Welcome to the forum Craig.
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@carltimson Welcome to the forum
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@Shiverth Welcome to the forum
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Retired and enjoy music, woodworking, and tech. Moved to Linux from Windows about 6 years ago and have not looked back.
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Welcome @Stoneman_2026 thanks for joining us. In my 40’s I’m considered young here. 
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@Stoneman_2026 unlike @hydn I’m one of the relics here - been breathing air on this planet since January 1956, so I have been around for over seven decades now.
My entry into computer systems was after the entry of the minicomputer, but when I started out, mainframes still dominated. A few years after my university graduation was when the IBM PC came out. Microprocessors were available and some “oldies but goodies” may remember the Franklin computer and the Heathkit H8 and H11 models, which preceded the IBM PC.
During my university senior year I realized that I enjoyed working with small form factor systems a lot more than the big ones, but my first job gave me a solid background in mainframe computing AND telecommunications, so from that perspective it was valuable.
Moreover, I joined a group that was exploring client/server computing with mainframe systems, UNIX department servers and personal computer systems.
Back then, not many systems had really good networking, so it was the UNIX system that provided the networking expertise; that turned out to be a good move; it marked my career thereafter and also contributed to my interest in Linux as it began to emerge.
The same year I joined the Digital UNIX development group was the same year I got a personal computer, and the REASON for doing so was to try out Linux for the first time.
That later led to some good assignments with financial service companies who were interested in both UNIX and Linux for their strong networking and server stability.
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Hello. I’m new. And intending to be new to Linux in the near future.
Doubtful there is much I will be able to contribute to the community.
I have been drawn to Linux, increasingly so, because of Windows 10 and moreso because of 11. No surprise, I’m sure.
Have been procrastinating about installing Linux, wanting to install one distro and be done with it. I understand that many Linux folks are into programming and CS. Sorry to say I’m not, although I know I should be more literate in tech. Did enjoy the computer repair and upgrade course at a local CC. Could practice on the machines in class, instead of trial and error on my own!
I have been told the Linux community is helpful about providing guidance if people have questions. So wanted to register.
What I do? Mostly try to manage my own time, which one assumes is possible when retired. HA! That seems to be a fallacy. Studied History. Eventually, took the path toward a Geology degree. Fascinated with Theoretical Unity Physics which is more real and less “theoretical” than it used to be! U.S. Army veteran. Still miss the best of all those days.
FYI, first personal computer was a Vic-20 purchased from the PX in Frankfort; graduated to Commodore 64. New computer - Window 3 series onward, online over the phone to access Prodigy Bulletin Board (i.e. social media). I’m not quite as much of a relic as these all are!
Did try Red Hat many years ago. However, didn’t stay with it because of being accustomed to the Windows GUI and needing to learn a whole new vocabulary of commands. Have used DOS commands from the start to solve whatever problems are encountered and can handle Basic, HTML, a bit of scripting, but do not really want have to use any of them, except minimally.
I need to stop procrastinating about changing to Linux. Hoping for suggestions about which distro(s) based on what I’ve read, but also on the experience of folks who have used the ones I’m sort of drawn to trying. I will find the file I made of that list.
Name’s Mary (Mary G if many of the same name). Friends call me Goose, also. I answer to both. I’m real people too.
Trying to avoid taking time to try out distros because I need the computer to be accessible on a daily basis without using much time fooling around testing distros and getting them configured and functional the way I prefer.
I will find the my list of distros that seemed might be a good fit and why, then return to ask what you good folks here in the Linux Community might recommend.
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Hi, @goose 
Welcome to our community!
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Hello. I’m just an old developer that likes to play around with my OS. Looking at getting a different version of Linux. I just installed Bazzite for gaming and I love it but don’t like that it doesn’t like to dual boot with Windows easily. I’m thinking about installing Arch now because I like to tinker.
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Welcome to the forums! 
@ramanajan keep us posted on what you settle on and why.
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@goose Welcome Mary! Great intro, and don’t sell yourself short, your background and curiosity are exactly what makes a community good!
