Hey Efflixi86Box

Can you emulate, or run lower-spec Intel-compatible CPUs, with proxmox as is possible with qemu-kvm?

Have you considered WINE? That might be viable for non-graphical dedicated servers from the old days.

Maybe have a VM host that is just a bit old? Keep the VMs lean to minimise RAM needs, and maybe that could help with CPU speed.

With the right virtual hardware, Win2k can be OK, from my fiddling in qemu. Maybe use 2k server rather than Pro, that way you can use Terminal Services and not worry about decent drivers on the virtual VGA.

Not sure what it would be like to try and run long-term as some kind of server, but I run Linux VMs myself for weeks and weeks at a time. 2K could do that if you don't have crap installed. But the vast list of vulnerabilities in 2k means running long-term needs incredible isolation.... and that starts becoming useless.

I too have been thinking about something like this though. Because the software is so obsolete I was thinking of running VMs that are started up from static images and destroyed after use. Strict firewalling, so only packets come through that are legitimate. eg some games will never send/receive UDP to port x that are bigger than y bytes. Monitor game traffic, then makes iptables rules that log and drop anything unknown, even if superficially legitimate. Intrusion detection, so if a Windows machine with malware connects and starts scanning, it can be cut off automatically. Firewall so only application traffic allowed, firewalled at the VM host level. No need for eg old Windows SMB to be available if you are not using it.

As for getting real users connected to old servers, I had thought users have their retro PC connected by cross-over Ethernet to a RasPi or Linux machine (in the style of IPCop or smoothwall 😀 ). The Linux machine, on the home LAN/wifi otherwise, establishes a VPN for the retro machine to connect to a VPN containing the old servers. No old servers or clients need direct internet access, have an actual virtual private network. Best to not let retro PCs be able to route to each other either, just run an MSN compatible server for client to client chatting 😀

With a VPN system IPX etc. could conceivably be transported across the internet, enabling other older games and perhaps just a bit of, er, Novell printing. Maybe even some serial to IP to IP to serial, to enable null-modem games?

Good luck

I virtualize machines of older OSes using ESXi and passing through real PCI devices (on a PCIe bus over PCI bridge) and using virtual devices. You can virtualize DOS or Win 3.1 with a virtual network adapter, and I have got them working in the past. I can get certain PCI devices working as well.