Localhost Odyssey

Hi, I'm Michael Ruep. I run Websters e.U., delivering full-stack solutions and custom IT infrastructure. This site serves as the central documentation for my private homelab.

The Purpose of the Homelab

My homelab exists to reclaim data sovereignty and run enterprise-grade services locally. Relying on massive cloud providers for personal photos, critical configurations, or home automation IoT devices introduces unacceptable security and privacy risks. By self-hosting, I maintain absolute control over my infrastructure, eliminate subscription costs, and have a bleeding-edge testing ground for networking topologies and Docker orchestration.

The Hardware Base

The entire infrastructure is incredibly optimized. It isn't running on a hulking server rack, but rather on highly power-efficient hardware: an Intel Celeron J4105 (1.50GHz) with just 8GB of RAM, running Debian 12 (bookworm). Despite these modest specifications, it reliably hosts over 34 concurrent containers in Docker Compose.

Core Infrastructure

• Edge & Identity: All traffic routes through Traefik v3, which automatically maps subdomains and secures internal layers behind Authelia and AdGuard Home. Read the Routing & Edge post.
• Automation: IoT and smart devices are managed without cloud brokers using Home Assistant, ioBroker, and Zigbee2MQTT. Read the Automation post.
• Storage & Media: A decentralized storage architecture using Immich for ML-powered photos, Syncthing, and Gokapi/Copyparty for transfers. Read the Storage post.
• Telemetry: High-resolution observability provided by Prometheus, Grafana, and Netdata. Read the Monitoring post.