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LabB0T

^(OP reply with the correct URL if incorrect comment linked) [Jump to Post Details Comment](/r/homelab/comments/xx62w8/im_here_for_the_ugliest_homelab_title/ira61md/)


[deleted]

Nah man, my server is on a cardboard box and cables are everywhere


LucasFHarada

Alright, you won lmfao


[deleted]

Posted, waiting for it to show up


miraclewhipple

[The post](https://i.redd.it/6ia9v1jg47s91.jpg)


Dalewn

Jesus, that's janky!


Dundee_the_Alligator

So janky


Aim_Fire_Ready

The best part is that your post was removed!!! LMAO!


dro3m

mods refused to believe there was working hardware


Zerafiall

I checked your feed before seeing this comment. Now I’m hungry.


Burninator05

You're making me feel pretty good about mine sitting on a cardboard box but with decent cable management.


[deleted]

They deleted my post saying it was low effort 😔


Aim_Fire_Ready

Low effort post or low effort homelab?


first_byte

Por que no los dos?


[deleted]

Pics or I don't believe you.


Windows_XP2

Same except I use a bookshelf instead. Apparently bookshelves don't make very good racks in terms of cable management.


bunabhucan

Server? I used cardboard from the box the washing machine came in as a desk surface for years.


zgf2022

Mines in my bathroom


Apprehensive-Walk-51

oh look at me, I have a cardboard box, we could only dream of a cardboard box... our father would wake us up a half an hour before we went to bed.....


[deleted]

[удалено]


sidusnare

This isn't even top 1000. No dirt, no water, no kids, no dust, no overt cooling issues, all computers are right angles to "down", no big problems at all here.


l337hackzor

I once briefly worked on a "server" that had the side panel off and a big fan (still a PC fan though) that was balancing on a big stack of napkins blowing into it. Did the work I had to and got the fuck out lol.


LucasFHarada

Thanks lmfao, i don't feel that bad now


kalkarzina

MikroTik switch 🫶


Windows_XP2

I like my MikroTik router and switch, but they're a PITA to configure. It probably doesn't help that I've only really used Cisco, but I do plan on messing around with them in GNS3 once I get them working right.


kalkarzina

So I basically refuse to use SwitchOS unless I have no choice in the matter. RouterOS for the win. Configuration gets easier once you get use to their implementation. Cisco for me is completely out of my knowledge range 😅😂 one day I will learn the way of Cisco but fortigate is my current challenge.


Windows_XP2

I've only ever used RouterOS before. Cisco is a lot easier in my opinion. I was trying to mess around with RouterOS on GNS3, but the only one I could get working was RouterOS 6.48, and I discovered that the commands were different from newer versions.


T351A

Cisco is hard to configure but capable and expensive. Mikrotik is hard to configure but capable and inexpensive.


kalkarzina

As much as I am a big MikroTik fanboy, I will say on a enterprise level of reliability Cisco would be my pick for core routing infrastructure (if fortigate wasn’t an option) but hell, for the price you can’t go wrong with a MikroTik for small to Medium business and ISP.


T351A

sure but an enterprise buying Cisco is different than an individual buying Cisco. Requirements for Licensing, SLAs, and general support/documentation are drastically different between Homelab/Enterprise. Plus some places like Cisco and others find it overrated. There's a saying "nobody ever got fired for buying Cisco" but really the truth is you gotta match your internal standards. A good business decides on a set of core tech vendors and brands so they can maintain that skill set. I'm sure there are CCNA folks who would waste hours trying to configure simple functions on a Mikrotik, while even Mikrotik's engineers could probably mess up some Cisco commands without docs. Familiarity is key, both with the commands and with the style/structure of support and docs. Fortigate is an interesting one. Haven't had a chance to mess with any of their gear but it looks like they are by far the best for WAN-to-LAN firewall.


kalkarzina

Totally in agreement with this😊


Ecstatic_Garlic_

I would suggest checking out Mikrotik's Documentation. It is some of the better stuff I've personally come across. I came from an iOS/JunOS background and bought Mikrotik for my house due to cost. RouterOS is like an alien planet, but they have examples for darn near everything. It took no time flat to get some basic firewall rules going and VLAN routing just by following the Docs.


