Geek Time, a run down of my network at home

I have a total of 4 computers in my house. 2 servers and 2 client PC’s, along with my phone and tablet.

So lets go through what I have, why I have it and what it does, starting with my servers first.

SERVERS 

As stated above I have 2 servers, one that is basically a NAS (Network Attached Storage) that stores all my media and acts as a backup for my main server, which runs all my applications. I wanted my storage and applications separate for security and in case of hardware failure.

TrueNAS

The NAS runs on TrueNAS, a free dedicated NAS server software. The specs of the server is as follows :-

• Intel Core i5 4440S CPU (iGPU)
• 16Gb DDR3 Ram (2 x 8Gb)
• 2 x 500Gb Seacate 2.5” HDD (OS/Mirrored)
• 2 x 2Tb WD Red (Mirrored, mainly used for all my data apart from Plex)
• 2 x 3Tb WD Red (Mirrored, used for my Plex Media Server)

The TrueNAS software doesn’t take that much HDD, the 500Gb hard drives are an overkill for it. As you can also see, all the hard drives are mirrored, this means if one fails, I can just replace it and wont loose any data. The server will email me if there is any problems with it, like a hard drive failure or an software update is available for it.

Main Server

My main server runs on Ubuntu Server with Docker. Docker is a container system that allows you to easily install services without the developer of the services to know what hardware its running on. It’s an easy way to install, upgrade and manage services.

I have a total of 4 services that run on Docker. They are as follows :-

• Nextcloud – think of it as a replacement for Gsuite or iCloud, but on your own hardware
• Plex Media Server – Movies, TV Shows, Music that you own, stream to any device
• WG_Easy – an easy to set up and run VPN Server
• Heimdall – A dashboard that allows me to see what the server is up to.

Nextcloud backs up its data automatically every night onto my NAS and automatically updates itself once a week.

I also run WebAdmin on the server, which lets me via a web browser administrate the underlying operating system, which is Ubuntu Server 22.04 LTS (LTS Stands for Long Term Support, roughly 5 years), from any web browser on the local network. Another admin type of software I run is Portainer, which lets me update all the Docker apps that are on the server via a web interface.


The specs of the Ubuntu Server are as follows :-

• Intel Core i5 4590T
• 8Gb DDR3 (2x4Gb)
• 240Gb SATA SSD

As you can see, there is no failover for the SSD in this system, mainly because it is a Mini PC so there is no room for another SSD. SSD are more reliable than old fashioned spinning hard drives as there are no moving parts in it.

If the server fails, it will be very easy to get things back up and running again as docker is very easy to set up and I have it all documented.

The most important service for me is Nextcloud as it has replaced Google Docs, Google Drive, Calendar, Contacts, Photos etc.

There is a client for Nextcloud Drive that syncs all the Documents and Photos to client PC’s a bit like Google Drive does.

Backup

All the Nextcloud data gets backed up automatically onto my NAS every night. There is no other data on the main server that needs backing up.

The NAS gets backed up at least once a week by myself onto 2 separate hard drives that are offline apart from when it is doing the backup.

The data drive (Nextcloud Backup, Software etc) get backed up once a week onto a USB Hard Drive that stays unplugged unless it is getting updated.

The Plex drive gets backed up when there are any changes to it onto another USB Hard Drive that stays unplugged unless it is getting updated.

I use a program called Grsync to do this task, its a graphical frontend to the excellent rsync program.

All the software on both servers are free. I have had this setup for almost a year with no problems what so ever.


CLIENT MACHINES

I currently have 2 client machines that I use, a laptop that is my day to day machine and a desktop Mini PC that I count as my work machine.

Day to day usage for me is things like browsing the web, playing music, playing simple games, light Office work (I.E. this article) and general messing around. This computer is in my living room.

Work is Recording for TransRadio UK, Office work again, Steaming Games, Backing up the Servers and making Standing Tall. This computer is in the office upstairs so I can separate work from leisure.

 As both servers only require web browser to administrate them I can use either PC.

Main PC

Currently my main PC is a Beelink Ser5 Mini PC, Specs are as follows: -

• AMD Ryzen 5560 CPU
• AMD Radeon Vega 6 Graphics
• 16Gb Ram (2x 8Gb)
  
• 500Gb M.2 NVME SSD
• 480Gb SATA 2.5” SSD
• WiFi 6/ Bluetooth 5.2
• Gigabit Ethernet

The AMD Ryzen 5560 is a 6 core 12 thread Zen 3 CPU with the built in Vega Graphics. Attached it it I have the following: -

• Corsair K55 Keyboard
• Razer Deathadder Elite Mouse
• Focusrite Solo 3rd Gen Audio Interface
• Shure SM58 XLP Mic
• USB DVD Drive
• 1Tb USB3 HDD - Backup of Data from the NAS
• 2Tb USB3 HDD – Backup of Media from the NAS
• Canon IP4200 Printer
• Logitech C920 Pro Webcam

As stated before, the PC is running KDE neon Linux, though there is a VM of Windows as well for the Affinity Suite only. All the hardware just worked, I didn’t need to mess with any drivers with installing Linux.

Laptop

My laptop is a HP Probook 450 G5. Specs are as follows: -

• Intel Core i5 8250U CPU
• Intel HD 630 Graphics
• 16Gb Ram (2x 8GB)
  
• 128Gb M.2 SATA SSD
• WiFi 5/Bluetooth 4.2
• Gigabit Ethernet

The Intel Core i5 8250U is a 4 core 8 thread CPU. Again this is running KDE neon Linux and again I had no issues with any of the hardware not working except the fingerprint reader, which is a common problem with Linux. This is the machine I use most as it is in my living room. Both PC’s have steam installed and I can stream games from my main PC to my Laptop, which is also connected to my TV so I can play games with an Xbox One Controller. Easy to run games are played directly on the laptop.

I have also set up the laptop so if my PC is out of action, my Laptop can still do everything I need for my TransRadioUK news show if needed.

Both PC’s are also connected to my Nextcloud Server and use Thunderbird/Firefox/LibreOffice for work. I use RSS Guard to read the news that my Nextcloud collects during the day and both PC’s have QOwnNotes and Obsidian installed to take notes/write the scripts for TransRadioUK news. The audio software I use to record the show is Audacity.

TABLET AND PHONE

My Tablet is a Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite and my phone is a Samsung Galaxy A13. Both are connected to my Nextcloud server and both use the Nextcloud apps for notes and backup of photos and DAVx5 to sync my calendar/contacts with Nextcloud. The phone is also connected to my laptop via KDE Connect and my plex server via Plexamp for music.