# Win11 Vsrail Setup

> Canonical setup and maintenance guide for the win11-vsrail Virtual Machine on the VSRail platform. Includes hardware specs, ISO mappings, and boot-recovery parameters.

- Skill: `bojak83318/win11-vsrail-setup` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add bojak83318/win11-vsrail-setup`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/bojak83318/win11-vsrail-setup/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: bojak83318 (https://skillmd.com/u/bojak83318)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/bojak83318/win11-vsrail-setup

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# win11-vsrail Setup & Maintenance

This skill documents the precise configuration of the `win11-vsrail` Virtual Machine, used for running Windows 11 on the VSRail/Incus stack.

## 1. Virtual Machine Hardware
- **CPU**: 6 Cores (`limits.cpu: "6"`)
- **RAM**: 12 GB (`limits.memory: 12GB`)
- **Secure Boot**: Disabled (`security.secureboot: "false"`) - Required for the bypass autounattend ISO.
- **Root Disk**: NVMe bus (`io.bus: nvme`)
- **QEMU Optimizations**:
    - Machine: `q35,accel=kvm,smm=on`
    - CPU: `host,hv_relaxed,hv_spinlocks=0x1fff,hv_vapic,hv_time`
    - Monitoring: TCP monitor enabled on `127.0.0.1:4444`.

## 2. ISO & Storage Mappings
All ISOs are located on the host at `/opt/VSRail/iso/`.

| Device Name | Mapping / Source | Description |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| **install** | `Win11_23H2_English_x64v2.iso` | Primary Windows 11 Installer (Boot Priority 10) |
| **unattend** | `win11-bypass-autounattend.iso` | Bypass for TPM/SecureBoot/OnlineAccount requirements. |
| **virtio** | `virtio-win.iso` | Standard Windows VirtIO drivers. |
| **virtiofloppy**| `virtio-win-w11-storage.vfd` | Floppy image for storage drivers (F6-style injection). |

## 3. Operations

### 3.1 Booting the Installer
The VM is configured to prioritize the `install` disk (Windows ISO). If it fails to boot (e.g., hits BCD errors), refer to the `windows-11-ralph-retry` skill for the three-loop recovery model.

### 3.2 Writable UEFI State
If the VM hangs or fails to find the boot media despite correct priority, the OVMF variables may be stale.
- **Reset Path**: Check `/var/lib/incus/virtual-machines/win11-vsrail/qemu.nvram`.
- **Action**: Stop VM, back up the vars file, and replace with a fresh template copy if needed.

## 4. Environment Context
- **Remote Host**: `rocm@100.65.27.72`
- **Bridge**: `incusbr0` (Bridged networking)