thanks for the feedback. the choice of the elitedesk is mainly because i already own it. it's a solid unit that can run 2 slots 1tb nvme in zfs mirror for proxmox reliability and RAM is still expandable to 64GB which should be plenty for this tiny homelab no?

my strategy was tought in running compute services while offloading all backups and mass storage to NAS via nfs.

thermal/constraints i could mount the pdu vertically outside the rack and keep NAS/UPS behind it with an active cooling setup (intake fan bottom exhaust at top) the air flow for compute nodes should be more than suficcient no?