In this video we take a look at home lab automation to see how you can use Terraform, Ansible, and CI/CD pipelines to automate infrastructure provisioning with Proxmox, VMware, etc. Automation is easier than you think and we will walk through real-world examples of this in the video.
How to update Linux with Ansible written with code samples: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2024/01/how-to-update-ubuntu-with-ansible/
Written blog on the subject:
https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2025/03/automating-your-home-lab-with-ansible-terraform-and-ci-cd-pipelines/
Proxmox server build components list (amazon affiliate links I get a small commission):
Minisforum BD795M – https://amzn.to/4i2VEDH
RackChoice 2U Micro ATX Compact – https://amzn.to/3CeIW5H
Cooler Master MWE Gold 850 V2 – https://amzn.to/4aFXhET
Noctua NH-L9i-17xx, Premium Low-Profile CPU Cooler – https://amzn.to/4hAKIwG
***New*** Crucial 128 GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit - https://amzn.to/4i5g5zN
Crucial 96GB kit of DDR5 SODIMM memory kit – https://amzn.to/40w3ONQ
Intel X520-DA2 10 GbE network adapter – https://amzn.to/4jv05ZA
Kingston 240 GB drive for boot – https://amzn.to/4hv6sKG
Samsung EVO 990 Pro 2TB – https://amzn.to/40OwtiA
MX-4 Thermal paste – https://amzn.to/4hs5WgL
Check out the VHT forums to get your questions answered: https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/community/
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Automation - 0:00
Why automate, is it really faster? 1:06
Introducing the 3 tools we will use - 2:22
Detailed intro to Terraform - 2:36
Demo of using Terraform with Proxmox - 3:43
Running the Terraform code - 9:05
Looking at Proxmox during Terraform provisioning - 9:18
Introduction to Ansible - 10:12
Using Ansible to install updates in Ubuntu Server - 11:25
No agents are required with Ansible - 13:12
Introduction to CI/CD pipelines - 13:30
Recommendations for CI/CD pipelines - 14:08
Real-world example of running automation with CI/CD - 14:50
Gitlab pipeline file - 15:15
Looking at an inventory PowerShell script used with my CI - 15:36
Looking at the YAML file for updating Linux servers - 16:42
Looking at the Gitlab CI YAML file - 17:25
Start with a real project - 18:56
Use Git - 19:09
Secure your secrets - 19:14
Test locally before implementing CI/CD - 19:29
Monitor and log everything - 19:36
Backup your Terraform state and Ansible Playbooks - 19:43
Wrapping up automating your home lab - 20:13