What operating system do you use for your home server? I’m planning to do unraid but what are the other options and why would you pick one or another? reddit / selfhosted ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Silencer306 · 2023-11-23 08:34 Cross posted to r/homeserver ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VsevolodLNM · 2023-11-23 08:48 proxmoxl, or ubuntu server ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HashtagMOMD · 2023-11-23 09:00 VMware esxi. The only one I tried, and it works amazing. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CesarM11 · 2023-11-23 09:09 Home Server: VMware ESXi NAS: Unraid ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Practical_Driver_924 · 2023-11-23 09:14 Proxmox, truenas ---------------------------------------------------------------------- leetnewb2 · 2023-11-23 09:16 opensuse tumbleweed / microOS. I like the snapshots and first class support for btrfs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Still-Snow-3743 · 2023-11-23 09:24 Ubuntu server, some bash scripts, and a docker install. KISS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- IceOleg · 2023-11-23 09:39 I don't have much of a homeserver, its more of an experiment - but I have Fedora IoT as hypervisor OS running a Open Media Vault guest and another Fedora IoT VM for container services. I'm a big fan of Fedora's Ostree setup, and have used Silverblue on the desktop for a while now, so IoT makes a lot of sense for me. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- BeYeCursed100Fold · 2023-11-23 09:40 Debian, FreeBSD. Proxmox is awesome for hosting VMs, LXC, and Docker Containers (via a VM). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- zeitue · 2023-11-23 09:43 Ubuntu LTS server. I chose it because it's got good support both in community and enterprise support. Also it's pretty simple to use and almost forgot it's got zfs built in. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bufandatl · 2023-11-23 09:49 XCP-NG or Alamlinux. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PikachuMayhem · 2023-11-23 09:50 NixOS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- p4ck3ts · 2023-11-23 09:59 proxmox - debian based ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bozho · 2023-11-23 10:03 I use TrueNAS, mainly because I wanted a solid storage solution. I don't really need many VMs, so I'm happy to run jails for stuff I need. I also run a small RPi4 server with a few docker containers (a secondary Syncthing server, TVHeadend server, etc). If I had a need for VMs, I'd run Proxmox (as I have some experience with it). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Flicked_Up · 2023-11-23 10:06 If you don’t want to invest in all disks right now, unraid. Otherwise truenas ---------------------------------------------------------------------- excetto · 2023-11-23 10:11 Proxmox 4 lyf ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Defiant-Ad-5513 · 2023-11-23 10:16 Sadly Proxmox does not have FDE for the boot drive ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jimirs · 2023-11-23 10:18 Denian stable, openSUSE Leap ---------------------------------------------------------------------- dev_all_the_ops · 2023-11-23 10:22 If you want a beautiful front end for docker containers CasaOS/ZimaOS Cosmos-server Unbrel Otherwise - proxmox - truenas - unraid ---------------------------------------------------------------------- zirophyz · 2023-11-23 10:27 ESXi here too, on consumer hardware. Ubuntu Server for Docker hosts. TrueNAS for.. NAS. All on one server. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- GolemancerVekk · 2023-11-23 10:53 I think it really depends on what you intend to do with it... Many answers here will mention what they use but not why. In my case I want to have various services installed in docker containers, and I have the skills to manage Linux in console. A very simple solution for me was to use a rock-solid, established Linux distro on the host (Debian stable) with Docker sourced from its official apt repo. It's clean, it's simple, it's reliable, it's easy to reinstall if it explodes. Why containers (as opposed to directly on the host)? I've done both over several years and I've come to consider the container approach cleaner. (I mention this because I've seen people wondering why even bother with containers.) It's a nice sweet spot in-between dumping everything on the host and a fully reproducible environment like nixOS or Ansible. I get the ability to reproduce a service perfectly thanks to docker compose; I get to separate persistent data very cleanly thanks to container:host mapping of dirs and files; I get to do flexible networking solutions because containers can be seen as individual "machines" and I can juggle their interfaces and ports around freely; I get some extra security from the container isolation; it's less complicated than using VMs etc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- soulless_ape · 2023-11-23 11:09 Proxmox, with Ubuntu and Debian vms and lxc containera. