method more flexible with the NAS;

• 3. The export and import functions enhance the accessibility and sharing attributes of the virtual machine, allowing you to deploy a virtual machine and share it with friends through a flash drive.

Friends who are interested can practice and experience it!