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Homelab Journal

Homelab Journal #17: Starter services and the menu problem

13 May 2026

Week seventeen of the SmallGrid homelab: choosing a small self-hosted starter stack instead of installing every useful-looking service at once.

Cartoon homelab desk with Jellyfin working successfully
#journal#homelab#self-hosting#beginner

This week’s goal

Pick a few self-hosted services that are actually useful.

This is harder than it sounds because self-hosting lists are basically menus, and I am apparently not to be trusted near a menu.

What I actually did

I chose a small starter stack:

  • Jellyfin for media
  • private remote access
  • backups
  • simple monitoring
  • notes/documentation

That is it for now.

The important bit was deciding what not to add. I do not need a replacement for every cloud service this month. I need a server that stays understandable.

What broke, or nearly did

I nearly added a dashboard before I had enough things to put on it.

That is peak homelab behaviour: building a map before there is a town.

What I’m keeping

  • Small starter stack
  • Services with a clear job
  • No “just because” installs
  • Add one thing, understand one thing

SmallGrid takeaway

A beginner homelab should earn complexity slowly. Start with services you will actually use, then add the next one when the previous one is boring.

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