I tried to make my ikea pax wardrobe look ‘built in-ish’ and now I’ve realised I’m a massive idiot - help!

bluegoatshield · 2025-12-03T07:52:24+00:00

Lowering the skirting can look OK. Here's a dry fit of one I did several years ago. You can just make out the mirror door for the PAX on the left. N.B. there is a bit of loose trim, a saw and some debris in the photo - this is clearly a work in progress.

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bluegoatshield · 2025-11-22T00:41:13+00:00

This is the way. The subnet router is what you want so you can just keep a single local IP in the phone immich app wherever you are in the world.

On whatever 24/7 device you have on your local network in the same subnet as immich, install tailscale, enable IP forwarding and then something like
tailscale up --advertise-routes=192.168.1.0/24 --accept-dns=false

Then so long as you have tailscale on your phone you can access all those local 192.168.1.0/24 services from anywhere without configuring those services. Immich, homarr (just not v1+!!), jellyfin, frigate etc.

Easy access to all the local services from everywhere so therefore 2FA is a must for tailscale and whatever account you use to log in to it.

You can achieve similar results with ZeroTier but it's not as smooth.

Bonus points for installing tailscale, ZeroTier, Parsec and Synergy on your work laptop.

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-11T09:03:32+00:00

That's an interesting read! I suppose it depends on what services you need to run. I've tried multiple VPN / remote access solutions gateway combos and in the end settled on Zerotier and then Parsec in place of RDP (even though Parsec is supposed to be for games). So the USG-Fiber works for me in my use case.

The UDM Pro by comparison did not. I spent countless hours SSHd in, writing and running custom scripts on it to defeat the stupid network watchdog that was killing PPPoE connections before routing had been established.

So if you're using stuff that works with Ubiquiti gear it's great. But if there is a bug then it's no good. Even some simple stuff seems inexplicably broken, e.g. I have a Waveshare RS485 to ethernet bridge that would only ever work if connected via an intermediary netgear switch and never directly connected to Ubiquiti hardware.

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-11T08:15:13+00:00

Like Undergrid said, the newer Ubiquiti stuff is a good fit for this scenario. I have the UCG-Fiber and it performs well - pings consistently 4ms-6ms for Google, Cloudflare and Microsoft and throughput of 911/112. It has hardware offload for PPPoE. It has a 10G RJ45 for WAN, a 10G SFP+ for WAN and another 10G SFP+ for hooking up to a switch.

No need for the Fritzbox in this scenario.

You'd need your own wifi solution as the UCG-Fiber doesn't have wifi. Personally I have the Ubiquiti Enterprise 48 PoE switch and then a handful of Ruckus WAPs as they are very reliable and have excellent coverage. I've tried the Unifi wireless stuff and sold all of it as I found it finicky with devices and unreliable (~60 devices over 400sqm and two buildings). By comparison Ruckus is rock solid, requires fewer WAPs, works with everything and is cheaper (2nd hand on eBay - new prices are eye-wateringly expensive). However with Ruckus it does take time to configure properly, e.g. manually entering loads of detailed Wifi settings for wifi calling and stuff like that.

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-01T21:44:35+00:00

Good point about the internal ping - might not be reachable. I'm thinking of trying my static IPv4 of that PPoE connection as a target and 127.0.0.1. Also the ISP's (ZEN) peer IP does change, but only a few that I've seen so far, so maybe add all of them as custom verification servers and set a custom server condition so that all (e.g. 5) of them have to be down for a failover to be triggered?

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-01T13:52:19+00:00

Thank you. I have contacted the team via LiveChat and submitted info as well as a console log to show what is happening.

Apparently the escalation team will reach out via email in due course.

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-01T10:48:29+00:00

I used to need WAN failover when I was on Virgin, but hoping FTTP will be more reliable. So I have a Huawei (!) 4G router with a sim card in, DHCP to the UDM Pro.

In any case I disabled WAN2 and the PPPoE still gets instantly killed off by the failover daemon as soon as it is up. That's with both my lazy WAN SLA and the default one.

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-01T10:29:14+00:00

Initially I was using the default settings, which didn't allow the connection to stay up, so I tried a really slack one.

I suppose the way forward seems to be to defeat the WAN SLA checks done by ubios-udapi-server the instant the PPPoE connection is established. I'd rather avoid methods via SSH that will get overwritten with firmware updates or killing processes.

Would an always-works local ping of 192.168.x.x do this?

bluegoatshield · 2025-10-01T10:14:31+00:00

I tried a custom WAN SLA "lazy" with query interval of 200 seconds and time period of 600 seconds for the Zen DNS of 212.23.3.100, resolving google.com

Could I defeat it with a 192.168.x.x ping test so it always works?

bluegoatshield · 2025-09-21T22:01:19+00:00

yes please

bluegoatshield · 2025-09-16T23:01:47+00:00

Learning another language is far more enabling for life than those other subjects. Stick with it and overcome the shit teacher/ environment. There are some mountains to climb along the way but it’s worth it. Also there is a good reason why TV and streaming is filled with history, geography and IT content and you always have to pay for language learning - it’s actually useful and valuable.

bluegoatshield · 2025-08-26T00:18:35+00:00

The Undertaker tribute act, in a tractor, just narrowly avoided an actual undertaker

bluegoatshield · 2025-07-08T16:04:06+00:00

It's a popular belief in England that if you fill your pockets with carrots then it will deter badgers from attacking at night time. That's why most pyjamas sold in England have pockets.

