All Guides
Sixteen beginner-focused guides published so far, organized by topic. More guides are in progress — see the full roadmap on our About page.
Getting Started
What Is a Home Server? A Beginner's Guide to Self-Hosting
What a home server is, what it's used for, and what it actually costs to get started.
Read the guide →Is Self-Hosting Worth It? Pros, Cons, and Real Costs Compared to Cloud Subscriptions
An honest breakdown of what self-hosting saves versus what it costs in time, electricity, and risk.
Read the guide →How Much Does It Cost to Run a Home Server? (Electricity & Hardware Breakdown)
Real idle wattage numbers for common homelab hardware, turned into monthly electricity cost estimates.
Read the guide →Home Server Glossary: 40+ Self-Hosting Terms Explained for Beginners
A plain-English reference for hypervisor, container, reverse proxy, NAS, RAID, and 40+ other terms.
Read the guide →Docker for Beginners: How Self-Hosted Apps Actually Run
What Docker and Docker Compose are, and why nearly every self-hosted app is distributed this way.
Read the guide →Server OS & Virtualization
Proxmox vs TrueNAS vs Unraid: Which Home Server OS Should You Choose?
Comparing the three most popular home server platforms so you pick the right one the first time.
Read the guide →How to Install Proxmox VE: A Step-by-Step Setup Guide
From bootable USB to a working dashboard, including the no-subscription-repo warning beginners always hit.
Read the guide →TrueNAS Scale vs TrueNAS Core: Which Should You Install?
Clarifies the current TrueNAS product split and which one to install for a new build today.
Read the guide →Portainer Explained: Managing Docker Containers Without the Command Line
A web dashboard for starting, stopping, and updating your self-hosted containers without living in a terminal.
Read the guide →Hardware
Best Mini PCs for a Beginner Homelab (Under $200)
What specs actually matter for a first homelab box, and specific budget mini PC picks.
Read the guide →NAS Buying Guide: How Many Bays and How Much Storage Do You Need?
A sizing framework for 2-bay vs 4-bay+ NAS purchases, based on realistic library growth.
Read the guide →Mini PC vs Raspberry Pi vs Old Laptop: What Should Run Your First Homelab?
The three cheapest ways to start, matched to specific first projects like Pi-hole and Immich.
Read the guide →Best Hard Drives for a Home NAS: WD Red vs Seagate IronWolf
Why NAS-rated drives matter, the WD Red SMR issue to avoid, and how the two top lines compare.
Read the guide →Media Server
Jellyfin vs Plex: Which Self-Hosted Media Server Is Right for You?
Open source vs. paid and polished — how to choose the right media server for your household.
Read the guide →Photos & Files
Immich vs Google Photos: Should You Ditch the Cloud?
What you gain and give up by self-hosting your photo library, and how to migrate safely.
Read the guide →Smart Home
Home Assistant for Beginners: Your First Smart Home Automation
Install Home Assistant, add your first device, and build one real automation end to end.
Read the guide →