A homelab is a small setup at home for running your own services and learning how they work: file storage, media, backups, home automation. I run my own, and the advice I give first is always the same. Before you build anything exciting, protect what you cannot lose.
Decide what you cannot lose
Make a short list. Family photos and videos, important documents, school or work files, notes. This list is what your homelab is really for at the start. Everything else can be rebuilt.
The 3-2-1 rule in plain words
- 3 copies of anything important: the original plus two backups.
- 2 different kinds of storage, such as a computer's drive and an external drive, so one failure type does not take everything.
- 1 copy somewhere else: a cloud backup, or a drive kept at a relative's house. This protects against fire, theft or flood.
Test the restore every month
A backup you have never restored from is only a hope. Once a month, pick a few files and actually restore them to a different folder, then open them. If you cannot get your files back, you want to find out now, not on the day you need them. Put a reminder on your calendar.
Start small
- Use one reused computer or a small mini PC. You do not need a rack of equipment.
- Set up one service, and make it backup-related: for example, a shared folder that your family's computers back up to, with a copy going off-site.
- Get that one service working reliably, with a tested restore, before adding the next thing.
- Add more only when you understand what you already have.
Keep notes
Writing documentation has been part of my work for a long time, and it matters just as much at home. Keep a simple notebook or document with what you set up, where it lives, how you did it, and how to restore. Store the notes somewhere other than the homelab itself. Future you will be grateful, and so will anyone who needs to help.
Want a guide while you set up your first homelab? Homelab coaching.