home lab

  • Truenas networking

    TrueNAS SCALE Network Configuration Tips for Home Server

    When you set up a TrueNAS SCALE server, one of the first configuration items you will want to tackle is the network configuration. This helps make sure you achieve optimal performance and security. If you are struggling to configure your…

  • Iventoy boot iso over the network

    iVentoy: Setup Network Boot of ISO Files Made Easy

    If you are like me, you used Rufus for years to “burn” ISO image files to a bootable USB drive. However, once I discovered Ventoy, I moved to using it for all my USB boot needs. It is a great…

  • Truenas scale server build for home lab

    TrueNAS SCALE Server Build for Home Lab

    There are so many options for running a home server for storage and virtualization needs on a home network. I have run VMware ESXi and Proxmox servers for my virtualization needs for the past few years now. However, until recently,…

  • Nas vs server

    NAS vs Server: Pros and Cons for Home Lab

    Two devices dominate both SMB and home lab environments – NAS devices and servers. The NAS vs server debate has been going on for quite some time. Both have their unique set of advantages and disadvantages. This post delves into…

  • Home server or not

    Home Server: Why you shouldn’t build one

    You can do so much running your own home server. It is a great tool for learning and actually storing your data. Many prefer to control their own file sharing, media streaming services, and also run their own web server…

  • Jellyfin vs plex best self hosted media server

    Jellyfin vs Plex: Best Self-hosted Media Server

    Let’s look at Jellyfin vs Plex and see which one might best fit for your home media services for hosting video and audio files. We will compare Plex vs Jellyfin in the following categories for media servers: Device compatibility User…

  • Best pihole adlists for 2023

    Best Pihole Adlists in 2023

    Let’s take a look at the most recommended Pihole adlists of 2023. As we will see, these adlists (aka blocklists) are designed to secure and protect your network from malicious sites and specific types of content. Pihole adlistsWhat is Pi-Hole?Why…

  • Best self hosted apps in 2023

    Best Self-hosted Apps in 2023

    You can run many great self-hosted apps in your home lab or on your media server with only a small amount of tinkering. Let’s look at the best self-hosted apps in 2023 and a list of apps you should check…

  • Vmware networking 5 concepts to master

    VMware Networking: 5 Concepts to Master

    One of the challenges when getting into virtualization using VMware ESXi and vSphere with vCenter Server is understanding the many different networking concepts. There are a few foundational concepts in the VMware networking layer that you need to understand and…

  • Proxmox gpu passthrough

    Proxmox GPU PassThrough: Step-by-step Guide

    GPU passthrough provides many advantages when running a virtual machine with a GPU exposed directly to the operating system from the Proxmox host. Let’s look at GPU passthrough and how this is configured with your internal PCI GPU. Table of…