Running a full UniFi stack with gateway, access point, and switch for tighter control than an ISP router provides. Configured VLANs to segment traffic and set up firewall rules and port forwarding using the same concepts found in professional network environments.

Proxmox is the foundation of the homelab, hosting virtual machines and services while giving me hands-on experience with storage, networking, bridges, and snapshots. It is the platform I use to separate workloads cleanly and test changes with less risk.

Dedicated NAS that gives devices on the network access to a shared storage pool. Used for remote backups and central file storage so data is managed in one place instead of being scattered across individual machines.

Used as a remote gaming node available anywhere on the network and as a safe sandbox for testing Windows features and software. Proxmox snapshots make rollbacks quick, which lowers the risk when experimenting.

Network-wide DNS ad blocking monitored through query stats and logs to see what is being filtered across devices. It has been a practical way to learn how DNS traffic behaves and how central network services impact day-to-day use.

Built Linux Mint virtual machines as a dedicated space for studying and experimenting with Linux. I regularly use SSH to manage services and work in the terminal, and I have also used this environment to run and learn from services like Jellyfin, including media streaming and hardware-accelerated transcoding workflows.