The problem with using k8s on homelabs, is that a lot of the applications you would usually deploy, are not designed for it; having to manage a bunch of persistent volumes because most of your applications use sqlite is not very practical, and if the backend is sqlite, then you are probably running only one pod, so no real HA (if the pod goes down k8s will start a new one though), if you have to go through hoops to deploy an application that's not designed for it decreases its value.
Having said that, I keep a k3s node running for learning purposes, and all my homemade apps live in k3s; it is nice to have the option to escalate my app from 1 to 100 running instances, in case I want to test something, with the press of a button.
I have been running Proxmox for 3 years and it has been rock solid
- Docker VM : Lots of containers with docker compose, a few examples are Plex, AdguardHome, *Arr stack...
- K3s VM: Mostly to learn keep up with kubernetes; my own apps running in there
- Postgresql VM: database for anything that needs one
Currently trying to simplify, moving the database to a docker container and testing if docker and k3s can coexist on the same system, at that point I might ditch Proxmox and move to NixOS. The only things I might miss are the option to create VMs to test random things, and VM snapshots, which make backups really simple.
I still upgrade mine manually every Friday with an ansible playbook; most of the time nothing breaks, but if it does I know I have time to fix it.
Honest question; why would you want a server with mac os? I am asking because I thought about getting a mac mini for that purpose, because the hardware is great, but running mac os vs linux is what is throwing me off.
I've used XFCE as my main DE for around 10 years, (I switched to MacOs a year ago), I think mostly depends on your workflow, for me the best thing was that it gets out your way, you have a simple menu to select apps, a taskbar, and that's about it. I tested Gnome and KDE a few times over the years and for me they are more bloated than what I needed for my workflow, but I agree they feel more cohesive and the aesthetics are nicer.
Looks good! I am curious on why you recommend to deploy using docker, being a single binary with no external dependencies I find the deployment simple enough.
I write all my personal projects using Go and one of the things I most like is that it compiles to a binary without external dependencies.
Having said that, I keep a k3s node running for learning purposes, and all my homemade apps live in k3s; it is nice to have the option to escalate my app from 1 to 100 running instances, in case I want to test something, with the press of a button.