https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/categories/homelab/Recent content in Homelab on Joe McCarthyHugoen-gbSun, 26 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/07/homelab-journey-part-9-portainer/Sun, 26 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/07/homelab-journey-part-9-portainer/Portainer gives me visibility and control over my Docker Swarm without getting in the way. Here’s how I use it day-to-day.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/07/homelab-journey-part-8-home-assistant/Sun, 12 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/07/homelab-journey-part-8-home-assistant/My approach to home automation: keep it simple, keep it reliable, and avoid turning your house into a debugging session.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/06/homelab-journey-part-7-restic-backups/Sun, 28 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/06/homelab-journey-part-7-restic-backups/Backups are easy to ignore—until you need them. Here’s how I set up Restic and why I trust it with my data.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/06/homelab-journey-part-6-paperless-ngx/Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/06/homelab-journey-part-6-paperless-ngx/How I built a reliable, automated document management system using Paperless-ngx and email ingestion.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-5-core-services/Sun, 31 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-5-core-services/A breakdown of the services I actually use day-to-day: document management, photo storage, automation, and development tools.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-4-networking-traefik-dns/Sun, 17 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-4-networking-traefik-dns/Exposing services securely without overcomplicating things—how I use Traefik and dynamic DNS to make my homelab accessible.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-3-docker-swarm/Sun, 03 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/05/homelab-journey-part-3-docker-swarm/Kubernetes wasn’t the right fit for my setup. Here’s why Docker Swarm works better for my homelab and how I run it across multiple nodes.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/04/homelab-journey-part-2-hardware-setup/Sun, 19 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/04/homelab-journey-part-2-hardware-setup/An overview of my 8-node Raspberry Pi cluster, shared storage setup, and the tradeoffs of running everything on low-power hardware.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/04/homelab-journey-part-1-why-self-hosting/Sun, 05 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/posts/26/04/homelab-journey-part-1-why-self-hosting/I didn’t start a homelab to play with tech—I started it to solve real problems. This is what pushed me toward self-hosting and what I wanted to get out of it.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/restic-backups-on-aws/Sat, 04 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/restic-backups-on-aws/A practical guide to backing up to AWS S3 with restic, restoring data when you need it, and managing retention so costs stay sane.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/homelab-changes-since-1-0-0/Fri, 26 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/homelab-changes-since-1-0-0/A practical walkthrough of the homelab repository changes since 1.0.0: Immich photos stack, backup improvements, a Zigbee2MQTT migration, safer redeploys, and a tidier blog deployment, plus upgrade notes.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/internet-failover-netgear-lm1200/Wed, 23 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/internet-failover-netgear-lm1200/How I added a Netgear LM1200 4G modem as a backup connection for Virgin Media outages, ensuring seamless failover and uninterrupted connectivity.https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/automated-homelab-with-ansible-docker-swarm/Mon, 14 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000https://joe-mccarthy.github.io/automated-homelab-with-ansible-docker-swarm/A Raspberry Pi cluster managed with Ansible and Docker Swarm, using NFS for state, Traefik for routing, and a small set of services like Home Assistant, Gitea, Portainer, Pi hole, and Uptime Kuma, plus the lessons learned while building it.