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ryck · 2023-11-23 11:17 Ubuntu LTS for servers (+ docker) Unraid for NAS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tiwenty · 2023-11-23 11:20 Arch, because I've always had a better experience with it than Ubuntu, be it server or desktop. I also daily drive it on my desktops. It's so much easier to setup. Only with Docker and MergerFS it's a command and easily updatable, instead of the PPA setups or bash installs you have to do on Ubuntu. The wiki is still the best. And it's way easier to maintain when there's less stuff. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- purepersistence · 2023-11-23 11:20 Do you put your router in ESXi or is that a separate box? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mjnck · 2023-11-23 11:41 It is debian so it does have. Just install debian with FDE and install proxmox on it, https://pve.proxmox.com/wiki/Install_Proxmox_VE_on_Debian_12_Bookworm ---------------------------------------------------------------------- phein4242 · 2023-11-23 12:17 Alma, Talos, OpenBSD ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tha_Reaper · 2023-11-23 12:22 TrueNAS scale. Why: my main concern is backup and data protection, and TrueNAS offers just that. On top of that it's flexible enough to build a media suite on top of it, and it's easy to manage. I could have also gone unRAID, but since trueNAS is free and offer a bit better protection imo (at the cost of flexibility), I picked that ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Defiant-Ad-5513 · 2023-11-23 12:29 Oh interesting do i then have the same features? Currently using Ubuntu with live kernel patching sadly debian does not support live kernel patching right? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mjnck · 2023-11-23 12:35 Yep, proxmox is just debian + their additional repo with kernel, webui and their patched versions of some packages like qemu. You should use proxmox kernel not debian one, so check if proxmox supports live patching. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- airclay · 2023-11-23 12:41 Debian, I wouldn't pick another one. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Defiant-Ad-5513 · 2023-11-23 12:58 So proxmox does support FDE as it is debian based but no ubuntu live kernel patching ---------------------------------------------------------------------- InternalMulberry · 2023-11-23 13:08 FreeBSD as host for FreeBSD containers (jails) and Ubuntu virtual machines (which sometimes run docker containers, because docker is a pain) ZFS all the way. Been doing this for almost 9 years. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- hunterhulk · 2023-11-23 13:10 proxmox. i fine its very easy to work with and manage. also proxmox backup server is amazing ---------------------------------------------------------------------- canfail · 2023-11-23 13:13 No but you can store the lxc and vm images on an encrypted drive / partition. There’s nothing intrinsically or sensitive in configuration files. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- not_false_true · 2023-11-23 13:15 I have Sophos UTM running flawlessly in a VM on ESXi. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- FeZzko_ · 2023-11-23 13:27 I used unraid last year, excellent experience learning how to use docker + vm in a user-friendly interface. Now I use debian (installed via debootstrap) headless (docker only). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DayTooth48 · 2023-11-23 13:29 Truenas for the nas, proxmox for everything else ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Majestic-Contract-42 · 2023-11-23 13:32 Ubuntu LTS in a VM on TrueNAS is my go to. Dumb machine does storage and VM's and nothing else. Hourly snapshots. Ubuntu VM does the work and serving. Have had great success with keeping it as default and as dumb as possible. Nice and boring thank you. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- borjazombi · 2023-11-23 14:07 Proxmox, TrueNAS, Ubuntu server. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Lanky_Information825 · 2023-11-23 14:15 Proxmox, unraid, pihole ftw ---------------------------------------------------------------------- darthrater78 · 2023-11-23 14:15 You should try Proxmox. It's better in almost every way. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- darthrater78 · 2023-11-23 14:19 I was an ESXi fan for over a decade until I found proxmox. Now I use a combination of VMs and Linux containers. I use containers for: Pihole, Ubiquity WiFi Controller, Plex, Audio Bookshelf, imfluxdb, etc. And VMs for Home Assistant and Untangled. https://ramblingnonsense.substack.com/p/a-journey-from-esxi-to- proxmox-in ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ErvinBlu · 2023-11-23 14:21 Ubuntu server, everything on it runs with docker, nothing beside docker is installed, because of this i use rolling release instead of LTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- pcs3rd · 2023-11-23 14:24 Seconding that, with declarative OCI configs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- from-nibly · 2023-11-23 14:32 Nixos with k3s. 30 lines of config copy pasted 2 times (3 servers) with a hostname change. Fastest cluster I've EVER deployed. I've since stopped using nixos on my other machines and just use the nix package manager but only because gaming on nixos is a ROYAL pain. