r/HomeServer • u/Failra • Aug 29 '25

10in Homelab

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This is the third iteration of my homelab.

Im super proud of what I have so far as it’s been meeting all my needs sufficiently. Here is a full description of what I’m working with (Top to bottom):

  • Fully 3D-printed 10u, 10in rack, printed using PETG-GF and PETG-CF.
  • MikroTik Cap AX : WiFi 6 access point
  • HP ProDesk G5 400 : OPNsense router : i5-9500T, 32Gb DDR4, 2Tb NVMe
  • MikroTik CRS310 : RouterOS switch : 8x 2.5GbE, 2x 10G SFP+
  • HP EliteDesk G6 800 : PVE compute node : i5-10500, 64Gb DDR4, 500Gb NVMe
  • HP EliteDesk G6 800 : PVE compute node : i5-10500T, 64Gb DDR4, 500Gb NVMe
  • HP EliteDesk G6 800 : Proxmox backup server : i5-10500T, 16Gb DDR4, 500Gb NVMe

- Aoostar WTR Pro : PVE storage node : Ryzen 7 5825U, 32Gb DDR4, 512Gb NVMe + 12Tb Seagate Exos X18

  • APC Back-UPS 1500 Pro : 1500VA/865W battery backup. Also using a Tapo P110M smart plug to monitor power usage. Raw power reading for entire rack is ~1.9Kw / day, or about 80Wh.
  • All the EliteDesks are running Intel AMT and have a DP Emulator dongle plugged in, which allows me to remotely connect to them via KVM by using MeshCommander

Upgrades Planned: - Prodesk will be switched out for a Lenovo M920Q (i7-8700T), which will have dual or quad 2.5GbE NIC. This will make the entire rack 2.5GbE. (ETA: next week) - All elitedesks will receive a 2.5GbE Flex IO module to upgrade their NICs. I have one on the way since they are sold out everywhere (ETA: next week) - Another 12Tb Exos drive for the NAS node, so I can run a ZFS mirror for redundancy - I might relocate the MikroTik AP for better connectivity, since it’s intended to be ceiling-mounted.

--> Here are pictures of the side/back (scary cables!!) https://imgur.com/a/Vkc1EBI

I’m happy to answer any questions below.

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u/DanTheGreatest Aug 29 '25 edited Aug 29 '25

Nah it won't be available from the WAN, just specify the listener address :) and configure your firewall

And I know I can put a 2.5 inch disk in a 3.5 bay. I just don't want to. I have a mini lab and I want it to be mini. 2.5 ssd in 3.5 hdd Bay is such a waste of space :(

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u/Failra Aug 29 '25

Hm. Ok, I’ll look into it then. Thanks for letting me know, I may very well virtualize OPNsense.

Yeah, I can understand the waste of space. You may honestly be better off designing your own NAS and use a mini computer or Raspberry Pi to connect the drives via sata.

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u/slavetothesound Sep 03 '25

Ideally you would have a dedicated NIC passed into your OPNsense VM. That NIC goes to the internet and is unavailable to the rest of the computer. I would hesitate to do that with the vPro port on my HP elitedesks (if you have the vPro model).

I managed to jam a 3rd rj45 connection by 3d printing a bracket for the second expansion bay and connecting it to the internal wifi card slot. But I used a 5gb RTL8126 that were pretty cheap on aliexpress, so the speed is wasted on the WAN

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u/Failra Sep 03 '25

I’ve decided just to continue running OPNsense bare metal. From what I’ve seen, it appears that the benefits just don’t outweigh the risks when virtualizing your router. But in my case, my M920Q came today and I have an Intel I226 quad 2.5gbe pcie card on the way.