Guides
Articles
Used Enterprise SSDs for Homelabs: Are eBay Data Center Drives Worth the Risk?
Used data center SSDs on eBay look like an absurd deal. Here's what you actually get, what the endurance numbers really mean, and when a new consumer drive is the smarter buy.
Best Budget Managed Switch for VLANs (Homelab, 2026)
The 2026 shortlist of the best budget managed switches for homelab VLANs: the $25 hero pick, a cheaper rival, and upgrade tiers for PoE and 2.5G networking.
TP-Link TL-SG108E vs Netgear GS308E: Which Budget VLAN Switch Should You Buy?
TL-SG108E or GS308E for homelab VLANs? Real differences in VLAN capacity, price, warranty, and expansion, plus which one wins for IoT isolation.
TrueNAS vs Unraid vs OpenMediaVault: Which NAS OS Should You Actually Run?
A practical comparison of TrueNAS, Unraid, and OpenMediaVault for a budget homelab NAS: cost, drive redundancy, hardware requirements, and which one fits your build.
Best UPS for a Homelab: Battery Backup on a Budget
A UPS is the cheapest insurance your homelab will ever buy. Here's how to size one for a low-power setup, which units are worth the money, and how to make it shut your server down safely.
Why I Stopped Using Rack Servers (And What I Use Instead)
I ran rack gear for two years. Here's what the homelab rack server vs mini PC tradeoff actually taught me, and what I run now instead.
Low-Power Homelab: Run 15+ Services on Under 25 Watts
Build a homelab that idles under 25W while running 15+ services. Hardware picks, container density tips, power budget table, and honest trade-offs.
How Much Does a Homelab Actually Cost? (Power, Hardware, Time)
Year-one total cost of ownership for a budget homelab: hardware, electricity, time, storage, recurring fees, and the upgrade spiral. With real numbers.
Best GPU for a Self-Hosted AI Homelab (Used 3060 vs 3090 vs P40 vs Arc)
A practical buyer's guide to GPU selection for local LLMs: the used 3060 12GB, 3090, P40, and Intel Arc compared on VRAM, noise, power draw, and real inference speed.
Best Mini PC for Home Assistant in 2026 (HAOS, Containers, and Heavy Add-ons)
The opinionated 2026 buyer's guide to mini PC hardware for Home Assistant: five picks across price tiers, real performance notes, and the accessories that make the whole thing work.
Mini PC vs Old Server vs Raspberry Pi: What to Buy for Your First Homelab
A direct comparison of the three hardware paths for a first homelab: mini PC, used enterprise server, and Raspberry Pi. Cost, power, noise, and what each one is actually good at.
How to Build a Homelab on a Budget (Full 2026 Build Under $300)
How to build a homelab on a budget: a real, working build covering hardware, setup, and what you can actually run, with a full parts list, under $300 total.
Best Used Mini PCs for a Homelab Under $200 (2026)
The best refurbished and used mini PCs for running Proxmox, Docker, and self-hosted services without spending new-hardware money. Real picks with current pricing.
Beelink vs MINISFORUM: Best Budget Mini PC for Self-Hosting
A direct comparison of Beelink and MINISFORUM mini PCs for homelab use. Which brand builds the better budget self-hosting machine in 2026?
Best Mini PCs for a Budget Homelab in 2026 (Real Idle Power Numbers)
The complete 2026 guide to mini PC homelab hardware: every tier from $80 to $475, real idle power numbers, and the picks that actually run Proxmox and Docker well.
Homelab Power Usage: How to Measure and Reduce It
Your homelab runs 24/7, and that adds up on your electric bill. Here's how to actually measure what you're using and cut it without cutting your setup.
NAS vs. Direct-Attached Storage for Homelabs
A NAS isn't always the right answer for homelab storage. Here's when direct-attached storage wins, when it doesn't, and how to decide which one you actually need.
How to Build a Complete Homelab for Under $500 in 2026
How to allocate a $500 homelab budget across compute, storage, and networking. Covers which mini PC to buy, what to skip, and what to add first when you have room to grow.
The Homelab Subreddit Hardware Buying Guide
What r/homelab and r/selfhosted actually recommend for hardware, and what the forum consensus gets right and wrong for budget builds.
Homelab Storage Options: NAS vs DAS vs Raw Drives
How to think about storage for your homelab: the tradeoffs between a NAS, direct-attached storage, and drives in your server, with real recommendations.