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We take a look at 10 killer projects that you can spin up in your home lab for a weekend. These are practical and very educational projects that will take your learning to the next level. While some are more difficult than others, most if not all can be at least stood up in a weekend of tinkering. Join up with Home Lab Explorers! https://www.skool.com/homelabexplorers/about?ref=25f64c297b724689ae81c7dd30ba2c21 Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction - 0:00 1. Start learning Docker today - 0:47 2. Spin up your first Kubernetes cluster - 1:27 3. Automation with Ansible and Terraform - 2:10 4. Self-host your own Git repo - 2:45 5. Stand up a reverse proxy - 3:24 6. Try a new hypervisor - 4:28 7. Setup TrueNAS SCALE as an open source storage solution - 5:20 8. Introduce VLANs and segmentation in your home lab network - 6:02 9. Monitor your lab with Prometheus and Grafana - 6:37 10. Test recovering data from your backups - 7:21 Bonus: Document your home lab - 8:02 Wrapping up the 10 projects in a weekend - 8:22 Home Lab Explorers! - 9:02
10 Killer Home Lab Projects You Can Build in a Weekend!
There is big news in the prosumer NAS market with Synology making the announcement they will be locking down the hard drives that you can use with the "plus" series and "enterprise" series NAS devices released in 2025 moving forward. No longer will we be able to just throw in any brand of hard drive into an empty Synology NAS of these model lines. What does this mean? How will this affect the home lab community? Let's talk about the announcement and what it means and how it may impact your decision to purchase a home lab NAS in 2025. Written blog post on this topic: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/04/synology-just-locked-down-your-nas-drives-heres-what-to-use-instead/ Synology alternative, Terramaster F4-424 NAS: https://amzn.to/44CwacL (affiliate link where I earn a small commission) Synology alternative, UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus: https://amzn.to/4iz0CrA (affiliate link where I earn a small commission) Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction to the news that Synology is locking down drives - 0:00 Covering the details of the news with Synology lock in - 1:50 What are the implications? 3:45 Thoughts about why they are doing this - 4:23 Conclusion about the intent and purpose? 5:36 Thoughts on Synology in general - 6:25 Best Synology alternatives in 2025 - 6:59 Terramaster - 7:07 uGREEN NAS - 7:35 Minisforum upcoming N5 Pro NAS - 8:03 Open source alternatives - 8:50 TrueNAS SCALE or Core - 9:12 Unraid 9:23 OpenMediaVault - 9:34 DSM software on your own hardware - 9:47 What if you already own a Synology? 9:59 Wrapping up - 10:37
Best Synology Alternatives to Locked Down Hard Drives!
I go through a lot of thoughts in this video on documenting a home lab environment. Why document your home lab? What tools do you need to use to do this? What types of documentation do you include? We look at all of these questions and talk about some of the things that are very helpful to include in your break glass documentation that you will find helpful. Label maker I use: https://amzn.to/3Rpsjbm (amazon affiliate link I earn a small commission on) Written blog on this topic: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/04/how-to-document-your-home-lab-the-right-way/ Proxmox Server Build 2025: Build components: (amazon affiliate links that I earn a small commission on) Thermaltake Tower 200: https://amzn.to/3XJAS4i Minisforum BD790i X3D: https://amzn.to/3FTM1tk Corsair 850 Watt power supply: https://amzn.to/420229J Crucial 128 GB RAM kit: https://amzn.to/4jbm3jc Artic P12 Slim: https://amzn.to/42bVHa0 GeForce RTX 5070: https://amzn.to/4llAa7G Predator 1TB boot drive: https://amzn.to/4jhTW1U Samsung 990 Pro 4TB VM storage: https://amzn.to/422LQog Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction to documentation and tools for home lab - 0:00 Why documentation matters even for home lab - 0:35 Where do you start with documentation? 1:24 Tools to use with inventorying - 1:52 Diagrams and pictures - 2:16 Free diagramming tools - 2:30 What to diagram with these tools - 2:52 Configuration files and how to keep them as documentation - 3:00 Home lab Wikis - 3:40 Free Wiki and documentation tools for home lab - 3:53 Network documentation is a must! 4:37 Helpful network documentation tools - 5:02 Documentation through infrastructure as code tools - 5:35 Backups of your documentation in another location, like cloud - 6:16 Printing out a physical copy of your critical documentation - 6:48 Labeling your gear and cabling - 7:20 The label maker I use - 8:16 Change log tracking - 8:47 Self-hosting and the catching 22 of accessing documentation - 9:49 Syncing Markdown documentation, MKDOCs, etc - 10:33 Wrapping up thoughts on documenting your home lab - 10:55
Home Lab Documentation // Tools Tips and Tricks!
