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My TrueNAS Core (FreeBSD) Homelab
Over an eight-year period, the author has developed a comprehensive homelab setup for network services, starting modestly with Pi-hole on a Dell Mini powered by an Atom processor and evolving into a sophisticated infrastructure. The Network Attached Storage (NAS) core is built using an Intel Core i3 CPU, 32 GiB ECC memory, and six 4 TiB Seagate Ironwolf HDDs configured in RAIDZ2 for redundancy, running on TrueNAS Core based on FreeBSD, housed in a custom-built case replacing their previous Fractal Design Node. An SSD holds less critical data.
For virtualization purposes, they employ XCP-ng on a dedicated machine with an Intel i5 CPU and 32 GiB RAM, managing networking services via OPNsense—which acts as a router and DHCP server—and hosting other tasks like printing and a Forgejo git server on Ubuntu servers. USB passthrough is handled through PCI cards to address VM persistence issues.
The network infrastructure comprises wired connections where feasible, supported by Netgear switches, while wireless needs are met with a TP-Link access point. Privacy enhancements come from a local Unbound DNS server using blocklists akin to Pi-Hole, and Wireguard facilitates remote access. Additionally, a 4G modem serves as a backup internet connection.
Kubernetes plays a central role in the homelab's operation, orchestrated by Talos and managed through Flux for GitOps-style infrastructure management. The environment hosts various services such as the Kubernetes dashboard, Freetar, Invidious, Jellyfin, Metube, Owntone, Speedtest, Tandoor, TheLounge, TubeSync, alongside a monitoring stack comprising kube-prometheus-stack and Grafana dashboards. Databases are managed declaratively using CloudNativePG with automated backups to S3-compatible storage solutions.
Keywords: #phi4, 4G modem, Bare Metal, CloudNativePG, Docker Compose, Dynamic DNS, ECC memory, Flux, Forgejo, FreeBSD, Freetar, GitOps, Grafana, Homelab, Immich, Immutable Distro, Invidious, Jellyfin, Kubernetes, Kubernetes dashboard, Metube, NAS, Netgear, OPNsense, Owntone, Pi-hole, Prometheus, RAIDZ2, Speedtest, Synology, TP-Link, Talos, Tandoor, TheLounge, TrueNAS, TubeSync, Unbound DNS, VMs, Wireguard, XCP-ng, pfSense
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