Home Lab Setup
2026-05-05
Here is a little about my home setup and what I'm experimenting with.
Purpose
This setup also is dual-purpose as my casual gaming setup, and development rig. It's modest in its specs and pricing. When I can find renewed/used equipment I am all for that in the Lab. But, when it comes to installing for customers or mission critical situations, you really want that manufacturer warranty behind your gear.
As you can see it is from varying manufacturers, I have a few favorites, but I wouldn't call myself a "fan boy" of any one brand.
NETWORK:
The Ubiquity router is a fairly new addition. I had been using and loving Netgate (Aka Rubicon) Routers, but after two failures at critical times, I just can't any more (see my review of the Netgate 2100). I stick with wired whenever possible, not only for the security, but also for the load it takes off of the wireless network. So if I can find a PoE (Power over Ethernet) device I will favor that. I'm all about a single run if I can help it. That being said I've had to crawl in my fair share of attics and crawl spaces to achieve the connectivity I've wanted. Case in point; check out the referenced "ANVISION Gigabit PoE Splitter Adapter" I've used that to take an older IPC (Internet Protocol Camera) we used as a baby monitor and with this turned it into a back deck cameras that look over the BBQ and a small play area.
Wireless
For the WiFi. I have three APs (Access Points) upstairs ceiling mounted and one downstairs. I've been very impressed with the Ruckus Gear in the past and for corporate networks, so at home I'm using the Unleashed where you essentially make one of the APs a master that directs the others what to do. It's missing some features and abilities but sufficient for home use.
Workstations
Windows
I've got two windows systems. There is an older Dell Optiplex 760 running some monitoring and automation software. But, the main windows system is the Dell Precision Tower 7810 with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060. This machine is running Windows 11 despite it not meeting the requirements. This was because I installed it when it was preview release from the insider channel