💾 What It Is
This side project was about turning a pair of aging 2008 Mac Pros into something useful: a hybrid NAS, utility server, and Proxmox host for cybersecurity experiments and home network services.
🧱 Hardware Salvage
- Combined parts from two Mac Pro towers (Model A1186, early 2008)
- Swapped RAM between machines to max out capacity
- Used the unit with a functional power supply + better airflow
- Manually fixed a bent drive bay to restore SATA connectivity
- Installed a 120GB SSD for OS boot and two HDDs for data/storage
🖥️ What It’s Doing
- Hosting lightweight file shares and static web content
- Running base Proxmox services and test VMs
- Future candidate for local-only DNS, backup scripts, or asset monitoring
🤔 Why It Matters
- Hands-on practice with legacy hardware diagnosis and recovery
- Reinforces practical skills in cabling, airflow, power, and thermal handling
- Useful testing ground for isolated workloads without burning up newer hardware
🔄 Next Steps
- Install smartmontools and setup SMART disk monitoring
- Add a backup routine to sync file shares to a separate volume
- Create a shared ISO + VM template vault for lab redeployments
🧠 Notes to Self
This machine isn’t built for speed—but it’s quiet, functional, and reliable. A perfect scratchbox for experiments that don’t require horsepower but benefit from having a real box on the network.
Still booted off the first Proxmox ISO flashdrive I ever created.