If you’re just getting started with your home lab, the process can feel overwhelming. You may still be deciding whether to buy new, second-hand, or pick up some cheap ex-enterprise hardware. Or maybe you will want to get a basic mini-PC, or even start on a Raspberry Pi, to avoid a big commitment upfront. It is common to make decisions about hardware that you’ll regret later, like poorly sizing your machines, picking up noisy or power-hungry hardware, or starting with overly complex network hardware when all you needed was a 10/100 switch.