Homelab on Halley Adams | Blog

The Schedule

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000

This post lays out the schedule of works from now to a running Proxmox installation, and the broader milestones beyond that. Time is limited and deliberate, so the plan reflects reality rather than optimism.

Overview

Phase	Target
Pre-build preparation	Now through Tue 12 May
Physical build	Wed 13 May
Proxmox installation and initial configuration	Thu 14 May through Sun 17 May
Services and VMs	Ongoing from Mon 18 May

Phase 1: Pre-build preparation (now through Tue 12 May)

Everything that can be done before the hardware goes together should be done before the hardware goes together. The build day itself is already a finite window. Arriving at it having made decisions, downloaded what needs downloading, and cleared a proper workspace makes the difference between a productive day and a frustrating one.

The Hardware

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 16:00:00 +0000

February is not built yet. The parts are gathered, and I’m set on most of my decisions.

The Chassis

The Fractal Design Define 7 XL sets the tone for everything else. It is a large case, deliberately so. Eight hard drives need room, proper airflow, and somewhere to live that does not feel like a compromise. The Define 7 XL takes storage seriously in a way that smaller cases simply cannot, and it does so without being loud about it. Fractal’s approach to noise dampening means February should be a machine you can share a room with.

Operating System

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:00:00 +0000

While choosing an operating system for a homelab is not a purely technical decision, is also a statement about how you want to work, what you trust, and how much friction you are willing to live with. For February, that choice is Proxmox VE, and it is not a first date.

Proxmox and I have history. This is not a case of picking something unfamiliar and hoping for the best. It is a deliberate return, going in with a clearer sense of what works, what does not, and what to do differently this time.

Bill of Materials

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000

Every build starts as a list. Components researched, compared, second-guessed, and eventually committed to. For February, this meant spending countless hours on YouTube and lurking around on Reddit and the Spiceworks forums.

Not everything here is new. A homelab is not a clean room. Some parts carry history with them, sourced second-hand or pulled from earlier projects. A machine built entirely from pristine retail boxes would be missing the point and failing the ethos of making things last.

The February Server

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 22:40:00 +0000

There is something that happens when you name a thing. It stops being abstract and becomes real in a way that specifications and hardware lists never quite manage. February is real.

This is the third server I will have stood up with the intention of keeping it running. Not a weekend experiment, not a VM spun up to test something and forgotten about. In fact, it will be a Hypervisor. This will be a machine meant to last, meant to grow into, and build to matter.