Hello everyone! This is my first post in what I hope becomes one of the best home lab resources out there for learning, discussions, chats, meetups, classes, and more for those interested in self-hosting. So many are interested in self-hosting. However, there are underlying hardware, networking, and technology challenges that make it sometimes difficult to get past the hurdles that come with hosting your own services. That’s where Home Lab Explorers comes in. I want this community to be more than just a forum — I want it to be a full learning and support platform for everything home lab related. Here's what you can expect: - Classes and Workshops: Hands-on, practical classes on topics like setting up your first home server, networking fundamentals, Docker and Kubernetes for home lab, security best practices, and much more. - E-Books and Guides: Downloadable resources and step-by-step guides to help you build, troubleshoot, and scale your own home lab setup at your own pace. - Community Discussions: Dive into real-world discussions with fellow explorers about the best hardware, new technologies, self-hosted app stacks, networking setups, storage solutions, and more. - Meet-ups and Live Chats: Virtual meet-ups and live chat sessions where we can tackle problems together, demo setups, or just nerd out over the latest tech we're all trying. - Project Challenges: Fun, optional project challenges where we tackle specific goals — from standing up a new Kubernetes cluster to setting up a secure VPN gateway. - Exclusive Content and Early Access: Get early access to new tutorials, courses, and tools designed specifically for the Home Lab Explorers community. This will be a place where you can learn to build, break, and master not only your home lab, but also the underlying technologies that power so much of the world today. The fun part is you get to do it alongside like-minded people who are just as passionate about self-hosting and tech in general. Also, they/we are ready for exploration as you are!

Had to ditch my Hyper-V cluster, went back to ESXi. I've tried ProxMox, but my Windows VMs just struggled performance wise. Hyper-V was good but the cluster kept getting screwed up and I spent more time troubleshooting than it was worth. I had to go back to VMware, at least vCenter/vSphere will almost self-correct most of the time. Anyhoo, I think Docker has finally sparked my interest. I turned my Rasberri Pi 4 into a docker host. Plugged it into the back of my main router for power and ethernet connection and my ras's resources are the limit lol.

Everyone, just a quick note that I have launched a new audio podcast, called "Between the Clouds"! Check it out here: https://bleevht.substack.com/p/kicking-off-between-the-clouds-ai?r=5jp8ph Also, Spotify link is here: Between the Clouds | Podcast on Spotify

I'm almost at my 20-year mark in IT. I come from the Win 98/2000/NT4 era. One of the most important aspects of me becoming who I am today in the IT field is having a home lab for me to build, tear down, break, fix, and just play around with stuff in. I've experimented in a lot, which is what a home lab is supposed to be. It's helped me excel in my career because a lot of "higher ranked" people don't know the technical stuff like I do which is what's helped me get promoted quickly. I'm not saying I'm chasing that, only going after what I am worth. Home labs are the absolute best investment anyone in IT could make for themselves.

Check out my written blog on a new solution called CoreControl: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/06/corecontrol-is-the-new-self-hosted-dashboard-built-for-home-labs/