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- AhmedBarayez · 2023-11-23 14:44 Proxmox 👍👍👍 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TheRealSeeThruHead · 2023-11-23 14:57 Homeserver? Surely you mean home serverS. Proxmox, unraid. Ubuntu server vms ---------------------------------------------------------------------- usrdef · 2023-11-23 15:02 Yup, Debian for server, Ubuntu / Windows for home PCs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SpongederpSquarefap · 2023-11-23 15:07 When Broadcom finally kill them and you're sick of their bullshit, switch to Proxmox ---------------------------------------------------------------------- cbunn81 · 2023-11-23 15:11 FreeBSD for great ZFS support, stability, boot environments, jails, etc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SpongederpSquarefap · 2023-11-23 15:15 Proxmox because it's just Debian with a pretty UI for QEMU I'm liking it a lot more than ESXi - it's just better honestly ---------------------------------------------------------------------- it_prof · 2023-11-23 15:30 Centos and Debian ---------------------------------------------------------------------- it_prof · 2023-11-23 15:31 good support keeping the compatible packages readily available is one of the feature you might do well with ---------------------------------------------------------------------- WildestPotato · 2023-11-23 15:32 vSphere 8 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- randomperson4474 · 2023-11-23 15:37 Truenas scale and xcpng ---------------------------------------------------------------------- redsh3ll · 2023-11-23 15:43 Debian. I use mostly docker containers and super easy to spin up and manage. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- cmsj · 2023-11-23 15:51 Ubuntu server LTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- akamuraaa · 2023-11-23 15:53 AlmaLinux + portainer. Cockpit-machines for vms. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sparrow538 · 2023-11-23 15:54 Depends on what your are doing. If you're just setting up a single box, then just AlmaLinix 9.3. Or maybe Debian 12, FreeBSD 14. If you are practicing with virtual machines, then Proxmox 8 with a combination of the above. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- flowalex999 · 2023-11-23 15:54 I use Rocky Linux, since it is similar to my my company uses but I don't have to worry about developer keys/license to use the os ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ro55mo · 2023-11-23 15:55 Debian. All day, everyday. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- jasl_ · 2023-11-23 15:58 Fedora server + cockpit solid and simple admin web panel with containers support (via plugin) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Filupmarley · 2023-11-23 16:06 Big fan of Truenas core and jails! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SNThrailkill · 2023-11-23 16:15 As always, it depends on what you're doing: Going to run a bunch of VMs? Proxmox. Going to run a bunch of containers? Just use any distro your comfortable with like Ubuntu or OpenSuse. Just need a NAS? TrueNas is pretty good but it's container support is awful. Need a NAS + containers? Unraid. Need a NAS + VMs? Either TrueNas or Unraid. If you're comfortable in Linux you could also do Proxmox and have the hypervisor also act as a NAS or virtualize the NAS inside of it. Let us know! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Minituff · 2023-11-23 16:31 Proxmox on bare metal. Then a TryeNas VM for storage. And a Ubuntu VM for containers. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- someoneatsomeplace · 2023-11-23 16:45 Debian Stable. Clean, easy, and reliable. Upgrades smoothly without drama. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- tollsjo · 2023-11-23 16:54 Proxmox (Linux) for virtualization and containers. Truenas (FreeBSD) for storage. OpnSense (FreeBSD) for FW/Router. I've had this setup since 2015 and it is just awesome. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Scaredy14 · 2023-11-23 17:01 I have only ever used UnRaid, so I can't speak to the differences between server options. But I love UnRaid! I am not very experienced in using text-based command terminals, so having a GUI is very helpful for me. In the past, I've tried to really understand the Linux terminal, making reference sheets for all the commands and writing down file paths, but in the end, I just spend way too much time trying to remember/ figure out how to do something that would only take clicking an icon. (I'm not here to argue the merits of terminal vs GUI. I understand the power of the terminal and still occasionally use it when necessary). I originally started using UnRaid because of the Linus Tech Tips video, where they made 2 gaming PCs in one computer. I really wanted to do that too for my partner and I to game together. I mainly wanted to do that for the cool factor, but ultimately, it was cheaper to buy all the parts for one PC and just get a second GPU and an UnRaid license than it was to buy everything for 2 PCs. UnRaid's built-in Docker and VM support is amazing! The Community Applications plugin has also made Docker Containers a breeze! People make pre-configured apps