Important: This is for use with Debian 12 (BookWorm) / Proxmox (8.2.7).

This guide is for the setup of an Intel iGPU or dedicated GPU passthrough on Proxmox between an LXC / CT linux system.

Run these commands on both the proxmox host and Emby CT. I have this method working on successfully on both a N100 iGPU and Sparkle Intel Arc A310 ECO

Step 1 – Adding driver download sources
nano /etc/apt/sources.list

add the following

non-free firmwares
deb http://deb.debian.org/debian bookworm non-free-firmware

non-free drivers and components
deb http://deb.debian.org/debian bookworm non-free

Step 2 – Installing the GPU Driver

Install the following
apt update && apt install intel-media-va-driver-non-free intel-gpu-tools

Step 3 – Confirm GPU’s major number’s for fb0 and renderD128

Important: Note down your major numbers from your output my example numbers may not be the same as yours and if this are incorrect the gpu will not work.

cd /dev

Use the following command to list all files and folders in the current directory

ls -lah

Make a note of the numbers in bold for fb0 (If it exists)

crw-rw---- 1 root video 29, 0 Aug 30 21:19 fb0

Navigate to the dri folder using the following command

cd /dev/dri

ls -lah

Make a note of the the number in bold for renderD128

crwxrwxrwx 1 root render 226, 128 Aug 30 21:19 renderD128

Step 4 – Amend Proxmox CT/LXC config to allow access to the GPU

Now we will add the numbers that were noted down to our CT config on proxmox for Emby – Important amend the command below with your CT’s ID number shown the proxmox webgui (Example Below) Mine is 3006

Now open your CT’s config files on your Proxmox host.

nano /etc/pve/lxc/3006.conf

Add the following lines to the file and save using CTRL + O and then enter.
lxc.cgroup2.devices.allow: c 29:* rwm
lxc.cgroup2.devices.allow: c 226:* rwm
lxc.mount.entry: /dev/fb0 dev/fb0 none bind,optional,create=file
lxc.mount.entry: /dev/dri dev/dri none bind,optional,create=dir
lxc.apparmor.profile: unconfined

Step 5 – Adding Persistent GPU Permissions

Important: Giving 777 permissions to your GPU is not considered best practice from a security standpoint. While this approach works, there are more secure methods you can follow. However, I understand the risks and accept them on my system. do this at your own risk…

Adding Persistent GPU Permissions on proxmox host so the GPU is accessible to the CT after reboot.

nano /etc/udev/rules.d/99-renderD128-permissions.rules
KERNEL=="renderD128", MODE="0777"

udevadm control --reload-rules

udevadm trigger

How to Test?

Run the following command on your proxmox shell (This is basically task manager for your GPU)

intel_gpu_top

Step 6 – LXC/CT GPU Driver installation

Repeat Steps 1 and 2 inside your LXC/CT/Emby Shell

How to Test GPU in Emby?

Login to Emby and navigate on the admin webpage to Server > Transcoding. If you see your GPU and a list of Hardware Decoders its likely working. Test forcing something to Trancode by changing the bitrate and monitor the CPU usage and using intel_gpu_top to see if there is any ffmpeg processes running on the GPU

If your not seeing anything on this page I suggest giving your server a little nap (aka, a reboot) see if that makes the GPU driver jumps into life.

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