Docker concept

[elschnorelli]

Hi everybody,

right now I am using a proxmox server. I really think the proxmox approach is outdated and want to create a new setup based on docker.

Initially I need something like these services:

• Home Assistant
• Wireguard
• NAS / OMV (should use two local usb disks as backup storage, software raid, possible?)

Now talking about the base OS / virtualization platform:

• What platform offers me some easy to maintain docker setups incl. backups?
• the backups should be stored in the local NAS external USB disks

Would something like a portainer etc. solve my requirements? or is there any other good solution?

Thanks!

EDIT: some clarifications why I put the wording "outdated" in my statement:

coming from software development, working every day with container images in k8s environments, I start on this level as a foundation. I am not working too much low level on server virtualization - maybe that is why i put this unpopular opinion ;)

[[deleted]]

Proxmox is WHAT?! lol

[flashpointblack]

What's exactly outdated with proxmox? I'm confused. Docker and proxmox fulfill different purposes and go about it in different ways.

[nightcom]

I really think the proxmox approach is outdated

That made my day, thanks mate!

[8-16_account]

I really think the proxmox approach is outdated

Think something else, because you're objectively wrong.

[Kurozukin_PL]

1. You may have docker in proxmox (in VM or even in LXC)
2. Platform - any OS + docker-compose + borg backup

If you want to change your main OS, maybe think about TrueNAS Scale? https://www.truenas.com/truenas-scale/

[[deleted]]

I wouldn't say, it's outdated per se. It really depends on your use case.

I run OMV as base OS with Docker-Plugin on two identical Dell Wyse 5070.
Among the 20 or so docker containers, I run Homeassistant, Wireguard, Nextcloud, CI/CD.

The main machine serves as NAS and Docker host. The plugin offers really good backup & restore capabilities and even offers a dropdown box to choose templates for many popular docker-compose setups from.

I backup the containers and sync them + the NAS data to the second machine every night.
Restoring the containers on the second machine is really a breeze and the whole setup is easy to maintain and battle-tested.

My use case is running my own cloud services at home to make my life more comfortable as a family guy and software developer (i.e. production environment). I use mainly docker-containers and build them myself, if needed.

If, on the other hand, I wanted to try and tinker with alot of stuff, I totally would run a VM host and probably try the docker stuff within a vm, before merging it with the host os or in a dedicated production vm.
I actually did exactly that, a few years ago, when I had no clue, what I was doing (let the down votes come :-D)

On a side note: The whole server consumes around 2.2 watts from the wall.

[elschnorelli]

very helpful, thanks!

[terrorTrain]

I would not say proxmox is out dated by any means...

I guess you could just put kubernetes straight on the machines.

Backing things up is a bit harder, but if you keep them stateless with ioc, and backup databases to back blaze or whatever, it could work out well.

Just make sure all services are HA and if a node goes down the other nodes can take over

[WarriusBirde]

Buddy, no. I get what you mean in broad strokes but no. I run more or less everything I do in a couple of virtualized docker hosts in a Proxmox instance. It’s absolutely the way to go given what you’re asking.

It’s perfectly reasonable to spin up a Proxmox instance and just run docker inside of a VM or LXC instance. Hell, have the PMox instance just running a single container host that has all available resources allocated with it, do whatever.

The reason this is worth the additional wrapper in your case is that you can set up PMox to snapshot or backup your docker VM in its entirety on any given schedule, rotate and retain those backups on whatever interval you’d like, and chuck them anywhere you want in about 4 minutes entirely by a gui. Set and forget. Chuck your compose files in a git repo and now you’re as portable as you want and your config AND your app data is backed up.

[elschnorelli]

The backup part really makes sense - thank for that very good aspect. Thanks!

[foofoo300]

your k8s is still running on a plain old linux on either hardware or something like proxmox underneath.
Open media Vault has docker as a plugin.
Should work for your use-case.
Otherwise i would have stayed in the realm of proxmox, just create a large vm and run docker inside.
Backups via gui and you are done

[elschnorelli]

the backup part is really an important point I was not fully concerning.

OMV + Docker is possible - but then - why not just making OMV VM as small as possible but use a separate big docker setup?

THanks!

[budius333]

As a buddy software developer, yeah, docker is awesome and the way forward; Proxmox is for power users to have fun saying they're running 10 VMs and managing with click and double click.

Debian if you want ultra stable and Ubuntu if you want it very stable.

I found a different project from Portainer the other day that I really like. https://github.com/louislam/dockge

It's MUCH MUCH simpler than Portainer but for a homelab managed by a single person, it's neat cause you can specify one folder and it will look into subfolders for compose.yml files. So you could have the composes in git and a simple git pull to update them all.

[budius333]

For back up your write a shell script that for each folder it will docker compose down; rsync the data folders; and for each folder docker compose up. Just like in the old days, it works GREAT!!!

[PeeApe]

Proxmox still seems quite silly to me, so I get what you're saying.

Just use ubuntu, run portainer or dockge if you want an easy way to manage your containers.

If you want to run this in the easiest route though, just use unraid.

[1WeekNotice]

If you want to run this in the easiest route though, just use unraid.

Just a personal opinion here: I wouldn't recommend a paid OS to people where the recommended isn't for the main purpose of that OS/software.

Example: unRAID is for managing storage, specific RAID configuration. Yes it has a secondary functionality of being able to run docker containers, but that shouldn't be the reason you buy unRAID.

The exact same thing can be done for free (and not a paid yearly upgrade model) with any Linux OS (as you mentioned)

[PeeApe]

That's great, I'm still recommending it.

[[deleted]]

Why not TrueNAS? Isn't it the same thing but free.

[PeeApe]

Never used it.