Install the Retivo appliance

The ready-made Retivo VM for VMware and Proxmox. What to download, what it needs, and how setup works.

The Retivo appliance is a complete Retivo Node in one virtual machine: Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, Retivo, an HTTPS web server and a setup menu on the VM's console. You import it, answer a few questions on the console, and link it to your company on dash.retivo.net. There is nothing to install by hand and no Linux to look after.

If you would rather run Retivo on your own Linux server with Docker, see Install the Retivo Node.

Download

Platform	File
VMware ESXi 6.7 or later, vCenter, Workstation 15 or later, Fusion 11 or later	`retivo-appliance-<version>.ova`
Proxmox VE 7 or later, KVM, libvirt	`retivo-appliance-<version>.qcow2`

Each release also has a SHA256SUMS file. To check a download on Linux or macOS, run sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing in the download folder; on Windows, Get-FileHash .\retivo-appliance-<version>.ova and compare the result with the line in SHA256SUMS.

What the VM needs


CPU and memory	2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM (the defaults). For more than 500 devices, 4 vCPU and 8 GB.
Disk	40 GB, thin provisioned. Make the disk bigger in the hypervisor at any time; the appliance grows into it at the next start.
Network	One network card on a network that reaches your devices and the internet. DHCP or a fixed address.

Network access

From the appliance to	Port	Why
Your devices	TCP 22, UDP 161, ICMP	SSH, SNMP and ping, as for any Retivo Node
`dash.retivo.net`	TCP 443	Your account and the license
`download.retivo.ae`	TCP 443	Updates
`services.nvd.nist.gov`, `www.cisa.gov`, `endoflife.date`, `upgrade.mikrotik.com`	TCP 443	Vulnerability data, support dates, RouterOS releases
`ntp.ubuntu.com`, or your own NTP servers	UDP 123	Correct time
`archive.ubuntu.com`, `security.ubuntu.com`	TCP 80, 443	Ubuntu security updates, installed automatically

To the appliance from	Port	Why
Your browsers	TCP 443	The Retivo web interface
Your browsers	TCP 80	Only redirects to HTTPS

A proxy works: the setup menu asks for one.

Install

Then follow First start of the appliance.

How the appliance is locked down

No shell. The VM's console shows only the Retivo menu. There is no SSH, no other console, no recovery mode, and the boot menu can't be edited. Everything you need is in the menu or the web interface.
Compiled Retivo. Retivo runs as native code, not readable source.
Licensed per VM. The license from dash.retivo.net names this VM. A copy of the VM can't use it: link a copy as a new node instead.
Updates. Ubuntu security updates install by themselves. Retivo updates come from the menu, are signed by Retivo, and roll back by themselves if the new version doesn't start.