H1DC and H2DC are projects I’ve been actively working on long before starting this site. Both labs are meant to be a testing and prototyping platform for learning new technologies.
I’ve been able to build them throughout the years, although they have been in constant flux, I believe these labs have definitely influenced my journey and development as an IT professional and continue to influence my learning everyday.
Homelab #1 “H1DC” Logical Layout
Physical Layout
The first home lab titled “H1DC” (“DC” short for Datacenter), was actually my first lab, it is at my family’s residence, which I mostly manage remotely if needed.
Although the lab has gone through many changes over the years, the diagram above illustrates the most recent version of how the network is laid out, and the services currently hosted there.
I’ve tried to keep things a bit logically simple, as compared to Homelab #2, as H1DC is no longer my primary lab, therefore I only host a few docker containers there.
Devices
1 Mini Server
- Raspberry Pi 3b+
3 Network Devices
- Edgerouter X router (as the “CORE” router)
- TP-Link 5 port PoE switch (as my “CORE” switch)
- Ubiquiti AP-AC Lite Access Point
3 IP cameras
- Reolink
Power Supplies
- APC Back-UPS (BE425M) 425VA/255W
Services
Local:
- SMB
- DNS
- FTP
- VPN (through Pi-VPN, and WireGuard on Edgerouter X)
Deployed using Docker:
- Portainer
- Nginx Proxy Manager
- Jellyfin
- Heimdall
- Bookstack
- Watchtower
- Uptime Kuma
- Pi-hole
- UniFi controller
- Speedtest-tracker
- Filebrowser
Homelab #2 “H2DC” Logical Layout
Physical Layout
The second lab, titled “H2DC”, is my lab at my current residence, it has been in development since 2020.
Devices
2 Servers
- Synology DS720+ NAS (as my “STORAGE” node)
- Dell Optiplex Micro 3020M (as my “COMPUTE” node)
4 Network Devices
- Ubiquiti Edgerouter X (as the “CORE” router)
- UniFi Flex Mini (as the “CORE” switch)
- Netgear switch (as an “ACCESS” switch)
- Ubiquiti AP-AC Lite Access Point
Power Supplies
- 2 x APC Back-UPS Pro (BR1000MS), 1000VA/600W Sine Wave
Services
Local:
- SMB
- DNS
- VPN (through WireGuard via Tailscale)
- Active Directory (planned)
Deployed using Docker:
- Portainer
- Nginx Proxy Manager
- Jellyfin
- Tailscale
- Heimdall
- Watchtower
- Uptime Kuma
- Pi-hole
- UniFi controller
- Speedtest-tracker
- Filebrowser
- Bookstack
- Mealie
- Kiwix
- Navidrome
& more…
The physical layout in my opinion is not very sophisticated, all the lab devices are actually housed in my TV stand in the living room as you can see below:
The devices are not entirely enclosed as there is an inlet in the back of the TV stand, which allows some airflow to and from the devices.
You can also see where my UPS is located:
I have 2 of these APC UPS devices, one in the living room and the other in my office/bedroom.
Power Utilization
Both UPS devices are 1000VA/600W.
The one in the living room can run for about 1hr 30min at 37-40W in the event of a power outage.
In Summary
The home lab projects have been an invaluable learning experience.
I hope to continue my learning through the use of these labs, as they have definitely been a great learning experience and hobby.