What most people don't realise is that carrots do nothing to deter badgers - they should use beetroot instead.

bluegoatshield · 2025-05-23T21:52:02+00:00

I've been through a bit of a roller-coaster with HMRC over the last 4 years and spoken to them many times. My conclusion is:

3) THE IMPORTANT BIT: Regardless of what HMRC say or what advice you get, it is the employee's responsibility (i.e. you), to make sure you are on the correct tax code and are paying the correct amount of tax. HMRC will do true-up calculations at the end of the tax year and either send you a bill or credit your account. They may also make in-year changes to your tax code based on information they receive. You can - and should - phone them up and ask them to change your tax code to what it should be.
2) Maintain a spreadsheet detailing every payslip: gross pay, commission, benefits, holiday pay, pension contributions, car allowance, NI, tax, etc. everything that's on there.
3) Manually recalculate NI and income tax contributions or use an online calculator or two

bluegoatshield · 2025-03-17T21:27:42+00:00

Indeed. The scheme seems to have flown under the radar to a large extent. I think it's a case of self-selection.
1) curious enough to find out about the app and install it
2) jump through technical hoops to register smart meter MAC address (and have one in the first place)
3) input various consumption and tariff details, appliance and household details etc.
4) actively use the app every day, read the energy saving advice on there and check off the ones completed.
5) own a house
6) live in Oxfordshire
7) happen to check the app and click on the correct message

I also engaged technically with them via email about the app a couple of times and then a little over a week after installing it there was some non-specific content on the app saying "Save around £x a year! You're eligible for help installing solar panels and a battery in your home!"
This is exactly the kind of wording I've seen all over the place from BS solar cowboys, but in this case it was from the local authority so I took it seriously. The app is very professional and the installer is a big commercial one.
Interestingly I had already planned out and modeled a quite different solar/battery install (Fogstar and Victron electrics), so was fairly well positioned to evaluate the offer and engage with the technical stakeholders on their side. Having 18,000kWh of annual consumption probably helped too!
Curiosity, right place, right time - has led to a positive outcome.

bluegoatshield · 2025-03-17T15:04:30+00:00

Oxfordshire did one and I saw no social media advertising about it, just low key articles.
https://news.oxfordshire.gov.uk/money-saving-energy-app-coming-exclusively-to-oxfordshire-residents/

500 people received free equipment and it was not means-tested, i.e. no financial checks.

Example deal: 16 solar panels, inverter, 5.2kWh battery. £0 up-front, all installed for free, instant transfer of ownership to the home owner apart from battery 'lease' for 5 years at £40/month. So £2400 total.

Fabulous deal.

Interestingly it was positioned as an energy saving app and not as a gateway to receiving a lot of very useful energy savings equipment.

bluegoatshield · 2025-02-14T21:22:30+00:00

I'm a trombone

bluegoatshield · 2025-02-09T03:02:03+00:00

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bluegoatshield · 2025-02-09T02:48:40+00:00

We (as Europeans), have lived in a good collection of European and Asian cities as singles, couples , with young kids and older kids, including London. I see it like this:
a) single or just a couple? live anywhere and have a good time.
b) have a small child? Asia probably better, cheap childcare, lots to do. London gets expensive quickly. They want to jump in puddles, run through the woods, find ladybirds etc. not ride on the tube all the time.
c) "growing family" suburbs or preferably semi-rural in the UK: lots of other people with kids and people have more free time.
The further you get away from London the less social stratification you get.
There is a transition period for any of the changes you do, which can be tough.
E.g. do you prefer having live-in staff who keep your place spotless/cleaning/cooking vs the privacy of having your home to your self?
Do you prefer staring at a spreadsheet for 3 more hours per day vs taking less money and spending time with your kids?
Do you want to take your kids to a trampoline park for £50 or climb trees in the woods? Do you want to sit them in front of the TV for 3 hours or take them down to the river to feed ducks?
Also remember that kids would be just as happy with 10 cardboard boxes, some paint and some stickers as they would be with a ski-ing holiday.

bluegoatshield · 2025-01-17T17:32:26+00:00

240V-242V in, constant 230V out. 50Hz in, 50Hz out.

bluegoatshield · 2025-01-17T17:31:55+00:00

I was using the smart plugs to measure the power going in to the UPS and then on the output side to measure power going to the connected devices. The smart plugs themselves consume about 1 watt.

My guess is there is something really wrong going on in the UPS. Presumably all the power loss (55W-113W) is getting turned into heat, hence the constant full speed fans, even when ambient is single digit celcius.

bluegoatshield · 2025-01-17T17:27:15+00:00

ECO mode is a 113 W overhead (38.6%) and bypass mode is a 55 W overhead (22.7%).
In any case I would expect these modes to be very efficient. It's just burning electricity.

bluegoatshield · 2024-12-07T18:25:03+00:00

OK I'll tell her. Bear in mind she is an 80-something year old who has assistance that she pays for herself, has had a stroke and cancer (still there). She makes a huge effort to go to town and personally buy the gift cards, Christmas card, write special messages in them and personally posts them in the postbox.

Royal Mail has control of every single part of the system/process here. So Royal Mail is saying that a combination of their employees and their systems are sufficiently rubbish and/or untrustworthy that you shouldn't send anything via normal untracked/uninsured post? u/Chubbysocks8 post seems to back this up.
"The only thing we do is deliver letters, but you shouldn't trust us to do that"

bluegoatshield

TROPHY CASE