Zimaspace Docs

This guide was originally created by ZaNgA. We gratefully acknowledge his contribution.

This tutorial walks you through setting up a ZimaBoard as a compact and reliable home‑lab or edge server:

Install the latest Ubuntu LTS (minimal) on the ZimaBoard
Configure two SATA disks in a RAID‑1 mirror using mdadm
Install and validate the Docker Engine

The guide assumes basic Linux command‑line familiarity and uses Ubuntu Server LTS (minimal, no GUI).

1. Prerequisites

Hardware

ZimaBoard (any model)
USB keyboard + HDMI monitor or serial/SSH access
USB flash drive (≥ 4 GB)
2× SATA disks (SSD or HDD, same size recommended)
SATA power and data cables (included with ZimaBoard)

Software

Ubuntu Server latest LTS ISO (minimal)
Imaging tool: Balena Etcher, Rufus, or dd

2. Download Ubuntu Server LTS (Minimal)

Go to the official Ubuntu download page
Download Ubuntu Server LTS (e.g. 24.04 LTS)
No additional packages are needed — the server ISO is already minimal

3. Create the Bootable USB

On Linux:

sudo dd if=ubuntu-24.04-live-server-amd64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync

Replace /dev/sdX with your USB device.

On Windows/macOS:

Use Balena Etcher or Rufus

4. Install Ubuntu on the ZimaBoard

Insert the USB stick into the ZimaBoard
Power it on and press DEL or F7 to enter BIOS
Set USB as first boot device
Save and reboot

Installer Choices

Language and keyboard: as preferred
Network: DHCP (default)
Proxy: leave empty
Mirror: default Ubuntu mirror

Storage Configuration (Important)

Select Custom storage layout
Install Ubuntu only on the internal eMMC
Do NOT format the SATA disks yet

Typical layout:

/ on eMMC
No swap (optional)

Proceed with installation and reboot.

5. Activate Ubuntu Pro (Free Plan)

Ubuntu Pro provides extended security maintenance (ESM) and additional hardening features. For personal and small-scale use, Ubuntu Pro is free for up to 5 machines.

5.1 Obtain a Free Ubuntu Pro Token

Visit the Ubuntu Pro website
Sign in with an Ubuntu One account
Copy your Ubuntu Pro token

5.2 Attach Ubuntu Pro

On the ZimaBoard:

sudo pro attach <YOUR_TOKEN_HERE>

Verify status:

pro status

You should see esm-infra and esm-apps enabled.

5.3 Enable Recommended Services

sudo pro enable esm-infra esm-apps

Optional (recommended for servers):

sudo pro enable livepatch

Livepatch allows kernel security fixes without rebooting.

5.4 Update the System

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade -y
sudo reboot

6. Update the Base System

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade -y
sudo reboot

7. Identify the SATA Disks

List block devices:

lsblk -o NAME,SIZE,TYPE,MODEL

Example:

sda   1.8T disk  Samsung_SSD
sdb   1.8T disk  Samsung_SSD
mmcblk0 32G disk eMMC

We will mirror /dev/sda and /dev/sdb.

8. Install RAID Tools

sudo apt install -y mdadm

During installation, choose Yes when asked to start RAID arrays automatically.

9. Create the RAID‑1 Mirror

Wipe Existing Signatures (Recommended)

sudo wipefs -a /dev/sda
sudo wipefs -a /dev/sdb

Create the Array

sudo mdadm --create /dev/md0 \
  --level=1 \
  --raid-devices=2 \
  /dev/sda /dev/sdb

Monitor sync progress:

cat /proc/mdstat

10. Create a Filesystem

Format the array (example: ext4):

sudo mkfs.ext4 /dev/md0

Create a mount point:

sudo mkdir -p /srv/data

Mount it:

sudo mount /dev/md0 /srv/data

11. Persist RAID Configuration

Save mdadm Configuration

sudo mdadm --detail --scan | sudo tee -a /etc/mdadm/mdadm.conf
sudo update-initramfs -u

Persist the Mount

Get UUID:

blkid /dev/md0

Edit /etc/fstab:

sudo nano /etc/fstab

Add:

