I run 2 instances of pihole/unbound as lxcs on my main server and local back up, works great.

If I didn’t have the two big boxes I’d use my pi4/zero2 to run two instances of pihole/unbound.

If I didn’t have my pis, I’d run 2 instances of pihole/unbound on literally anything I could install it on.

What I’m saying is that I consider pihole/unbound to be essential infrastructure at this point. I’m also trying to say I’ve broken my only instance of pihole enough times to understand the importance of redundancy.

I use Pis as a (sort of) hardware key to get family and friends onto my Tailscale VPN. They all have pihole too. I haven’t convinced any of them to get a pi0 as a redundant box, but I’m sure they’ll learn eventually too. No doubt it’ll be my problem.

Which is why I would be comparing the steam machine with Beelink and Minisforum. Can I get a reasonable uplift in performance at an affordable price? Yes, at this point the decision to relace my 970 is made, and I’m looking at what to replace it with. Valve, Beelink, minisforum, geekom…

I’m too lazy to research, design, collect parts, and build my own pc. So a Mini PC home console replacement is absolutely where I’m going. I’ll give valve some premium chops too. Although I run a couple Beelink minis as a home server, I trust valve to have better lifetime and 3rd party support over [insert generic Mini builder here]. Mostly the research if I’m honest. If someone gave me a pcpartpicker list beating the UM780 XTX in price and performance I’d probable do that, I’m just lazy.

I think I’m going to buy a PS3/XB360 era emulation capable mini (easily doable for sub $700 according to RetroGameCorps mini pc spreadsheet), I would like it to be Valve, I’m ok with it not being.

Can confirm with my 970. But I would be comparing it to offerings from Beelink, or Minisforum, not the computer I already have.

The difference between a million and a billion is about a billion. Millionaires are closer to zero than they are the ultra rich.

Cleanuparr+huntarr

Add a bunch to Prowlarr (filter by public, Torrent, Language, category) and then monitor the stats in Prowlarr to remove the ones not working out for you.

MagnetDownload has the highest number of successful grabs for me. Followed by TorrentProject2. I run a Bitmagnet instance though, and I have that as highest piority.

Congrats on a finished project.

I don’t do woodworking, but I do undertake projects. “Finishing the project” is a priority all of its own.

WAF has consistently held me down to earth. “What will that enable you to acheive that you can’t do already?” With a couple mini pcs and a rpi I’m good. I’d love shiny things, but beyond LLMs there’s not much it would enable me to achieve that I can’t already.

That, and other hobbies. I don’t want to be an amateur system admin during the summer. So all winter long, while I’m tinkering, I’m adding up how much it adds to my maintenance schedule.

Honestly, I wouldn’t.

I only run it this way because a VPS had 0 WAF, and I’m terrified of opening ports. VPS is the well trodden ground, there’s tonnes of guides. Mine’s a hack job borne of necessity, it works though, and I am proud of what I cobbled together.

It was my first time solving my own problems. I had my meager skill set, a basic idea of what I wanted, some vague notion of how I was going to achieve it, and a thick forehead to smash against the problem till it gave way for me.

I am going to keep running it this way though. To access my server you need to HAVE a relay rPi, and you need to KNOW a password. That’s two authentication factors right there, just built in.

I use tailscale for my non-tech family.

I run a rPi with tailscale, pihole and nginx on it in their house. They connect to the their WiFi, get adblocking for free. They go to “http://homarr.sever/” pihole captures the request, sends it to nginx which reverse proxies to a homarr LXC on my server. From there they can click links to the services which are at “https://service/######.xyz”. Again, pihole captures the request, sends it to nginx which reverse proxies it over Tailscale to the appropriate LXC.

One poor soul runs a mini pc with 2 mirrored ssds attached, it runs everything above plus Syncthing. They have the privilege of running the remote back up for the server.

For apps on their phone, I intend to set their phone up with Tailscale and then just have the app go to “http://dockge:1337/”… Just as soon as I learn to write the access controls to allow admins to access everything, users to access services, and services to access nothing. I just looked and there’s a gui now so I could maybe do it this winter.

There should be both. Minimal config + gui options for people just getting into the hobby, or just want the thing. And a more open option for people who hit the limits of the first, or to do interesting shit, or to repeatably build a thing.

I go back and forth on my server. During summer I wish it was all Docker YAMLs so I can press “update” in Dockge and then enjoy the weather.

But, I also do non-typical things. Users have a rPi in their house that captures requests and routes them through Tailscale to my server for remote access without a VPS or opening ports.

I’m not too technical so I often struggle setting things up, and documentation can be less than helpful at times, sometimes I really wished there was a gui or wizard, but it’s doable.

I’m in the UK therefore: no.

Omw, a replacement for Vikunja and Joplin? Sign me up!