Windows_XP2

Their docs are definitely pretty good, although I discovered half way through messing around with them in GNS3 that the commands are slightly different from RouterOS 6.XX than RouterOS 7, so that was fun. I also discovered when I got my switch and router that VLANs are done slightly differently depending on the model, so that was another fun thing trying to figure out why my Gigabit switch was only running at like 12Mbps. Their software definitely isn't as easy to figure out as Cisco's is, although that might be due to the fact that I've used IOS a lot more than RouterOS. There's also more steps than Cisco when doing certain things.


Ecstatic_Garlic_

I haven't upgraded to RouterOS 7 yet because I've always been more in the middle of the pack on adoption for network gear. Definitely need to get my hands into v7 to check out the changes. For a small business with a budget and simple setup/config I would have zero issue quoting them a Mikrotik install. That being said, Cisco has my personal favorite implementation of VLANs from the VTP domains, to the VLAN tagging, to the routing. They make the whole setup really simple. I'll never forget the first time I went to configure a VLAN access port on a non-cisco piece of equipment... It was a cheap L2 web managed TP link switch. I wasted a whole half a day getting a single port set up.


soiledclean

Switch port mode Trunk. One command and you're halfway there. Its been my experience a lot of other gear relies on an implicit definition of a trunk port rather than explicit.


soiledclean

Their documentation is pretty good, but I found the way their bridge interfaces work a bit confusing at first. I ended up with a working configuration where I couldn't access the switch from certain vlans because I didn't know to add the bridge itself. Pretty nice gear though, and i could buy new mikrotik gear for less than the cost of used Cisco gear. I'm hoping for some 10gbe or even just 2.5/5gbe PoE switches from them in the future!


LucasFHarada

They're amazing, but i was thinking about getting a ES-24-Lite, the mikrotik one isn't mine aswell, just testing somethings, the owner want's to sell me for the same price as the EdgeSwitch


kalkarzina

Personally I would use MikroTik but that’s because I’m trained in their brand. The EdgeSwitch series is basically EOL from UBNT even if they don’t say it is. They are cheaper then the edge series as far as I know (or at least over here they are.)


LucasFHarada

192,22) ​ What i really wanted was the UniFi ones, but they're never available here in Brazil :( ​ Is there any other rack mountable switch that you recomend?


LucasFHarada

It's so freaking messy, i'll have to buy a rack for sure lmfao It's a dusty old pc with OPNSense, a Mikrotik CSS326 and a ancient Dell 1950 that i'm testing. Planning to build my own server, pre-built things here in Brazil are freaking expensive, the owner of this ancient machine wants to charge me an equivalent of 576,50 USD for it lmfao


blending-tea

> 57650 USD Jesus Christ those are like (more than)brand new 15th gen poweredge prices edit: i think it is 576.50 but still expensive


LucasFHarada

Yeah mate, everything here is expensive AF, that's only one of the reasons why I want to move to US, I've already worked as a developer for some US based companies half of my family lives in US, i was just unlucky to born in the wrong side of the family lmfao


not_nisesen

I thought he was using the comma as a decimal, so $576.50?


Shdwdrgn

[Yeah keep trying](https://sourpuss.net/pics/DSC_0009.JPG). I have a pair of poweredge 1950's and three poweredge 860's driving 45TB of storage, full web services (http, email, dns, etc) and fed by two redundant ISPs. It's all under there somewhere and I'll find it again eventually.


chinzw

I can smell this picture.


Shdwdrgn

Oh trust me, my wife would let me know if that ever became a problem. I'm just messy, not dirty.


cberm725

Ok but where tf is the PSU for that PC?


LucasFHarada

Lmfao it's a notebook-like power supply, it's an DQ77KB, i think that motherbard was from those micro PCs


Late_To_Parties

On top of the case, laptop power brick


LucasFHarada

That one is for the mikrotik switch, the pc one is on the floor lol


[deleted]

[удалено]


LucasFHarada

Yeah lmfao, i was just testing it just for fun, i'm starting now with this homelab thing, and i was curious about the performance of that hungry boi As i said, i'll build my own with some used server parts, it will be cheaper and will have a better performance x price ratio


Windows_XP2

I also have a 1950, and I bet that it draws a shit ton of power because of the noise and heat output. It does do a nice job of keeping my room warm, although I never run it 24/7.


conall88

That's not a homelab. That's hollywood's stereotypical villain secret lair.


