Notes from the Homelab and Beyond

We have spent years auditing artificial intelligence. We have written white papers, formed safety boards, and convened international summits to debate the existential risks of systems that hallucinate, that repeat patterns without understanding, that cannot be fully explained even by their creators. Nobody is auditing Human Intelligence. This is a catastrophic oversight. If we apply the same standards we use to evaluate AI systems to the biological substrate currently running our hospitals, legal systems, financial markets, and nuclear arsenals, only one conclusion is possible: Human Intelligence (HI) is fundamentally unsafe, and we have been running it in production since the Pleistocene with zero safety reviews. ...

This is the exact stack behind this blog. If you want a super fast, self-deploying tech blog with zero servers, zero monthly bills, and VS Code as your entire CMS — here is how to build it. By the end you will have: A Hugo blog with the PaperMod theme VS Code as your editor, file manager, git client, and terminal — all in one Automatic deploys to Cloudflare Pages on every git push Why this stack Hugo is a static site generator. It turns markdown files into a complete website in milliseconds. No database, no runtime, nothing to keep running. ...

FTP isn’t a workflow. It doesn’t know who changed what. It has no memory of previous versions. It’s blind, manual, and prone to breaking mid-upload. If you’re still dragging files into a folder to “deploy”—or worse, manually creating site-backup-v2-final-actual-FINAL.zip before every change—you’re working harder than you need to. Enter The Solo Developer Workflow. In this guide, we’re building a professional pipeline: Local → Git → Server. No more “ghost files,” no more zip-file hoarding, and no more deployment anxiety. Just a clean, versioned, and automated path to production. ...

Ever wondered why copying a file to an external hard drive feels slow while your SSD-based machine flies? The answer comes down to data transfer speeds – and understanding the numbers across storage and networking technology helps you make better hardware decisions. Bits vs. Bytes Before looking at the numbers, there’s one conversion to keep in mind: 1 byte = 8 bits Network speeds are almost always quoted in megabits per second (Mbps) or gigabits per second (Gbps) Storage speeds are typically quoted in megabytes per second (MB/s) or gigabytes per second (GB/s) So a 1 Gbps network connection has a maximum throughput of 125 MB/s (1,000 / 8 = 125). This distinction matters when comparing specs across different product categories. ...

rsync is one of the most useful tools in a sysadmin’s kit. It copies and synchronizes files and directories locally or over SSH, and only transfers the parts of files that have changed – making it far more efficient than a plain cp or scp for repeated transfers. These are the commands you’ll reach for most often. Common Flags The -avP combination is a solid default for most operations: -a (archive) – preserves permissions, ownership, symlinks, and timestamps -v (verbose) – shows what’s being transferred in real time -P (progress + partial) – displays a progress bar and resumes interrupted transfers 1. Copy a Single File rsync -avP /path/to/local/file.zip user@remote_server:/path/to/remote/directory/ 2. Copy a Directory The trailing slash matters here: ...

If you use Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2), you may have noticed a large file on your system drive: C:\Users\<YourUser>\AppData\Local\Packages\<YourDistroFolder>\LocalState\ext4.vhdx This is a virtual hard disk that stores the entire Linux filesystem. It expands automatically as you install packages and create files, but it does not shrink automatically when files are deleted. Over time, this can leave you with a multi-gigabyte file containing mostly unused space. Here’s how to safely compact it and reclaim that space. ...

Most home networks are still running 1 Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE), which caps out at a theoretical 125 MB/s. That’s a real bottleneck when you’re working with high-resolution video, large game libraries, or a home lab with a NAS. The good news: you don’t need an enterprise budget to fix it. This guide shows how to get a 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) network running for under $300 using a few key pieces of affordable hardware. ...

Search for BCM4332 and Linux and you’ll find years of forum threads with the same discouraging pattern: someone asks for help, someone replies “that chip doesn’t work on Linux anymore,” and the thread dies. That conclusion is wrong, and it’s been wrong every time someone wrote it. The BCM4332 chip works on modern Linux. Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04, Linux Mint, Debian 12 — all of them. But it requires steps that the default package manager doesn’t take automatically, and if you skip any of them, you’ll end up with a chip that either doesn’t appear at all, or worse — works right now but vanishes silently after the next reboot. ...