Start with Pi-Hole. Use Linux (I started with Debian) to install Docker/Docker compose, Use Docker to install Portainer, and Portainer to install Pi-Hole, and literally everything else. Run it on any e-waste you have. There’s a thousand guides, it’s easy (comparatively), immediately useful and you’ll learn right quick about redundancy when you break it. Oh you’ll learn so much when you break your only instance of Pi-Hole. Watchtower messes up the updates while you’re at work and SO wants to use Facebook… You’ll learn. Also, don’t do automatic updates for a long time.

You should also learn how to read documentation and Docker’s is stellar, it’ll help you when you’re trying to implement some solo project with minimal documentation… You might hear RTFM which translates to “have you read the documentation?”.

Chatgpt is a fine rubber duck as long as you’re doing standard things on standard platforms. Explain your problem to ChatGPT as best you can and troubleshoot with it. Everything should be a place holder, give it zero details you don’t have to. Then follow the stupid steps it gives you. If it asks you if you made sure the port is what you told it you expect the port to be, go fucking check. It’s a robot, it doesn’t care how good you are just do the thing. If none of that works come here with all the checks you’ve already done so someone here doesn’t ask you if you made sure the port was 8096 in the compose file and you typed it as “8906:8096”. You will mess up simple stuff, it’s fine we all do/did, LLMs are great at covering the basics.

You’ll want to use Podman, Dockge, LXCs, what have you eventually. But Docker/Portainer are the standards. Everyone that can use Podman/Dockge/… can use Docker/Portainer, not the other way around. You’ll get more help doing standard things on standard platforms.

You learn what Docker is, how it works, what a compose file is, how they work, what maintenance is like. Then branch from there, after Pi-Hole what’s the most impactful to you, media? Jellyfin, plex & *arrs+gluetun, what’s your poison? All available through docker. Keep adding services until you cant stand the upkeep, you expand beyond your hardware, or you know you have all you want.

Docker is least effort to learn to do this stuff, you may want to out grow it eventually, but I don’t think you’ll ever not use docker/podman for something. Even when you have everything set up as a NixOS box, there’s likely gonna be a docker/podman host running something somewhere, probably a third redundant pihole.

Then tinker with what you have. Docker is good but has limitations, what is Proxmox, what’s an LXC? In summer I wish everything was on Docker so updates are painless (comparatively). In winter I’m glad I’m in proxmox and can tinker away.

My entire homelab used to live on a rPi4 running Debian, and docker doing almost everything on your list. My current pair of n100 minis can do everything on your list. I think (I’ve not tried game servers).

It doesn’t take much. Start with Debian, Docker, Portainer, Pi-Hole.

When something catastrophically breaks, it’s generally not worth chasing the solution. Good teaching moments later but by then you’ll have snapshots to revert back to. Anyway when things break catastrophically, and they will, give yourself an hour to fix it, and then just start again. It reinforces install procedures, you’ll have an idea on how you could have done it better anyways, and it’s just not worth the heart ache.

What I love most about the game is the community’s refusal to spoil it for others. Spoilers exist, but you really have to look for them.

Honestly, it’s a testament to how good the game is that we all collectively, agreed to say nothing about it beyond “It’s incredible, I wish I could play it for the first time again. Go play it”. I wasn’t told to not spoil it, I just won’t.

Anyways, Outer Wilds is mine. There’s lots of games in this list that I love: MGS, KOTOR, FO:NV, I would rate all of them above Outer Wilds in a “my favourite game” list.

But, Outer Wilds really gains something from the first experience above and beyond what those others do, and it’s worth preserving.

A .world user told me Liberals had to give the Fascists power. If they hadn’t it would have been the end of Democracy. Famously democratic fascists.

Sames, I have a bunch of users(2) all streaming jellyfin fine over tailscale, except one house which buffers sporadically over the day. There’s no rhyme or reason to the when, or the what that needs to be buffered. As in it’ll buffer direct plays/HEVCs/AV1s, or it’ll play them fine. Some times it’ll buffer at night, sometimes during the day, sometimes neither or both. Worse, I’m getting all my information via users, so maybe theres a common thread, but they haven’t found it.

Their internet speed is fine. It could be WiFi being saturated in their area. It could be the relay being a very old rPi3 just isn’t up to it (The pi, captures their requests through Pi-Hole and proxyies their traffic over tailscale). It could be the laptop they’re using as a client isn’t up to it. Or it could be some setting somewhere.

It’s annoying whatever it is.

Not too close. My Proxmox server is basically set up, I can’t fit anything more on it, so it’s just back end and tinkering now. I’m comfortable with Proxmox.

That said, new box and a large windfall I’d have a look at Unraid. After donating to Proxmox at least that much first.

If Proxmox didn’t exist (and TTeck didn’t exist) I think I would have at least tested Unraid. I was comfy in Debian with Docker as a virtualisation host before moving to Proxmox anyways.

I’m sure it’s good, I would like to give it a go. I’m happy where I am though.

Warner bros joins Disney in the “shit I’m going to avoid giving money to” list

Steam could push the Stop Killing Games single handedly by allowing refunds on any game that violates it.