Doug and Mitch, home lab server enthusiasts, talk about their new home lab server and the importance of self-hosting. They discuss data backup failures, frustrations with server setups, and the challenges of building a boutique product in North America. They also explore thin client devices and possibilities for project development.
Having a local copy of precious data provides access and ownership of important information.
Platforms like Home Assistant OS, Sandstorm, and Umbrel offer easy deployment of applications, making self-hosting more accessible.
The 45 Drives Home Lab Server offers high performance and robust hardware for home lab enthusiasts, with plans for future enhancements and products.
Deep dives
The 45 Drives Home Lab Server: Big, Strong, and Fast
The 45 Drives Home Lab Server, named the hl15, is a powerful and robust piece of hardware designed for home lab enthusiasts. It features an architecture inspired by enterprise designs and is powered by open source software. The hl15 offers high performance with its direct wired approach, providing ample bandwidth for data-intensive tasks. The server is available in different configurations, allowing users to choose between a fully built system or just the chassis and backplane. With the 45 Drives Home Lab Server, users can build their digital castle with a reliable and scalable hardware solution.
Support and Community for Home Lab Enthusiasts
45 Drives recognizes the importance of support and community for home lab enthusiasts. They offer support through their forum, where users can get help, ask questions, and share experiences. While direct support is provided for hardware-related issues, support for specific operating systems may be limited to forum discussions. The community aspect is emphasized, with users encouraged to help each other and share knowledge. 45 Drives aims to cultivate a thriving community of home lab enthusiasts who can learn from and support one another in their home lab endeavors.
Future Roadmap: More Products and Enhancements
The 45 Drives team has exciting plans for the future. They have additional products and enhancements in the pipeline to meet the needs of home lab enthusiasts. These include enterprise drives, 10 Gigabit switches, accessories like 3D caddies and fan shrouds, as well as a thin client device. The company aims to provide premium, yet affordable products that offer high performance and functionality. Their upcoming server offerings will include an 8-drive and 4-drive unit, as well as a mini SSD version for those needing increased IOPS. The team also plans to release an Intel-based and ARM-based thin client, catering to different user preferences and use cases.
The Importance of Data Local First
The podcast episode discusses the importance of having a local copy of precious data. The speaker highlights the example of using applications like Obsidian and Evernote, emphasizing the value of having control over one's own data. While local data storage does not solve all problems, it provides access and ownership of important information.
Creating an Accessible Self-hosting Environment
The podcast explores the idea of making self-hosting more accessible, particularly for those who are not technically inclined. The hosts discuss the potential of platforms like Home Assistant OS, Sandstorm, and Umbrel, which offer easy deployment of applications, simplifying the process for users. However, they acknowledge the need to strike a balance between accessibility and user understanding to prevent data loss or other issues.
Local-first software: You own your data, in spite of the cloud — In this article we propose “local-first software”: a set of principles for software that enables both collaboration and ownership for users. Local-first ideals include the ability to work offline and collaborate across multiple devices, while also improving the security, privacy, long-term preservation, and user control of data.
45HomeLab Software — 45HomeLab provides a platform to run whatever applications you want on your server. For your convenience, our staff picked their favorite applications, tested and assembled them here.
The HL15 — The HL15 from 45HomeLab is a open-source, open-platform, 15-bay homelab server. The HL15 features enterprise architecture and strength brought to a scale that works for the homelab. The server's direct-wired architecture can provide blazing fast transfer speed of up to 2GB per second.
Google Nest Mini Gutted And Rebuilt To Run Custom Agents — [Justin] pulled apart a Nest Mini, ripped out the original PCB, and kitted it out with his own internals. He uses the ESP32 as the basis of his design, since it provides plenty of processing power and WiFi connectivity. His replacement PCB also interfaces with the LEDs, mute switch, and capacitive touch features of the Nest Mini, for ease of interaction.
Justin Alvey on X — I “jailbroke” a Google Nest Mini so that you can run your own LLM’s, agents and voice models.
BBC in Hot Water — An article discussing the origins of a phrase.
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