Upcoming homelab plans

Introduction

Recently, I shared the evolution of my homelab, and in this post, I’ll go over my upcoming plans - which, to be honest, aren’t that many at the moment.

2.5GbE network for Elitedesks

Right now, only one EliteDesk has a 2.5GbE card connected via the M.2 A+E slot, while the rest are using 2.5GbE USB adapters. As you can imagine, those aren’t the most stable solution and sometimes cause minor issues. Usually, a system reboot fixes things, but I’d rather avoid that. So, I’ve already ordered three additional M.2 2.5GbE cards based on the Intel I226-V chipset.

Most of the available cards use a Realtek chipset, but I don’t fully trust those. I have more confidence in Intel chipsets, which is why I went with this option.

I ordered the cards from AliExpress, so now it’s just a waiting game. Hopefully, they’ll arrive within 10 business days, and I can install them in my machines.

The card I chose can be found -> here

A Dedicated Switch for CEPH

Since we’re on the topic of networking, I’ve got one more small plan in mind. As you probably know, the CEPH network should be isolated from the rest - ideally running on a dedicated switch that handles only CEPH traffic. That’s why I’m considering getting a 2.5 GbE switch exclusively for this purpose.

I’ve narrowed it down to two options:

• Unifi USW-Flex-2.5G-8

• Mikrotik CRS310-8G+2S+IN

Why these models?
For Unifi, my entire network is built around their ecosystem, so choosing this switch would make monitoring and management super easy.

As for Mikrotik, well - we all know they make solid hardware at great prices. The only downside for me is that I’d have to manage it separately via Winbox or the web UI. Monitoring wouldn’t be an issue, though, since I have everything in Zabbix.

Looking at the costs:
Unifi USW-Flex-2.5G-8 - the cheaper option at £150 + shipping
Mikrotik CRS310-8G+2S+IN - around £200-220 + shippng

A Surprise Deal!
While writing this, I suddenly remembered my buddy TJ from the Ubiquiti for sale UK Facebook group. Turns out, he’s selling a brand-new USW-Enterprise-8-PoE at a killer price!

It’s the most expensive option in this lineup £456 + shippnig from Ubiquit’s store - but TJ is offering it for just £300 + shipping!

So yeah, I think the decision is pretty clear - I’m going with the Unifi USW-Enterprise-8-PoE!

NVMe/SATA Drives for Proxmox

Right now, my Proxmox system runs on SSDs:
PVE01 & PVE02 -> Samsung 860 Pro 256GB
PVE03 -> Samsung 870 EVO 256GB
PVE04 -> Micron 1100 256GB

From what I’ve seen on the Proxmox forums, many users recommend enterprise grade SATA SSDs or NVMe drives for the system itself. Since CEPH generates a lot of logs on the system drive, it’s best to have a fast disk with high IOPS.

So far, my current setup is handling things well, but I’d like to upgrade eventually.

I haven’t settled on any specific drives yet, but if I go the SATA route, I’ll probably look for used Intel enterprise SSDs - they’re available in great condition on eBay at reasonable prices.

If I decide on NVMe SSDs, I’ll definitely go with brand-new ones.

Additional EliteDesks

Right now, my cluster consists of four nodes:

• 3x EliteDesk 800 G4
• 1x EliteDesk 800 G3

Eventually, I’d like to have five nodes, so I plan to replace the G3 with a G4 and add a fifth G4 to the cluster.

The G3 stay with me - it’ll serve as a backup in case one of the G4s fails.

I’ve been browsing eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Gumtree, but I haven’t found a good deal on a G4 yet. So for now, I’ll just keep searching and waiting for the right offer.

Conclusion

As you can see, there aren’t too many plans on my list at the moment - but we all know that can change at any time. Hopefully, things will stay as they are, though.

I need to rebuild my budget a bit - it keeps shrinking thanks to all these purchases. But hey, that’s just how this hobby goes!

Thanks for sticking around until the end of my post!

See you in the next one!

Cheers,
Lukas