Stackarr Field Notes / Issue 2026

Operate the homelab you meant to build.

Clear, source-backed guides for private infrastructure, media, automation, and the systems that keep a home server dependable.

A closed hallway door, wall sensor and glowing floor lamp beside a small home-server appliance on a wooden bench.FIELD NOTE
Smart Home

What Should Happen When a Smart-Home Routine Fires Twice?

Home Assistant can ignore, replace, queue, or overlap a running automation. Choose by the consequence of the second event, not by apparent speed.

Read article

Latest dispatches

29 articles
An archive box and loose prints of different sizes sit on a wooden table beside a compact home storage device.EXPLAINER
Data & Photos

Why an Immich Library Needs More Space Than Its Originals

Photo originals are only part of the capacity plan. Separate previews, video derivatives, database data, and backup copies before sizing an Immich server.

Read article Immich
An open drawer of storage cases beneath a workshop bench, with a compact home server and a portable drive on the worktop.COMPARISON
Infrastructure & Networking

Choose Docker Storage by Who Owns the Files

Compare bind mounts and named volumes by host access, container replacement, Compose lifecycle, and recovery—not by which syntax looks simpler.

Read article
A monitor showing a mountain scene sits beside a compact computer on a wooden desk, with a chair and dark window nearby.EXPLAINER
Media & Entertainment

Why Subtitles Can Make a Media Server Transcode

The video codec is only part of playback compatibility. Understand subtitle rendering, remuxing, and burn-in before buying more server hardware.

Read article Jellyfin
A small sensor and plant sit on a window ledge above a radiator, with closed notebooks stacked on a nearby bench.EXPLAINER
Smart Home

Decide Which Home Assistant History Is Worth Keeping

Detailed events and long-term sensor summaries answer different questions. Choose Home Assistant retention around the evidence you actually need.

Read article
An open home-server cupboard holds storage hardware, a network switch and a coiled cable beside a portable inspection lamp.EXPLAINER
Infrastructure & Networking

Docker Health Checks Are Not Restart Policies

A failed probe, a stopped process, and an unready dependency need different responses. Understand what Docker and Compose actually automate.

Read article
Printed landscape photos and an open album on a wooden table, beside a closed album and a home server on a shelf near a window.COMPARISON
Data & Photos

Choose Immich Sharing by Audience, Not Convenience

Shared albums, partner access, and public links expose different amounts of a photo library. Match the sharing method to the people and pictures involved.

Read article Immich
An AV receiver, compact home server, and remote on a wooden console beneath a landscape on a screen in a dark home cinema.COMPARISON
Media & Entertainment

Choose Jellyfin Preview Images by How You Browse

Chapter images and trickplay solve different navigation problems. Choose the useful preview first, then budget server work, storage, and client compatibility.

Read article Jellyfin
A compact workstation on a timber desk beside a closed notebook and ceramic mug, lit by a window and one violet power light.EXPLAINER
AI & Automation

Ollama Memory Has Three Budgets, Not One

A model download is not a memory budget. Understand loaded models, context length, and parallel requests before sizing local AI for a shared home server.

Read article