When you think about an experimentation and self-hosting server, bulky rack-mounted PCs are probably the first to come to mind. Contrary to popular belief, you can build a home lab on practically any piece of hardware – ranging from tiny SBCs and mini-PCs to powerful tower rigs. So, I’ve compiled a list of beginner-friendly devices you can build your home server with.

5 SBCs and compute modules

Preferably those of x86 origin

While the low computational prowess of SBCs and compute modules makes them hard to recommend for server projects involving hundreds of virtual machines, the situation is quite different for container-only setups. As long as your tiny tinkering buddy has a decent amount of RAM, you can use it to deploy dozens of containers without encountering performance issues.

In fact, you can even build a reliable Kubernetes cluster with just a handful of Raspberry Pi SBCs. With x86 devices like the Radxa X4 and LattePanda Mu gaining popularity, I recommend going for them over ARM-powered devices if you want better compatibility with your virtual guests.

4 Laptops

More of a double-edged sword

On paper, laptops seem like an amazing option for modest home server setups. They’re fairly portable, have solid power efficiency, can remain operational during outages thanks to built-in batteries, and are easier to troubleshoot due to their display and keyboard.

Sadly, there are a couple of deal-breaking issues with a laptop-based home lab. Even on gaming laptops, you may have a hard time dissipating the extra heat without revving up the fan speeds to the max. But battery bloat is the biggest drawback of them all, as your makeshift UPS can turn into a fire hazard after months of use.

3 Server rigs

Watch your VMs, containers, and energy bills soar!

With their multitude of CPU cores, an armada of PCIe (and SATA) ports, and support for ECC memory sticks, enterprise-grade hardware is perfect for hardcore home servers. If you know where to look, you can even snag Xeon and Threadripper systems for dirt-cheap prices.

Unfortunately, server-rated equipment has its own share of issues. Besides generating an ungodly amount of heat, ancient server hardware is infamous for whirring like a jet engine. Then there’s the fact that these systems can guzzle energy like there’s no tomorrow, so you could end up with sky-high energy bills if you run your dual-CPU workstation all day.

2 NAS

Great for storage, even better for self-hosting

Like x86 SBCs, modern NAS systems pack a surprising amount of firepower inside a modest form-factor chassis. Assuming your NAS has somewhat decent specifications, it can double as a solid container/VM hosting workstation – all while tackling your file-sharing, data archival, and backup tasks in the background.

That said, the proprietary operating systems included with pre-built NAS serve as the biggest bottleneck for home server tasks. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say that you should flash a different OS on your storage server, you shouldn’t be surprised if your first-party distro results in bugs, compatibility problems, and performance issues.

1 Old PCs

Your discarded systems still have some life left in them

Turning a spare PC into a home server is one of the best ways to breathe some new life into your older system once you’ve upgraded to newer hardware. Since you’re essentially reusing a PC, you don't need to worry about dropping hundreds of dollars when building your home lab.

Heck, your average PC has enough horsepower to run a handful of virtual machines, especially once you pair it with a bare-metal virtualization platform. Not to mention, most consumer-grade systems are fairly upgradable, so you’re free to outfit your old system with some budget-friendly NICs, expansion cards, and memory sticks if it encounters performance hiccups when bringing your tinkering fantasies to life.

What’s the ideal rig when building your first home lab?

As someone who started his server journey by running virtual machines on a spare Ryzen 5 1600, older systems can pull their own weight in virtualization tasks. If you're intimidated by the idea of managing a full-blown virtualization platform, you can keep things simple by running virtual machines inside Type-2 hypervisors.

A fair warning, though. Once you jump into the home lab rabbit hole, it's hard not to get addicted to servers. If you're not careful, you can end up with devices and cables spread across your home lab and energy bills so high you couldn't possibly blame it on the refrigerator anymore. Yeah, I speak from experience.