Introduction

My home lab setup is designed on a budget, utilizing an old gaming laptop and a Mac mini. It serves as a versatile environment for learning and testing various technologies and open-source applications.

Home Lab Diagram

Below is a visual representation of my home lab setup:

Hardware Overview

Laptop:

• Model: Dell Inspiron 5577
• Processor: Intel Core i7-7700HQ @ 3.800GHz
• RAM: 32GB
• Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 630, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile
• Operating System: Proxmox VE 8.1.3 x86_64

Mac Mini (Proxmox Backup Server):

• Model: Macmini8,1
• Processor: Intel Core i5-8500B @ 4.100GHz
• RAM: 64GB
• Graphics: Intel CoffeeLake-H GT2 (UHD Graphics 630)
• Operating System: Debian GNU/Linux 12 (bookworm) x86_64

Software and Configurations

In my home lab, I use Proxmox VE as the hypervisor. It hosts a Nextcloud Server VM and 11 LXC containers, which run various services such as AdGuard, Authentik, nginx proxy manager, WireGuard VPN, and Uptime Kuma. Additionally, there's a Windows 10 VM (Tiny10) dedicated for testing purposes.

Backup Solution

To streamline operations, I have automated daily backups scheduled at 00:00 to both the Proxmox Backup Server and a local 1TB HDD.

Authentication

To enhance security and streamline user management, I implemented an open-source Identity Provider (IDP) solution using Authentik. This robust IDP platform allows for centralized authentication, supporting various protocols such as OAuth2, SAML, and LDAP. By leveraging Authentik, we achieved seamless integration with multiple applications, improved access control, and enhanced overall security. The flexibility and extensibility of Authentik made it an ideal choice for our authentication needs, enabling efficient user provisioning, single sign-on (SSO), and detailed auditing capabilities.

Challenges and Solutions

One of the initial challenges I encountered was transitioning from hosting Nextcloud on a Raspberry Pi with Dynamic DNS (DDNS) to a more robust and scalable setup. This transition required overcoming various technical hurdles, including ensuring data security, managing server performance, and maintaining uptime. By engaging in continuous learning and gaining hands-on experience, especially during my tenure at ZAVA, I developed a deeper understanding of cloud infrastructure, network management, and system administration. These experiences have significantly enhanced my technical skills and problem-solving abilities, enabling me to implement and manage more complex and reliable hosting solutions.