New mini-pc to run Linux and Home Assistant on

Hardware
1

Ahh damn, my Raspberry PI died so now HomeAssistant is down

I want to get a proper mini-pc to run HA now and not having to deal with low memory or not enough CPU power but I also don’t want an electricity hog (because it gets connected to a UPS)

It should run Linux with HA via Docker so I can also run other services on it, so I’m not looking for it to run the HAOS.

Any recommendations on what to look for?
Low budget if possible :slight_smile:

2

Hi, there are quite some similar threads about this so I will not repeat those.

What I would recommend though is to have a look at Proxmox VE which gives you a lot of options in a very user-friendly and powerful way to run multiple services on a system.

3

N100 based mini-pc’s use little more power (and cost almost the same as) then a Pi 5 with SSD

1 Like
4

Hi folks so I wanted to update what I got for anyone who is looking for pc hardware to put Home Assistant on that is not the RPI3 RPI4 or RPI5 (Raspberry Pi):

  • I bought a GMKtec G3 Plus from Aliexpress, it has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD
  • It arrived pretty quick and didn’t have any issues at all, was like brand new
  • I put Proxmox on it as the bare bones Hypervisor
  • I then installed Home Assistant on it via a VM. There are quite a few video guides on YouTube that show you how to do it
  • I’m running it for about 2-3 months now I think and it’s been super smooth, not a single issue!

Tip: if you connect zigbee devices or others via the USB then you have to map it to the HA VM. First shutdown the VM, then connect the device, then make sure it is recognized and mapped in Proxmox to the VM (in my case it was a Conbee II) then power on the HA VM. I had an issue where it didn’t install it well because it was “half installed” sort of thing.

1 Like
5

Anyone looking for a mini pc with more RAM and storage capacity should have a look at the CWWK X86-P6 Pocket NAS Board PC Intel i3-N355 N150 2xi226-V 2.5G DDR5 4800MHz 4xM.2 NVMe Firewall Router Mini PC Case 2xUSB3.2 2xHD – cwwk
It supports up to 48GB RAM, 4 x M.2 slots for nvme SSDs, 2 x 2.5 Gbps LAN, very good cooling design and an option to add 2 SATA drives (externally through included cables). This is great Proxmox machine at the size of 10x10x4 cm !

6

Well, a lot of the user reviews aren’t too convincing. Especially at that price tag :roll_eyes:

7

I’m using it as a NAS (with TrueNAS) right now and I’m very happy with it. Watch out for offers then you get it much cheaper. I got mine at a 20% discount.