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2017 - Where it all began

Gotta start somewhere. Old, unused computer hardware are great, low-cost way to start an homelab.

Converted an old desktop into a NAS, using FreeNAS (before the name changed to TrueNAS). The system is pretty janky, consist of the following:

  • Random Lenovo Intel Motherboard, hacked together with an AMD cooler and fan
  • Intel i5-2500
  • 16GB (2x8) DDR3
  • 2x Syba 4-Port SATA PCIe x1 Expansion Card (This was before I learn about LSI HBA cards)
  • 12x 500GB Assortment of HDDs I salvage from work

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For the pfSense Firewall, it started out as an HP Elitedesk desktop, with holes cut in the front for the Ethernet NICs.

This was running on:

  • HP Intel Motherboard
  • 4th Gen Intel i5 Processor (Forgot which model)
  • 16GB (4x4) DDR3
  • 4x Gigabit PCIe NIC, mix of Intel and RealTek, that have a ribbon breakout cable to the physical NIC daughter boards
  • 1x 120GB SSD for Boot Drive

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