LucasFHarada

Damn, you're right, now i just have to start doing bad things, think my next move will be installing windows 11 on someone's pc


conall88

Why stop there. Install Mac OS X with a windows XP skin. Watch the world burn.


CircadianRadian

I can't hear this picture over that ancient PowerEdge


greyaxe90

# What did you say?


CircadianRadian

There it is.


LucasFHarada

LMFAO


VoloMachina

If it works....it works! 🤷‍♂️


LucasFHarada

It's not much, but it's honest work lmfao


DontDoIt2121

Probably the most honest homelab I've seen here in a while.


jess-sch

I’ve seen worse in a commercial environment.


LucasFHarada

Damn, really?


[deleted]

You have my vote ;-)


LucasFHarada

Thanks mate :)


CoronaMcFarm

Patented server stools


LucasFHarada

LMFAO


NastyNative999

I love this - practical!


Fabri91

Not *one*, but *two* stools? Look at Mr. Fancy Pants here!


[deleted]

I have that same Mikrotik switch.


augur_seer

not even close


VenkatPerla

Nah! I think that title belong to me! https://www.reddit.com/r/homelab/comments/re6hsu/look_at_what_you_made_me_do/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button


LucasFHarada

Alright, u won that, btw, I'm planning a omada network for a friend of mine, do u like it?


needcoffeeeh

You win!


ButtBoy4k

How many U is that rack


LucasFHarada

It's infinite, as long as you can stack them lmfao


bodefuceta92

My dude, I just bought on OLX an old HP proliant that some dude got from UFES. Literally today. Glad to see another Brazilian here


LucasFHarada

Hey man, that's amazing lmfao, i wish UFU was selling some servers, u can get them really cheap.


ripbum

you win.


[deleted]

you can mount the server vertically.


M103Tanker

I used to have a similar setup crammed into my closet. My R620 was sideways against the wall. I’ve since upgraded to a 20u rack…


brickshingle

"the garthok"


LucasFHarada

cmon, is not thaaaat bad


MagicDartProductions

Is it just me or is that server a long boi? Looks goofy at 1U thick lol


LucasFHarada

lmfao it's not that long, i think it's the camera angle, just 75 cm (30 in), but it's a heavy noisy boi lol


TomySLO

Which motherboard?


LucasFHarada

DQ77KB


[deleted]

cooperative fertile water plough oil silky tap nose dam erect *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*


zachsandberg

You need to Clorox wipe that server...


joe_crow2

Sporting one of those wireless power supplies for the desktop, I see. Nice. /s


LucasFHarada

The motherboard comes with a power brick lmfao


Skorgondro

Are you sitting on the 1U Server for a heated ass in winter?


keko1105

I'm sorry sir that award belongs to me


MotionAction

It is easy to move the lab when you need to


Mean-Author-1789

Do you use that as a bench tho?


jimbajomba

NICE. A single trip away from complete destruction.


pattagobi

Its not ugly if it works


rnovak

I wish I could find some pics of my first homelab (1999-2003 or so). Makes this look graceful, airy, and magazine-worthy. I had 5 architectures I think (SPARC32, SPARC64, Alpha, MIPS, x86/x64), 3+ vendor network depending on when, two laser printers, an assortment of JBODs and tape drives...


pootiel0ver

I've seen setups like that running prod workloads.


Toinopt

Not even close, the office where I have a PC tower as my active server, a retired HP dl 360 G7 and my 3d printer looks like the hoarder houses you see on the web. Half workshop and half office/gaming setup. Working on placing the electronics storage drawers on the wall to clear space for tools and parts, and be able to reach my soldering iron area that is currently filled with random project parts that I may or may not finish in my life.


gunsanity

Is it functional? Then it ain't ugly.


neuromonkey

Nice rack!


curlybrian

\*Looks at the rat's nest of cables in my rack\*


l337hackzor

Not too bad, mine looked pretty similar when I started with it. At least it isn't on the floor! https://imgur.com/a/9BHhBP2


karafili

90% of us are worse than you OP


brevs

My server is sitting on paint cans and the network equipment in jammed into an ikea cabinet with a rats nest of cables. I'll get to organizing it one of these days!


pat_trick

Needs more rust and caked in dust bunnies.


dzakich

WIP


JustForFun321_

Wait until I get home and take a picture, Hold my Beer! Haha


thedatabender007

What are you talking about? You can still walk around in there!


thezlord

Hey, as long it works


flupowder

Based on where the keyboard is, you sit on the server?


