About

This page documents my self-hosted HomeLab setup, which I have built and maintain in my home environment.
Due to the costs of commercial cloud services and limitations of local internet infrastructure, I prefer to store my data locally, under my own control and with redundant backups.

My hardware stack consists of lightweight Raspberry Pi-based components and a RAIDZ1-configured TrueNAS system.
In addition, my personal website is hosted via a Windows Server 2022 virtual machine running on a nested Proxmox server leased from DeHost, with the domain managed through Natro.

This setup provides me with a flexible environment for continuous learning and experimentation with new technologies, allowing me to test various scenarios from data security to performance in a practical way.

My HomeLab is designed for personal use only and will continue to evolve with new components such as an OPNsense-based firewall, an extended Proxmox virtualization layer, and a physical rack cabinet for improved security, scalability, and sustainability.

Hardware

Raspberry Pi Server

  • Model: Raspberry Pi 5 8GB
    • CPU: Broadcom BCM2712, 2.4GHz quad-core 64-bit Arm Cortex-A76 CPU (512KB L2, 2MB L3 cache)
    • GPU: VideoCore VII GPU with OpenGL ES 3.1 and Vulkan 1.2 support
    • Memory: 8GB LPDDR4X-4267 SDRAM
    • Network: Gigabit Ethernet, dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0 / BLE
    • Storage: microSD card slot (SDR104 mode supported)
  • Storage Card: 1TB TEAMGROUP GO MicroSDXC
  • Cooling: Raspberry Pi Active Cooler
  • Case: 3D Printed Case (Thingiverse) — produced via external 3D printing service
  • Connection: Connected to the local network via Ethernet

The Raspberry Pi server is used for running lightweight services with minimal power consumption.

Network Switch

Raspberry Pi Server and Switch

TrueNAS Server

  • Chassis & Components:

    • Motherboard: Biostar B560MX/E Pro (DDR4 4000, LGA1200)
    • CPU: Intel Core i5-11600K @ 3.9GHz, 6 cores / 12 threads
    • Graphics: Integrated Intel UHD Graphics 750 (iGPU)
    • RAM: 80GB DDR4 (2 × 8GB + 2 × 32GB)
    • Storage:
      • Main pool: 3 × 6TB HDD (RAIDZ1 configuration, ~12TB usable)
      • Boot disk: 465GB NVMe SSD

  • Network:

    • Gigabit Ethernet connection
    • Managed via static IP in the local network
    • Connected through the same switch as other devices

  • System:

    • OS: TrueNAS SCALE 25.04
    • Filesystem: ZFS (mainpool & boot-pool)
    • Management: Web UI + SSH

TrueNAS is an open-source NAS (network-attached storage) solution that uses the ZFS filesystem to ensure data integrity. ZFS provides features like integrity checks, snapshots, and easy scalability to minimize data loss risks. RAIDZ1 is a RAID level that combines at least three disks, protecting against the failure of a single drive. This configuration balances performance, data security, and efficient storage use. TrueNAS also offers a user-friendly web interface for easy configuration and management.

TrueNAS Server

Leased Proxmox Server

  • Location: Remote data center (DeHost)
  • CPU: Intel E5-2697/99 V4, 12 CPU cores
  • RAM: 16GB DDR4
  • Disk: 160GB NVMe M.2 SSD (RAID 0)
  • Network: 1 Gbit shared bandwidth
  • Setup: Nested Proxmox virtualization

This server hosts a Windows Server 2022 virtual machine, which serves this portfolio website through IIS.
Additionally, CouchDB runs on the same VM, providing LiveSync functionality for keeping my Obsidian notes synchronized across devices.

Software & Services

TrueNAS SCALE (catalog applications)

Service Description
Bazarr Subtitle automation (integrates with Radarr/Sonarr)
Collabora Online Office/WYSIWYG editing integrated with Nextcloud
ConvertX Video conversion/archive transcoding service
Dashdot Server hardware & disk health dashboard
FlareSolverr Captcha/Cloudflare bypass proxy
Homarr Personalized homepage/dashboard
Homebox Asset inventory management (hardware, licenses, etc.)
Jellyfin Local media streaming (movies, TV shows)
NetbootXYZ Network-based OS/ISO deployment (PXE boot)
Nextcloud Personal cloud storage & calendar sync
Open-Speed-Test LAN/WAN speed testing tool
Prowlarr Torrent/usenet indexer manager
qBittorrent Web-based torrent client
Radarr Automated movie download manager
Sonarr Automated TV show download manager

Raspberry Pi (Docker / Portainer containers)

Service Description
Portainer Visual management panel for Docker
Heimdall Simple link-launcher homepage / app hub
Redmine Project & issue tracker (Ruby on Rails)
WG-Easy Quick WireGuard VPN server setup
pi-db Lightweight MariaDB database service
SCM-Manager Lightweight Git/Mercurial/Subversion server
WOLweb Wake-on-LAN web interface
qBittorrent Secondary/backup torrent client
Watchtower Automatic Docker container updates

Leased Proxmox Server

Service Description
IIS Web server hosting the portfolio site
CouchDB Obsidian LiveSync for real-time note sync
Proxmox Nested VM management, runs Windows Server 2022

Roadmap

The following tasks outline my primary goals for evolving my HomeLab infrastructure to be more sustainable, flexible, and secure:

  • Expand storage: Increase disk capacity to expand the main pool and test SSD cache/disaster recovery setups if needed.
  • UPS installation: Minimize data loss risks during power outages and ensure safe shutdown of RAID pools.
  • Network security: Deploy an open-source firewall distribution like OPNsense to segment the internal network, monitor traffic, and apply advanced rule management.
  • Virtualization: In addition to the existing TrueNAS setup, deploy a separate virtual server on Proxmox to manage containers, VMs, or testing environments more flexibly.
  • Rack cabinet: Set up a 16U rack cabinet to centralize server and network hardware for space efficiency and better manageability.
  • Physical organization: Optimize cable management, switch placement, and chassis airflow to maximize cooling efficiency.