UUID=<uuid>  /srv/data  ext4  defaults,nofail  0  2

Test:

sudo umount /srv/data
sudo mount -a

12. Install Docker Engine

Install Dependencies

sudo apt install -y ca-certificates curl gnupg

Add Docker GPG Key

sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | \
  sudo gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg

Add Docker Repository

echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg] \
https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu $(. /etc/os-release && echo $VERSION_CODENAME) stable" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

Install Docker

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin

13. Post‑Installation Docker Setup

Allow your user to run Docker without sudo:

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker

Test Docker:

docker run --rm hello-world

14. (Optional) Use RAID Storage for Docker

Recommended for containers and volumes:

sudo systemctl stop docker
sudo mkdir -p /srv/data/docker
sudo rsync -aHAX /var/lib/docker/ /srv/data/docker/

Edit Docker config:

sudo nano /etc/docker/daemon.json

Add:

{
  "data-root": "/srv/data/docker"
}

Restart Docker:

sudo systemctl start docker

15. Health Checks & Maintenance

Check RAID status:

cat /proc/mdstat
sudo mdadm --detail /dev/md0

Enable SMART monitoring:

sudo apt install -y smartmontools
sudo smartctl -a /dev/sda

16. Docker Compose Basics & Examples

Docker Compose is the recommended way to define and manage multi‑container applications on your ZimaBoard.

Install Docker Compose Plugin

If you followed the Docker Engine section above, the Compose plugin is already installed.
Verify:

docker compose version

17.1 Create a Standard Directory Layout

Using the RAID‑1 array for persistent data is best practice:

sudo mkdir -p /srv/data/compose
sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /srv/data/compose

Each application gets its own folder:

/srv/data/compose/
├── portainer/
├── samba/
├── uptime-kuma/
└── monitoring/

17.2 Example 1: Portainer (Docker Management UI)

Create directory:

mkdir -p /srv/data/compose/portainer
cd /srv/data/compose/portainer

Create docker-compose.yml:

version: "3.8"
services:
  portainer:
    image: portainer/portainer-ce:latest
    container_name: portainer
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "9000:9000"
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
      - portainer_data:/data

volumes:
  portainer_data:

Start:

docker compose up -d

Access:

http://<zimaboard-ip>:9000

17.3 Example 2: Samba File Server (on RAID Storage)

Create directory:

mkdir -p /srv/data/compose/samba
cd /srv/data/compose/samba

Create shared folder:

mkdir -p /srv/data/share

docker-compose.yml:

version: "3.8"
services:
  samba:
    image: dperson/samba
    container_name: samba
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "139:139"
      - "445:445"
    volumes:
      - /srv/data/share:/mount
    command: >
      -u "user;password" \
      -s "data;/mount;yes;no;no"

Start:

docker compose up -d

17.4 Example 3: Uptime Kuma (Service Monitoring)

Create directory:

mkdir -p /srv/data/compose/uptime-kuma
cd /srv/data/compose/uptime-kuma

docker-compose.yml:

version: "3.8"
services:
  uptime-kuma:
    image: louislam/uptime-kuma:latest
    container_name: uptime-kuma
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3001:3001"
    volumes:
      - uptime-kuma-data:/app/data

volumes:
  uptime-kuma-data:

Access:

http://<zimaboard-ip>:3001

17.5 Example 4: Basic Monitoring (cAdvisor + Node Exporter)

Create directory:

mkdir -p /srv/data/compose/monitoring
cd /srv/data/compose/monitoring

docker-compose.yml:

version: "3.8"
services:
  cadvisor:
    image: gcr.io/cadvisor/cadvisor:latest
    container_name: cadvisor
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    volumes:
      - /:/rootfs:ro
      - /var/run:/var/run:ro
      - /sys:/sys:ro
      - /var/lib/docker/:/var/lib/docker:ro

  node-exporter:
    image: prom/node-exporter:latest
    container_name: node-exporter
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "9100:9100"

17.6 Common Docker Compose Commands

# Start services
docker compose up -d

# Stop services
docker compose down

# View logs
docker compose logs -f

# Update images
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

18. Result

You now have:

Ubuntu LTS minimal on eMMC
A mirrored RAID‑1 array for data safety
A fully functional Docker Engine