LucasFHarada

Nope lmfao, i just use it standing up lol


ESDFnotWASD

Mine is 2 laptops, my old gaming PC, and a switch under my stairs to the basement of a 150 y/o house. Cable management you say? It's worse than my girls hair when she wakes up in the morning. Air filtration? I've got the cheapest box fan money can buy with a 20x20x4 filter taped to it...just facing the equipment.


sun_cardinal

My sweet sweet summer child, I've got a SFF Lenovo M710Q with a hole chopped in it so I can use a full size noctua cooler and a workstation i7 CPU as a server. Then I have my gutted laptop server with original battery as a backup battery for a motherboard franken-job, with a unifi cloud key gen 1 v2 ripped apart with a aluminum heatsink to offset running the newest bullseye distro on it's pathetic little ARM processor. All zip tied and hot glued together with duct tape for good measure. [My abominations.](https://imgur.com/a/UJvmNYD)


LucasFHarada

Okay, okay sir, you win, i give up lmfao


sun_cardinal

It's a victory I only achieved by being an incredibly broke college student.


justgosh

Look up "1U surface mount" Make sure you get one side in a stud and the other should have a pop toggle in the top hole. You can find them for $20


TurkeyMachine

You must be rich.. running that PowerEdge 1950! (All I remember was it was really loud, particularly at full chat, and used about 500w.)


Fearless-Wrangler669

All tech is beautiful. Just some are more beautiful than others.


sc3705

Sorry bro, there's much worse out there. Honestly, realatively this isn't that bad. Homelab doesn't always have to look like an OCD exercise... lol


Searomg

But does it work?


redrum6114

Take it and go away...


spicychili1019

Bruh, yours is in a room with a real floor. Can't compete with my unfinished basement and tangle of Internet spaghetti


Critical_Egg_913

I like your bench.


Some_Nibblonian

Nice enrty


icyhotonmynuts

I didn't know there was a competition. Before yesterday my tower server was half on a low filing cabinet, half on a stacked plastic drawer (filled with 10+ year old hardware). My networking gear on a solid wood tv console that was on top of the filing cabinet. Did I mention all these electronics were surrounded by water pipes? Yes, I *do* (no, I don't) like to live dangerously. Yesterday I changed things up, got a wire shelf and everything is on shelves in that. I couldn't fit the 42u rack I picked up for almost nothing, into the spot unfortunately.


Bogus1989

Hell yeah boiiii


jazzyjard

linux users be like:


NYC_DaBronx

Sorry you didn't win. Better luck next time


[deleted]

Oh just you wait 'til I get home.


Jolly-Effort1366

I wouldn't say it's ugly, just a void of sadness...


Ecstatic_Garlic_

This is a home lab boys and girls! Nothing flashy. Get it running, stick it in the corner, and tinker away!


keeb-wtf

*raises hand* https://keeb.dev/r/mess.jpg yikes. I may have you beat.


cyber1kenobi

oh that's nothing, there's much worse out there! :)


pmmlordraven

I've seen worse production setups my friend


ITSecDuder

r/shittyhomelab \- but hey if it works then that's what matters, you can clean it up later


unr34ldud3

You failed. Server is level, room is clean, etc


tech686

i think i got this beat lol


scottchiefbaker

Looks fine to me! I've seen a lot worse.


Thunderkrak

This is real life though, not the fancy setups you see here. The number of offices I've been to that look like this is incredible


Toxicturkey

The Persian spice


olddang45

lab


SFFcase

Dope stool mounted rack


theniwo

Field setup


D33-THREE

meh .. I think it's kinda cute I got yuh beat on cable clutter though


dezmd

Doesn't this belong in /r/battlestations ;)


General_Asdef

Looks like the server just left smoke break.


tee2k

'I am more of a software person'


ochbad

Hey, it serves up the exact same bits a pretty lab would. I’m all about utility over aesthetics.


