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Building a Homelab for Blockchain Development

Hero Image: Completed Meshify C homelab running

In late 2021, I assembled this homelab in the Fractal Design Meshify C to dive deep into blockchain technology and NFTs. What started as curiosity quickly became hands-on mastery: launching my own Cardano stake pool, producing real blocks to secure the network, and minting my own NFTs on-chain using this architecture.

This project was a perfect mix of hardware tinkering, secure Linux setup, and distributed systems, which is exactly the kind of hands-on challenge I love.

The homelab began as the full testbed and later became a redundant relay in production.

Hardware Specs

A budget-friendly, server-grade setup optimized for 24/7 reliability and ECC memory:

Component Details
Case Fractal Design Meshify C - Black
Motherboard Supermicro X10SRL-F LGA2011-3
CPU Intel Xeon E5-2630 v3 2.4 GHz ($109)
CPU Cooler Supermicro 4U Active CPU Heatsink SNK-P0050AP4
PSU Corsair RM750x 750 Watt, 80+ Gold, Fully Modular
GPU MSI GeForce GT 710 1GB
RAM 2× Supermicro 16GB 288-Pin ECC Registered
SSD WD Blue 3D NAND 250GB
HDD WD Blue 1TB 7200 RPM
NIC TP-Link AX3000 Wi-Fi 6 PCIe Adapter

Primary Purpose and Architecture

Core motivation: Understanding blockchain mechanics and NFT creation on Cardano's secure, proof-of-stake network.

Key outcomes:

  • Block Production: The isolated block producer validated transactions, participated in consensus, and minted blocks, directly contributing to network security.
  • NFT Minting: Using cold keys and this setup, I successfully minted NFTs on-chain.

Stake Pool Architecture

Full topology—isolated block producer, AWS relays, homelab relay, Grafana monitoring, SSH+2FA access, and air-gapped cold storage.

Build, Test, and Launch Process

Assembly in the Meshify C was straightforward and rewarding. I originally documented the full build and early stake pool setup, but a drive failure wiped those archives, becoming a tough lesson in redundancy that sharpened my cybersecurity habits (now with robust multi-layer backups).

The process: design → local testing → AWS deployment → mainnet launch → iterative tuning.

Outcomes and Metrics

The stake pool ran reliably:

  • Excellent block propagation and uptime
  • Consistent epoch participation and block production
  • Successful on-chain NFT mints
  • End-to-end proof of a secure, functional architecture

The deepest reward was tangible understanding of decentralized systems.

  • Finished Exterior
    Clean black Meshify C front panel.

  • Internal View 1
    Supermicro board, Noctua cooler.

  • Internal View 2
    PSU, primary SSD, tidy cabling.

  • Unboxing & Parts
    Boxes ready for assembly.

  • System Monitoring
    Grafana health and performance gauges.

  • Live Nodes
    Block and relay nodes in gLiveView.

Reflections

This project delivered blockchain knowledge from the ground up—producing blocks that secure a global network, minting NFTs that persist forever on-chain, and learning hard lessons about data resilience. Neurodiversity turned deep-focus debugging sessions into breakthroughs. It mirrors enterprise leadership: design resilient systems, mitigate risks, and back everything up rigorously.

If you're curious about staking, NFTs, or homelab builds, start small—the hands-on learning is unmatched.

Joe Hawley
Fortune 500 Director | CISSP
M.S. Cybersecurity Graduate Student @ Georgia Institute of Technology