Almost a year ago, I wrote about why you should have a Home Server to call your own. Well, funny story - my wife laughed a lot seeing the credit card bills - turns out I may have underestimated how addictive and freeing self-hosting can be.
That Raspberry Pi 4 setup I mentioned? It was great... until it wasn't. There were a lot of problems with it from the beginning, problems that I decided to ignore until it started biting my beautiful and molded by the god's ass.
The Path to Po-po-powah!!!! - or "Why I Needed More"
My journey with the Raspberry Pi started simple enough - some file sharing here and there, a few Docker containers, and maybe a Plex server for my totally legitimate media collection. But like any good tech project, things escalated quickly:
The RPi4 doesn't have native Sata connections. So, I had to use a USB connection to plug into an external storage that was able to hold 5 HDDs of high capacity. It worked, until I noticed that simple things like moving large files took ages. Watching 4k movies stored in external HDDs requires lots of patience. Create and access dockerized apps on external disks? It's a gamble. Also, in case of a blackout, even for a few minutes, could mean hours trying to make the RPi recognize the disks correctly, or even not recognizing them at all.
PhotoPrism started choking while trying to index my 2 decades' worth of memes and photos. At some point, I just decided to stop PhotoPrism container from even initializing.
Docker containers began fighting for that precious 8 GB of RAM, and decoding even some 1080p videos with more "unorthodox" codex proved a challenge. I could hear the Pi begging for mercy
My "just one more container" addiction may have gotten seriously out of hand.
And let's not even talk about that time I tried to run an AI environment alongside everything else. The poor Pi was doing its best, but even with the simplest LLM model, it was like asking a bicycle to compete in an F1 race.
More Power to the People (Well, Just Me Actually)
Here's a little trivia about me: I'm totally against the concept of "the pricier, the better". I want things that solve problems for me, at the best price possible, and with the minimum workaround possible. You can say "just buy a rack, a lot of high-end mini pcs, a router, and stuff everything in there", but that doesn't work for me. Buying a huge and heavy "gaming" case won't work either. I wanted something that could be powerful enough, and easier to apply upgrades compared to RPi, but I wanted a small server, something that I could leave in small places. After much research and maybe a little too much time on Reddit, I built my new server with a Jonsbo N4 case and a relatively powerful motherboard/processor. The N4 case would allow me to use 6 HDDs and 2 SSDs, and I'm not even counting the two NVME slots in the motherboard. With this, I could have:
- A proper CPU that doesn't scream like a maniac when I try to decode a 4k movie at the same time my wife uploads some documents.
- Enough RAM to handle my growing collection of Docker containers
- Fast storage that doesn't make me wait ages for my files
- The ability to run an AI assistant without everything grinding to a halt
The Real Benefits are the friends we make along the way
Development Environment Heaven
Remember when I said you could use a home server for development? Well, now I can run multiple environments simultaneously without breaking a sweat. Node.js here, PHP there, and maybe a Python project just for fun - all running at the same time without fighting for resources.
Media Management That Actually Works
PhotoPrism now indexes my photos in minutes instead of days.
Plex and Jellyfing transcoding happens in real-time, and the processor doesn't even reach 50% of usage. Running *arr (you know what I'm talking about 😉) alongside everything else is smooth as butter.
Docker Dreams
As my uncle Benjamin once said: With more power comes more... containers. I can now run all the services I want without constantly checking resource usage. My Docker Compose file has grown from a few essential services to a small novel, and the new server handles it like a champ.
Virtual Machine Versatility
Let's say I want to test some new app, at the same time I don't want it to have access to my production environment. I can just run a VM. Do I need to run Windows for a very specific scenario? Another VM. The power to run multiple virtual machines alongside everything else is game-changing.
A Real Network
Obviously, I didn't throw away my old RPi. It's still running, but this time with only critical and lesser power-consuming apps. Nginx Proxy Manager, Pi-Hole, etc. are contained there, so I can better distribute things between the servers. And, if for some reason I need to turn off the new server, those services will still work.
The Unexpected Benefits
Here's something I didn't anticipate - having a more powerful server actually changed how I work. Now I have a not-so-powerful-but-at-least-workable AI assistant to deal with some minor tasks (the new server doesn't have a video card - yet - but DeepSeek runs fine on it). The initial setup was tough, but the maintenance is easier than trying to extract maximum power and handle external resources from an RPi.
Also, a new and more powerful server made me rethink how much I'm willing to keep online. In a world where you can't be entirely sure that your files won't be used to train some corporate AI without your knowledge, it's good to start moving things in-house. My media and documents are secure.
But What About Power Consumption?
I know what you're thinking - "But Paulo, what about that part in your previous article about energy efficiency?" Yes, the new server uses more power than the Pi. But here's the thing: the efficiency per task is actually better. Instead of running multiple devices (like separate NAS, development machine, etc.), everything is consolidated into one system that's properly optimized. Plus, modern CPUs are surprisingly efficient at idle, and with proper power management, the system only uses what it needs. I've been using the new server for a few weeks and my bills didn't even felt it.
Should You Upgrade Too?
Well, that depends. Are you: Constantly running into resource limitations? Finding yourself wanting to run more services? Needing more processing power for specific tasks? Tired of managing multiple devices for different purposes?
If you answered yes to any of these, then maybe it's time to consider having a Home Server. But remember - start small (like I did), understand your needs, and scale up accordingly. Don't go building a data center in your closet just because you can.
Remember: it's yours, and it should be fun to maintain
Having two servers in my network brought me an unexpected challenge. I was OK naming the RPi as just "RaspPaulo", but I didn't feel like naming the new server as "NASPaulo". It seemed wrong and dumb. I wanted cool and funny names to use when trying to connect to them, or explaining to my wife where she should save things. So I did what every sane person would do after setting up a new server for hours on a weekend: asked ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini for cool names.
And let me be honest: I don't know who's the guy behind the Gemini pun generation, but he deserves a HUGE raise. After laughing for hours with my wife at the ideas, we came up with really cool names for the servers. Enter NASumaki, the powerful ninja of the hidden village server, and PikaPi, the small but powerful server!
Final Thoughts
Upgrading from a single Raspberry Pi to NASumaki wasn't just about getting more power - it was about enabling new possibilities. It's made me more productive, allowed me to learn new things, and yes, maybe slightly obsessed with monitoring system resources (but we don't talk about that - never).
Remember what I said in my previous article about home servers being your personal Jarvis? Well, NASumaki is like getting the Mark 85 suit instead of the Mark 1. Same concept, just way more powerful and versatile.
Have you upgraded your home server setup? Or are you thinking about it? Let me know in the comments - I'd love to hear about your homelab journey!
Top comments (3)
Niceee ! How did you deal with the noise from the fans? Of course except from the deadly expensive Noctua Fan. My server is unfortunately in my bedroom and the fan noise sometimes would keep me up all night.
Most of the fans are from their own Jonsbo N4, and they work fine most of the time. When connected to the motherboard, the speed can be controlled.
I chose a fan that was better than the processor's default one. I keep it near my TV in the living room, so the noise isn't a problem.
Awesome! 🔥 I never really needed it :)