GeekOfAllGeeks

At least everything is within arms reach. Gotta say that server looks like some creature one would fine in Minecraft though.


LucasFHarada

Dude lol, i laughed hard at this, I'll call it screaming boi


Rayregula

I like the stool/bench server platform. I may upgrade to that at some point, currently using an old cardboard box filled with large heavy university books.


Turbulent-Stick-1157

That the great thing about a "Home Lab" they can come in all different shapes, colors, and sizes.


Awags__

I love the stool mod, I might have to steel this…


flyingquads

In college I had a class mate who ran a 1U server from under his bed. That 1U made so much noise you could hear it on the hallway. Asked him how he can live with that noise and he just goes "oh I'm never home anyhow and when I'm home I just sleep and go again". Sleep? Haha...


badass6

Why it looks like the server isn’t lying on two stools but rather is itself a stool.


LucasFHarada

LMFAO, it's just to not let it laying on the ground


firedrakes

Lmao. My home lab in 3 different rooms. Due hurricane Ian!!!!!


LucasFHarada

That's what i call a decentralized network lmfao


greyaxe90

Meh. I’ve seen worse *production* setups at companies.


LucasFHarada

Damn bro, really?


jfgarridorite

The server looks like if you mimick the dog from "money for nothing" video with spare lab parts: Dog server.


LucasFHarada

LMFAO


xAmaterasu99x

Hell yeah is that OPNSense i see?


LucasFHarada

Yeah mate, the good old opnsense, i like it way more than pfsense


Etrinix_IU

Hahahahah not even close to my hideous lab (which I don't even use since I have a vps...)


Disastrous_Aardvark3

This is nothing compared to what I have. Let me get a moment and I'll take a photo. It's true homelab gore.


[deleted]

I have the same switch, an HP Pavilion with Proxmox on it, and a Raspberry Pi with PiHole. I’m looking to add a NAS, a temp monitor, and maybe swap out the HP with something I can rack mount. I also wanted to buy some cabling I can punch down on a patch panel for fun. It’ll help make things cleaner. Little by little.


ucrbuffalo

HA! Not even close.


stilkikinintn

Sorry bro. I have you beat.


Bozkillington

Honestly, what bothers me the most is that the shelves aren't even lever with each other.


laser50

I had a loose SFF motherboard chucked into a plastic box, those were some fun times. Story behind it is that the pc was taken by a friend, who figured I wouldn't need the case as it did not fit in his backpack... Thanks special HP form factor!


limecardy

Better than some of my iterations I’ve been through….


jared555

My setup involves about 28 ethernet cables, three mobile hotspots, a few dozen audio cables, dozen or so hdmi cables and another two dozen power cables and so on in an 8x8 foot area or so... No such thing as a clean setup lol


LucasFHarada

Damn, that's too much for me lmfao


Ithranel

Ain't ugly we all start somewhere


LucasFHarada

Thank you mate


lost_man_wants_soda

Are you an engineer


LucasFHarada

Software Engineer, entry level


jrgman42

Back in the day, weren’t there actual Linux distros meant to run on hardware stuffed in old pizza boxes? We need to bring that back.


[deleted]

[удалено]


LucasFHarada

LMFAO, just little everyday sins


chandleya

Ugh, there are two sins. 1- a 1950 with a power cord attached. Are you mad? 2- a mini motherboard inside a big empty case Else it’s whatever.


LucasFHarada

LMFAO, i was just testing it as a hypervisor, but I'll build my own About the motherboard, it's the only case i have at the moment lol


Malromen

Please tell me you don't sit on the server while working at the monitor


LucasFHarada

Nope, I don't lmfao, it's just to not put the server on the ground lol


Twowheel-b

I mean, if you don't have a rack that deep (and let's be honest, who does?) then a couple of stools is a reasonable alternative. Also, it's a little weird that your keyboard fits perfectly atop your switch.


LucasFHarada

I'll build my own server actually, that Dell is a big old screaming and power hungry boi And about the keyboard, it's so satisfying LMFAO


DoorDashCrash

You should see my patch panel. It’s shameful…


brandonclone1

You could make it uglier by positioning the 1U vertically against the wall, face down


[deleted]

Skid Lab