If you’ve been shooting with Sony full-frame cameras for a while, you know the 24-70mm f/2.8 is the workhorse focal range for pros and enthusiasts alike – weddings, portraits, events, landscapes. But while Sony’s 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II is an incredible lens, its $2,300 price tag isn’t for everyone. The Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Art promises top-tier sharpness, pro-level build quality, and a significantly lower price. I’ve been testing it on my Sony A7 IV, and here’s what I found. ...

As a photographer, I’ve shot with everything from DSLRs to film to the latest mirrorless systems. The Sony A7 IV caught my attention as the follow-up to the legendary A7 III – a camera that redefined full-frame mirrorless for enthusiasts and professionals alike. After spending time with the A7 IV, I can confidently say Sony has taken things up a notch. First Impressions: Built for Hybrid Shooters Holding the A7 IV, I immediately noticed improved ergonomics over its predecessor. The deeper grip makes a real difference on long shoots. It’s solid, well-balanced, and just feels like a camera built for serious work. ...

The goal of this guide is to build the best gaming PC possible for a $1,000 budget. Not only will this system handle modern games, it’ll also hold its own for streaming, video editing, and graphics work. The Build CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 — $205 This is the heart of your system and you want something fast. The Intel i5 is the right choice for a gaming PC at this price. You may be tempted by an i7, but it won’t meaningfully improve gaming performance at this budget — spend that money on the GPU instead. ...

Note: This guide was written in 2015 for OpenVPN Access Server 2.0.24 on Ubuntu 14. The general process remains similar on newer versions, but package names, download URLs, and some commands will differ — check the OpenVPN Access Server docs for current instructions. In this guide we’ll install OpenVPN Access Server onto a VPS and connect to it using the built-in client web portal. Step 1: Get a VPS You’ll need a VPS with full root access. For this guide we’re using a 512MB VPS running Ubuntu 14 64-bit. If you use a different OS, the installation commands in Step 3 will differ. ...

In this guide we’ll set up a seedbox (a BitTorrent client running on a remote server) on a Linux VPS in four steps. Once it’s running, you can queue downloads from any browser and pull completed files down to your local machine when ready. Step 1: Get a VPS You’ll need a VPS to host the seedbox. For this guide we’re targeting a 1GB VPS with at least 25GB of storage and a gigabit network connection — that’s plenty for even large 1080p/4K downloads, and you can typically find one for around $5/month. ...

The goal of this guide is to build the best gaming PC possible for a $1,000 budget. Not only will this system handle modern games at this price point, it’ll also hold its own for everyday tasks. The Build CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 — $210 This is the heart of your system and you want something fast. The Intel i5 is the right choice for a gaming PC. Consider the K variant if you want overclocking headroom — if you can get it for the same price or less, it’s worth it. ...

If you manage servers that use OpenVZ (Virtuozzo), chances are you’ll spend a lot of time working with vzctl to start, stop, and maintain containers (CTs). While modern virtualization has largely moved on to KVM, Docker, and LXC, plenty of production systems still rely on OpenVZ — especially for legacy applications. This is a quick reference of essential vzctl commands for day-to-day container administration. List All Containers vzlist -a Displays all containers, including stopped ones. ...

So you want an HTPC (Home Theater PC / Media Center) but you’re not Mr. Money Bags? That’s fine — you can still build a great one. The goal of this build was to play HD content streamed over the network to an HDTV. The requirements were: Powerful enough to handle 1080p Blu-ray rips Fairly compact Fairly quiet Inexpensive The Parts Barebone System: Foxconn R10-G3 — $80 This kit comes with an HTPC case, 250W PSU, and an LGA775 motherboard. It’s a great value — the board has a gigabit Ethernet port (essential for streaming HD over a network), 6-channel S/PDIF audio out, and includes 2 SATA cables. Build quality is solid. ...