Broadcom made major news today with the release of VMware ESXi 8.0U3e as a free hypervisor once again! What is going on? Did we just see Broadcom take away VMware ESXi free edition last year? Yes we did, but in a major shift, they seem to have made a 180 on this decision and have once again released the hypervisor for free! See the details and how you can go about downloading it now! Written blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/04/vmware-esxi-free-edition-available-again-with-8-0u3e-download-now/ If you are still going with Proxmox, see my latest Proxmox build here: Build components: (amazon affiliate links that I earn a small commission on) Thermaltake Tower 200: https://amzn.to/3XJAS4i Minisforum BD790i X3D: https://amzn.to/3FTM1tk Corsair 850 Watt power supply: https://amzn.to/420229J Crucial 128 GB RAM kit: https://amzn.to/4jbm3jc Artic P12 Slim: https://amzn.to/42bVHa0 GeForce RTX 5070: https://amzn.to/4llAa7G Predator 1TB boot drive: https://amzn.to/4jhTW1U Samsung 990 Pro 4TB VM storage: https://amzn.to/422LQog Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction - 0:00 Details of the new free release! 0:41 How to download it - 1:35 Talking about the license key - 4:01 Speculation about why the change - 4:55
VMware ESXi Free Once again with 8.0U3e! See how to Download it!
Proxmox and Gaming PC build with Minisforum BD790i X3D motherboard! #proxmox #gamingpc #minisforum
My latest build in the home lab came together nicely! It is a Mini ITX build which is becoming more common these days for tiny builds or space saving builds. I didn't save space on the case that I chose, but I love how this build came together and the performance included along with the RGB LED lighting. This Minisforum BD790i X3D motherboard with the Ryzen 9 7945X3D processor brings a lot to the table. Take a look at the video as I walk you through the build components. Get the motherboard directly from Minisforum here: https://store.minisforum.com/products/minisforum-bd790i-x3d Written blog about this build: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/04/rate-my-best-home-server-build-aka-workstation/ Build components: (amazon affiliate links that I earn a small commission on) Thermaltake Tower 200: https://amzn.to/3XJAS4i Minisforum BD790i X3D: https://amzn.to/3FTM1tk Corsair 850 Watt power supply: https://amzn.to/420229J Crucial 128 GB RAM kit: https://amzn.to/4jbm3jc Artic P12 Slim: https://amzn.to/42bVHa0 GeForce RTX 5070: https://amzn.to/4llAa7G Predator 1TB boot drive: https://amzn.to/4jhTW1U Samsung 990 Pro 4TB VM storage: https://amzn.to/422LQog Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction to my latest build, a Mini ITX! - 0:00 Going over the specs of the Minisforum BD790i X3D motherboard - 0:55 Looking at additional features of the motherboard - 1:40 Design and cooling of the BD790i X3D motherboard - 2:20 You will need your own 120mm fan for the CPU heatsink - 2:50 Artic P12 slim 120mm fan installed - 3:00 SODIMM memory, and I like the vertical installation on this board - 3:28 Case for the build - thermaltake tower 200 - 3:56 Power supply for the build - Coolermaster MWE Gold 850v2 - 4:37 Storage for boot drive and VM storage and large files - 5:11 Why did I not choose Gen5 NVMe drives? 6:10 Graphics for the build - currently a RTX 4060 but considering RTX 5070 - 6:50 Memory for the build - Crucial 128 GB DDR5 - 7:29 RGB LED lighting - 8:30 Power consumption? 9:10 My final thoughts on how the build came together - 9:50 Video of the completed build with RGB lights! 11:19
Home Server Build 2025 with Minisforum BD790i X3D, Ryzen 9, 128 GB, and RGB / My best looking build!
This is @VirtualizationHowto ! This is my new server build that I have been working on the past couple of days now. I received in the Thermaltake Tower 200 case, Minisforum BD790i X3D with the Ryzen 9 7945X3D processor and other goodies, including a light kit. Check out my blog post about the build here: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/04/rate-my-best-home-server-build-aka-workstation/ Build kit: (amazon affiliate links that I earn a small commission on) Thermaltake Tower 200: https://amzn.to/3XJAS4i Minisforum BD790i X3D: https://amzn.to/3FTM1tk Corsair 850 Watt power supply: https://amzn.to/420229J Crucial 128 GB RAM kit: https://amzn.to/4jbm3jc Artic P12 Slim: https://amzn.to/42bVHa0 GeForce RTX 5070: https://amzn.to/4llAa7G Predator 1TB boot drive: https://amzn.to/4jhTW1U Samsung 990 Pro 4TB VM storage: https://amzn.to/422LQog
My best looking home lab server build for 2025? #homelab #techtok #proxmox #minisforum #amdryzen
DNS failover solutions for home lab
