I’ve been running a homelab since October 2013 (I’m good at dates). Back then, I used a special VPN and a homebuilt Pentium 4 desktop.
Fast forward twelve and a half years, my homelab has significantly changed.
So what’s in it? I’ll tell you.
Network
Right now, I use MikroTik for routing and switching, and UniFi for access points.
On the top is the core router: a CCR2004-16G-2S+PC which handles L2TP termination, Wireguard, NAT and firewalling.
The middle is the core switch: a CRS309-1G-8S+IN. This connects to my SFP+ servers via DAC, and 10GbE copper devices via SFP+ modules.
The bottom is the PoE switch: a CSS610-8P-2S+IN. This connects to four UniFi U6 Pros (indoors) and one U6 Mesh (outdoors)
The internet connection is not really a traditional ISP like Spectrum or Verizon, but instead a Calyx Sprout SIM. Sprout is an unlocked and unlimited T-Mobile SIM card. I combine that with a L2TP VPN to a BGP VPS to give myself a public IPv4 and IPv6 block.
The 5G modem is a Hitron D60, of which I disabled Wi-Fi.
Since I live in NYC and not a RV, I can get Spectrum. But not FiOS or any other fiber ISP, and Spectrum is dragging their feet on high-split. I use Calyx for 75 Mbps upload speeds versus 35.
Server
I use two Minisforum MS-01 Mini PCs. Both have i9-13900H CPUs and 96GB RAM, and run Rocky Linux 10.
The bottom one, “twin” has 2x4TB Crucial SSDs, and the top one, “triplet” has 2x2TB FanXiang SSDs. Both are in RAID 1.
Twin runs:
- MariaDB master-master node (Rocky Linux 10, Incus)
- Nextcloud (Rocky Linux 10, Incus)
- UniFi Controller (Debian 12, Incus)
Triplet runs:
- MariaDB master-master node (Rocky Linux 10, Incus)
- FreeBSD Ports development (FreeBSD 15, KVM)
- EVE-NG (Ubuntu 22.04, KVM)
Sometimes, I also run a Windows 2000 or 2003 VM for the kicks. They usually get deleted in a few days.
Future Plans
My last project was to remove noisy components and replace them with “passive” equivalents where possible. However, future plans depend on:
- Spectrum’s DOCSIS 4.0 upgrades (which keep getting delayed)
- Whether or not fiber comes (rights of way is hard in NYC)
- The RAM shortage
The former two points might mean an upgrade to Wi-Fi 7 (or 8) APs and a UniFi PoE switch instead of the CSS610-8P-2S+IN. MikroTik doesn’t make a multi-Gig PoE switch, so if I did it today, I’d need UniFi.
The RAM shortage is plain stupid: the RAM industry is putting all their eggs in AI, even when AI is just froth. I just wish someone could fund a DRAM antitrust lawsuit. Heck, I’d love for my startup Fourplex to participate if someone’s willing to fund me (I won’t sue myself).
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