that only take minimal setup on my side to get running (mostly setting the file path for save folders). I've never made much luck with Docker itself on other OSs, but now I run Plex, Home Assistant, Blender, Cura Slicer, photo backup, minecraft server, etc. All only took a few clicks and setting file paths, and then they are up and running! The ability to quickly spin up VMs in UnRaid and choose how many resources you want to give it (CPU cores, RAM, passing through USB or any PCIe device) has been amazing! It is really making it easier for me to learn Linux since I can easily access Windows or Linux as VMs and easily give GPU access to either if I need to. I guess it's like having all the benefits of bare metal installs and VMs. UnRaid also has a terminal for more advanced users. Really, it seems anything is possible with some of the stuff I've read about people doing. And I never imagined I could build two gaming PCs into one! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- sublimesinister · 2023-11-23 17:14 this is the way ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Judman13 · 2023-11-23 18:07 Proxmox (with a bunch of docker and Ubuntu server vm's), unraid and Ubuntu on bare metal. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- aileanaodh · 2023-11-23 18:29 Arch. No Window Managers or Desktop Environments. Its easy to work with when no extra fluff is installed. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mss-cyclist · 2023-11-23 19:10 FreeBSD ---------------------------------------------------------------------- morbidpete84 · 2023-11-23 19:10 Unraid for my disks and *arr stack and 3 other Ubuntu LTS boxes for my containers ---------------------------------------------------------------------- nemofbaby2014 · 2023-11-23 19:11 unraid if you're running media apps, cameras, etc it works well ---------------------------------------------------------------------- platswan · 2023-11-23 19:18 Proxmox or Debian minimal! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- omeguito · 2023-11-23 19:31 Rocky Linux with Cockpit ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Szwendacz · 2023-11-23 19:37 Fedora Kinoite + podman ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NeoJackOfBlades · 2023-11-23 19:37 Ubuntu server with ansible playbook and docker services ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Mintfresh22 · 2023-11-23 19:45 I really wanted to self host so I wrote my own OS, from scratch. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Nestramutat- · 2023-11-23 19:54 unRAID is fantastic. I used to use it as a monolith server, now it acts as my NAS. I currently run a Kubernetes cluster on a handful of Ubuntu server nodes. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- outofsand · 2023-11-23 19:56 Home serVER? Like ONE? 😅 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- zaphod4th · 2023-11-23 20:02 windows server, I don't like raid software ---------------------------------------------------------------------- budius333 · 2023-11-23 20:09 Oh.... Look at that... You use arch BTW ---------------------------------------------------------------------- beepbeepimmmajeep · 2023-11-23 20:14 Proxmox, Debian containers. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- thcduck · 2023-11-23 20:18 Alpine with QEMU and Docker, runs very smooth without using a lot of resources, cli only because yes ---------------------------------------------------------------------- hadrabap · 2023-11-23 20:18 Oracle Linux 8 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- EvanH123 · 2023-11-23 20:28 How is proxmox with unraid? I am looking to migrate over to that setup but am worried about how complex it'll get. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- gazoscalvertos · 2023-11-23 20:46 Same setup here. Crazy this comment is all the way at the bottom. Surely you'd want your host to consume as little resources as possible to maximise efficiency ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SmashLanding · 2023-11-23 21:18 I use Debian stable just because I'm so familiar with Linux ---------------------------------------------------------------------- j_fear · 2023-11-23 21:24 Almalinux period. Use smb for fileshares, rsync for backups and docker for everything else. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Spuxilet · 2023-11-23 21:43 Arch. It's very easy to setup and maintain. Hell whats setup am i talking about? You install base image, install docker and configure static ip. That's it. If you do not want to reboot it frequently then install LTS kernel that's it. I run it on my home server and on my laptop too. The easiest distro i have ever used and i have used many of them. I am into linux world 16 years already. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- psychowood · 2023-11-23 22:02 Thanks, very interesting read. I've been to ESXi for 15 years more or less (first box was an atom miniitx vanilla board) but you really made me interested in PVE. As if I needed another project... ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Pvp9dc · 2023-11-23 22:11 Yup. Proxmox as OS and truenas as a VM + passtrough disks ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Vurmmyr · 2023-11-23 22:18 Harvester HCI ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Lanky_Information825 · 2023-11-23 22:21 It's fantastic, though I should add that my Proxmox and Unraid are separate hardware, as with my Raspberry-Pi DNS Servers and Proxmox backup machine. After started with Unraid a little over a year ago, this motivated me to move to a real hypervisor Unraid can virtualize, dockerize, etc, but has far too many drawbacks to justify the hardware commitments, though it was an excellent starting point. Add to this, a (custom) DNS and SSL termination, and we well on our way to a proper home lab setup. It's worth mentioning that while there are people virtualizing Unraid on Proxmox, that the implications of inter-service dependencies were just not worth the hassles against diversifying backend services. Next up; UPS, pfSense (router), and forwarding DNS servers on a 10GbE backplane :D ---------------------------------------------------------------------- darthrater78 · 2023-11-23 22:32 I'm glad you enjoyed it! I've never looked back, it's a wonderful change. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- zirophyz · 2023-11-23 23:23 No I have some Meraki kit for network. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- greenscoobie86 · 2023-11-23 23:27 Same here. A bunch of Ubuntu/focker and windows VMs running on one host, it’s great. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Ystebad · 2023-11-24 00:42 I tried Unraid - left due to annoyance of losing server function when I had to take drive arrays down and only scrubbing on demand Went to True Nas scale for the promise of ZFS and liked it, but had issues with the interface and getting GPU passthrough to containers was impossible. Ended up ditching my large server case (still have it - anyone need a large 12 drive 3U case with a big threadripper and bunch of ram - hit me up) and switched to a NUC running ubuntu with portainer managing my dockers on it and all my data stored on a Synology NAS. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Frozen_Gecko · 2023-11-24 00:51 - Rocky linux: containers - TrueNAS Core: NAS - Proxmox: VM's - OPNsense: router ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ayoungblood84 · 2023-11-24 01:10 VMware on one, runs Ubuntu (and then docker) and various appliances. Xpenology on the other. Xpenology also runs Docker for more OOTB containerized apps. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- zarevskaya · 2023-11-24 01:18 Debian 12 desktop is amazing too 👍 Debian server 🥰 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tharunx · 2023-11-24 01:46 Yup, Debian is stable and rock solid for years ---------------------------------------------------------------------- sidusnare · 2023-11-24 03:05 Debian ---------------------------------------------------------------------- virtualadept · 2023-11-24 04:16 Arch Linux for my primary server. Raspbian for my SBCs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 007bane · 2023-11-24 04:47 Proxmox cluster for containers,alerts.etc Openmediavault for my NAS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- silver565 · 2023-11-24 06:51 ESXi 8 with ISCSI shared storage. Love it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Nearby_Tip9956 · 2023-11-24 07:21 Used Unraid for many years and moved to TrueNAS Scale, mainly due to lack of raid performance and bitrot. Really happy with TrueNAS Scale and specially K8s. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TheDarkerNights · 2023-11-24 07:52 I use Fedora. Why not Promox or unraid or any of those? Because I didn't see a personal benefit to it over Linux+libvirt+qemu (I'm sure there is a benefit, I just don't care enough to find out) Why not Arch/Debian/Ubuntu/etc? Because I partially use it as a way to learn or practice things from work and I want to stick as close to RHEL as possible. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Practical_Driver_924 · 2023-11-24 08:33 My setup got too big, so im running proxmox and truenas bare metal. But passthrough is also a good option! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Jak_from_Venice · 2023-11-24 08:38 FreeBSD with its jails ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Pvp9dc · 2023-11-24 10:45 thats the best option, if you got the hardware for that ;) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Jaska001 · 2023-11-24 13:37 Clean Debian + Docker w/ portainer, without installing anything extra on it. SOLID. - Device support is great for older enterprise stuff - Stable as it goes. - Easy to find solution for problems you may come across due high userbase. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CaffeinePizza · 2023-11-24 16:39 Proxmox host, ZFS, bind mount into a Debian container for NFS/SMB. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- xftwitch · 2023-11-24 17:07 Currently running 1 server. Ubuntu, with docker because I'm not doing a ton, but I don't want to have to take down my pi-hole if I need to reboot jellyfin. etc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- madmattco · 2023-11-24 17:50 RHEL 9 for all my servers home and abroad. I have a few vms that run with kvm and I use docker for everything else that I can