Post that distro list when you find it and we’ll happily share thoughts. For someone wanting minimal fuss and a familiar feel, Linux Mint or Zorin Linux is usually a safe bet, but let’s see what you come up with. 
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Hey everyone sorry I have been gone for a bit was dealing with some health issues, getting ready for finals and also working haha,
But I wanted to share a rundown of my current home lab setup. It’s been a massive ongoing project, but I finally have everything working exactly how I want it. I’m am now officially a second-year Computer Information Systems (CIS) student at, so my main goal has been building an environment that heavily aligns with my coursework (networking, security, and systems administration) to get real hands-on practice.
Here is a breakdown of the rig and the architecture:
The Hardware Base:
Server:Dell Precision T7910
Hardware: Dual Xeon E5-2699V4 22 core CPUs with 128GB of RAM
Storage:4x SSDs in a RAID for 500GB of fast main VM storage, plus 4x 4TB SAS drives in a RAID 10 for my media pool.
GPUs: A GTX 1650 dedicated to my Jellyfin container, and an NVIDIA Quadro P4000 that I use exclusively for local AI and LLM workloads.
Networking Architecture (The Tricky Part):
My ISP is sadly T-Mobile Home Internet, which forces me to use their modem/router and an unmanaged Netgear switch. To get proper network segmentation, I set up an OPNsense VM as my core router. I pass both physical ethernet ports on the Dell server directly into OPNsense (one for WAN, one for LAN).
Since my physical switch is unmanaged, I handle all my VLAN tagging directly at the hypervisor level through Proxmox virtual bridges. OPNsense handles the inter-VLAN routing and Kea DHCP perfectly. For remote access, I use Tailscale, with my CasaOS VM acting as a subnet router so I can securely manage everything whether I’m on my main CachyOS PC, my Manjaro laptop, or away from home.
VM Layout & Network Segments:
I’ve broken the network down into specific VLANs (10, 20, 30, 40) to mirror an enterprise environment:
- Windows Environment: I’m running Windows Server 2022 as my primary Domain Controller (managing DNS, DHCP scopes, and GPOs) alongside a Windows 11 client VM.
- Security Lab (DMZ - VLAN 40): I built out a proper penetration testing environment with a Kali Linux VM and a Metasploitable VM. I recently went through and fully locked down the OPNsense firewall rules for this DMZ (passing internal traffic, blocking access to my internal LAN, but allowing internet access) so I can practice safely.
- Monitoring & Web: I have an Ubuntu Desktop VM hosting Grafana and Prometheus for system monitoring, plus a dedicated webserver.
- Local AI (P4000 Passthrough): I have a dedicated 16-core, 32GB RAM VM running Ubuntu 24.04 where I pass through the Quadro P4000. I use this to run Ollama and OpenClaw (containerized for security) to experiment with local models.
- Media/Apps: CasaOS handles the lighter stuff such as my jellyfin server, my audiobook server and my Tailscale routing.
It’s taken a lot of troubleshooting—especially getting Kea DHCP properly broadcasting across the Proxmox VLAN tags and dialing in the firewall aliases—but it’s finally running like a dream. It gives me a perfect sandbox to practice everything from Active Directory certificate services to offensive security.
Just wanted to share the progress! Let me know what you guys think or if anyone has a similar unmanaged switch/hypervisor routing setup.
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Really nice lab setup!
I’d like to suggest that you create new topic(s) within appropriate sections to discuss more focused aspects of interest.
Regards!
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Hey guys! I’m new here and to Linux. Hoping to learn more and figure out if finally moving away from Windows is possible in my case. Thanks for having me.
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Hi, @shoebox.ford 
Welcome to the community!
Hello. I’m an old tinkerer, new to Linux. Just trying to learn as I go. I’ll probably have lots of questions and no answers. My playground consists of 4 Dell older desktops running Mint and three HP laptops running Windows 11. I’ll be a good source of ‘stupid’ questions and equally ‘stupid’ answers.
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We’ll look forward to it 
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Welcome, @Barclaymw thanks for joining us!
Hello! I’m currently a software engineering student and I have just been learning some basic linux commands and I was just curious about that
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Welcome, @ale nice to meet you!
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