In this post I will hopefully detail my entire home network. Some of this has been in separate posts explaining single items, but nowhere do I have all of the network in one post with all the changes since last year.
Here is a full shot of the rack in
Hopefully this is not too long! There has been a lot of changes since the last time I posted a full overview like this
Hi OP. If you’re reading this, I have a few questions:
You’re using the Linode box as the server, on which you forward ports for your services. Am I to assume that you somehow access your homelab via your VPN using the Linode box too? Usually people would access their lab at home directly.
Wouldn’t a whitebox build for your NAS save power?
What are you using both switches for? Are you running out of ports?
Since you’re running VMWare, are you running VMs for every service? Why not containers?
Even if most of the content on your blog is static, how are you hosting it for it to load so quickly? Are you using some sort of CDN in front of your Linode box to cache the static assets like pictures?
It was great reading about your lab. I’ll try and follow your blog on RSS if you have a feed. Thanks.
You’re using the Linode box as the server, on which you forward ports for your services. Am I to assume that you somehow access your homelab via your VPN using the Linode box too? Usually people would access their lab at home directly.
Yes, I also access the lab via the Linode box. I do however have direct VPN access too. The reason for using the Linode box is that for some reason, the speed and latency via the Linode box is far better that directly in. I can only assume its some kind of peering thing. I always connect in via my phone on T-Mobile, so perhaps the connection between T-Mobile and Linode, and the connection between AT&T and Linode, is better than T-Mobile to AT&T Residential? Unsure, all I know is that it works 100x better. And it also means I don’t need 2 different connections for the primary and secondary WAN, I can just connected to Linode and it will connect over whatever connection is active
Wouldn’t a whitebox build for your NAS save power?
This really is a whitebox build, it uses very little power. The disks use the most amount of power, which there is no getting around
What are you using both switches for? Are you running out of ports?
The 1Gb switches? yes, I ran out of ports on the Dell, or am very, very close
Since you’re running VMWare, are you running VMs for every service? Why not containers?
Everything that can run in containers already is, on Debian VM’s within ESXi
Even if most of the content on your blog is static, how are you hosting it for it to load so quickly? Are you using some sort of CDN in front of your Linode box to cache the static assets like pictures?
I am using CloudFlare in front of it, so that’s probably why. But even directly its pretty quick. I guess NVMe storage and decent internet means its fast?
How do you relay your VPN connection over your Linode box? I can understand a direct VPN connection, but I can’t understand the networking behind relaying the VPN connection around the Linode box.
Good to hear! I replied above about it, here was my reply
I am using CloudFlare in front of it, so that’s probably why. But even directly its pretty quick. I guess NVMe storage and decent internet means its fast?
Hi OP. If you’re reading this, I have a few questions:
It was great reading about your lab. I’ll try and follow your blog on RSS if you have a feed. Thanks.
Yes, I also access the lab via the Linode box. I do however have direct VPN access too. The reason for using the Linode box is that for some reason, the speed and latency via the Linode box is far better that directly in. I can only assume its some kind of peering thing. I always connect in via my phone on T-Mobile, so perhaps the connection between T-Mobile and Linode, and the connection between AT&T and Linode, is better than T-Mobile to AT&T Residential? Unsure, all I know is that it works 100x better. And it also means I don’t need 2 different connections for the primary and secondary WAN, I can just connected to Linode and it will connect over whatever connection is active
This really is a whitebox build, it uses very little power. The disks use the most amount of power, which there is no getting around
The 1Gb switches? yes, I ran out of ports on the Dell, or am very, very close
Everything that can run in containers already is, on Debian VM’s within ESXi
I am using CloudFlare in front of it, so that’s probably why. But even directly its pretty quick. I guess NVMe storage and decent internet means its fast?
Thanks!
How do you relay your VPN connection over your Linode box? I can understand a direct VPN connection, but I can’t understand the networking behind relaying the VPN connection around the Linode box.
Ah, yes CloudFlare is a great proxy/CDN. Thanks
Not OP, but also curious about number 5, I noticed that blog article loaded lickety-split!
Good to hear! I replied above about it, here was my reply