About My Homelab

My home lab is my personal playground for learning and experimenting.
It’s where I break things, fix them, and gain hands-on experience with the tools and technologies that are essential in cybersecurity and IT.

Instead of just reading about concepts, I test them in practice — in a safe, controlled environment.

Why I Built It

  • To practice ethical hacking and CTF challenges in a safe way.
  • To understand networking beyond theory.
  • To simulate real-world attacks and defenses.
  • To get comfortable with system administration tasks.

A homelab gives me freedom: if I mess something up, I can just reset it without fear of breaking my main computer.

Devices in My Homelab

My Home Lab Setup

MacBook Air (M1)

  • Specs: M1 (ARM64), 8 GB RAM, 256 GB SSD
  • Role: Main device — primary machine for running most VMs and day-to-day hacking work.
  • Notes:
    • Runs ARM-compatible images (e.g. Kali ARM64).
    • I rely on snapshots and fast backups because this is the device I use most.
    • Careful with heavy parallel VMs due to 8 GB RAM — I usually run 1–2 lightweight VMs simultaneously.

MacBook Pro (2018)

  • Specs: Intel i5, 8/16 GB (depending on model), 256 GB SSD
  • Role: Secondary machine for browsing, research, and other tasks (including dark-web exploration in isolated VMs).
  • Notes:
    • Good for running x86 VMs (Metasploitable, Windows).
    • Keep isolation: use separate VM networks and avoid sharing host folders when researching risky content.

Vsmart Joy 3

  • Role: Mobile device used for penetration testing (on-device testing, mobile recon, app testing).
  • Notes:
    • Useful for testing mobile-specific behaviors and recon tools.
    • Always factory-reset or isolate before/after sensitive testing.

USB Wireless Adapters

  • TP-LINK Archer T2U Plus

    • Role: Wireless adapter used for network hacking, supports monitor mode and packet sniffing in many Linux distributions.
    • Notes: Works great as a USB adapter for Kali; ensure drivers are installed and you attach it to the VM (USB passthrough).

  • Custom Atheros AR9271

    • Role: My preferred adapter for soft packet sniffing, AP mode, and general wireless experimentation.
    • Notes: Atheros chips have great Linux support; ideal for Aircrack-ng, hostapd, and related tools.

VMs I Run

  • Kali Linux 2025 (ARM64)

    • Primary pentest distribution on the M1. Includes tooling for network, web, and wireless testing.
    • Tip: use lightweight desktop (XFCE) or headless setups to save RAM.

  • Metasploitable 3

    • Vulnerable target VMs for safe practice of exploitation techniques. Run in an isolated network or NAT mode.

  • Windows 11 Home Edition

    • Use for testing Windows-specific tools, payloads, and for malware/behavior analysis within an isolated VM. Snapshot before/after experiments.

What I Do in the Lab

  • TryHackMe & OverTheWire challenges & other CTFs challenges.
  • Network scanning and enumeration
  • Building small services (web, database) and securing them
  • Testing & learning tools like Wireshark, Burp Suite, Hydra, Nmap, etc.

Closing Thoughts

This homelab isn’t about having the latest hardware.
It’s about creating an environment where I can fail, learn, and grow as a cybersecurity student.

A homelab is like a gym for your technical skills — the more you train, the stronger you get. 💻🔥