An in-depth discussion of DNS failover, what it is, and why you need this configured in your home lab environment along with production. We discuss and look at three different designs for DNS failover and which design you might use for which use cases and what components and solutions are involved. This will help to take your home lab name resolution resiliency to the next level! We will look at things like Pi-Hole, Unbound, Windows Server DNS, Nebula Sync and more. Written blog on this topic: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/03/dns-failover-for-the-home-lab-and-why-you-need-it/ Proxmox server build 2025!!!!!! (amazon affiliate links I get a small commission): Minisforum BD795M – https://amzn.to/4i2VEDH RackChoice 2U Micro ATX Compact – https://amzn.to/3CeIW5H Cooler Master MWE Gold 850 V2 – https://amzn.to/4aFXhET Noctua NH-L9i-17xx, Premium Low-Profile CPU Cooler – https://amzn.to/4hAKIwG ***New*** Crucial 128 GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit - https://amzn.to/4i5g5zN Crucial 96GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit – https://amzn.to/40w3ONQ Intel X520-DA2 10 GbE network adapter – https://amzn.to/4jv05ZA Kingston 240 GB drive for boot – https://amzn.to/4hv6sKG Samsung EVO 990 Pro 2TB – https://amzn.to/40OwtiA MX-4 Thermal paste – https://amzn.to/4hs5WgL Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Introduction to DNS and failover - 0:00 What is DNS failover? 0:49 Load balance vs failover - 1:35 Running local authoritative domains in home lab - 1:50 Option 1 for DNS failover - 2:43 Using Windows Domain Controllers with DNS - 3:30 Downstream Unbound server - 3:41 Automatic DNS registration with secure updates - 4:10 Different virtual hosts and storage - 4:32 Client LAN network 2 Pi-Hole servers with Nebula-sync - 4:49 Hybrid Option 1 with 2 Pi-Hole servers and Keepalived - 5:27 Single IP address to hand out to clients for failover - 6:06 Local DNS server and one public DNS server - 6:45 Showing this configuration with one local and public and behavior with local domain - 7:38 Option 3 is just using public DNS resolvers - 8:40 Designing using public resolvers and spreading your config between providers - 9:00 Configuring DHCP scope options for both DNS resolvers - 9:40 Wrapping up thoughts on DNS failover - 10:20
DNS Failover designs for Home Lab: Pi-Hole, Unbound, Windows Server, Nebula Sync and more!
Automate your Home Lab like a boss!!! #homelab #tech #devops
In this video we take a look at home lab automation to see how you can use Terraform, Ansible, and CI/CD pipelines to automate infrastructure provisioning with Proxmox, VMware, etc. Automation is easier than you think and we will walk through real-world examples of this in the video. How to update Linux with Ansible written with code samples: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2024/01/how-to-update-ubuntu-with-ansible/ Written blog on the subject: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/03/automating-your-home-lab-with-ansible-terraform-and-ci-cd-pipelines/ Proxmox server build components list (amazon affiliate links I get a small commission): Minisforum BD795M – https://amzn.to/4i2VEDH RackChoice 2U Micro ATX Compact – https://amzn.to/3CeIW5H Cooler Master MWE Gold 850 V2 – https://amzn.to/4aFXhET Noctua NH-L9i-17xx, Premium Low-Profile CPU Cooler – https://amzn.to/4hAKIwG ***New*** Crucial 128 GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit - https://amzn.to/4i5g5zN Crucial 96GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit – https://amzn.to/40w3ONQ Intel X520-DA2 10 GbE network adapter – https://amzn.to/4jv05ZA Kingston 240 GB drive for boot – https://amzn.to/4hv6sKG Samsung EVO 990 Pro 2TB – https://amzn.to/40OwtiA MX-4 Thermal paste – https://amzn.to/4hs5WgL Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/ ★ Subscribe to the channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrxcWtpd1IGHG9RbD_9380A?sub_confirmation=1 ★ My blog: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com ★ Twitter: https://twitter.com/vspinmaster ★ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-lee-vht/ ★ Github: https://github.com/brandonleegit ★ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/VirtualizationHowto/100092747277326/ ★ Discord: https://discord.gg/Zb46NV6mB3 ★ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/brandonleevht/ Automation - 0:00 Why automate, is it really faster? 1:06 Introducing the 3 tools we will use - 2:22 Detailed intro to Terraform - 2:36 Demo of using Terraform with Proxmox - 3:43 Running the Terraform code - 9:05 Looking at Proxmox during Terraform provisioning - 9:18 Introduction to Ansible - 10:12 Using Ansible to install updates in Ubuntu Server - 11:25 No agents are required with Ansible - 13:12 Introduction to CI/CD pipelines - 13:30 Recommendations for CI/CD pipelines - 14:08 Real-world example of running automation with CI/CD - 14:50 Gitlab pipeline file - 15:15 Looking at an inventory PowerShell script used with my CI - 15:36 Looking at the YAML file for updating Linux servers - 16:42 Looking at the Gitlab CI YAML file - 17:25 Start with a real project - 18:56 Use Git - 19:09 Secure your secrets - 19:14 Test locally before implementing CI/CD - 19:29 Monitor and log everything - 19:36 Backup your Terraform state and Ansible Playbooks - 19:43 Wrapping up automating your home lab - 20:13
Home Lab Automation with Terraform, Ansible, and CI/CD pipelines!
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Beastly Home Lab NAS S #techtok #tech #computerstorage #homelab
Convert VMware to Proxmox VE Server #homelab #proxmox #tech #techtok
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