The New Cluster
Tags: cluster, kubernetes, homelab, containers
Published: 2020-06-05 15:26:58

I had previously built a compute cluster using Raspberry Pi mini-computers. A drawback that I had encountered was the ARM architecture that the Raspberry Pi uses. A lot of application developers don't support ARMhf or ARMV7 architectures.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Finally got around to publishing what I&#39;ve been working on with my <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RaspberryPi?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RaspberryPi</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Docker?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Docker</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ansible?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ansible</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mylittlerackofpis?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#mylittlerackofpis</a> <a href="https://t.co/IHXL4izGnn">https://t.co/IHXL4izGnn</a></p>&mdash; Michael Glitzos (@mikeyGlitz) <a href="https://twitter.com/mikeyGlitz/status/948547590597029889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 3, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Recently I came across [this post](https://hackernoon.com/diy-kubernetes-cluster-with-x86-stick-pcs-b0b6b879f8a7) from Hackernoon which explained how to make a DIY cluster using affordable stick-pcs. I decided to try building a compute cluster for the second time, but using stick pcs which I was able to affordably find on the internet.

[![Mini Stick PC](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pSMjYFVONU87et7uC73tjHx4GGjApQ5frh1M-SpisowMwT1fJPg3y0WreebIeZq8YRkvhJfxs4zOBLBOKEK4hYuBnN-YrfDf_2QmdLWAPTFTDmLal0SEN7jWR8qVZr6FZnXZ6rnhFY8=w500)](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pSMjYFVONU87et7uC73tjHx4GGjApQ5frh1M-SpisowMwT1fJPg3y0WreebIeZq8YRkvhJfxs4zOBLBOKEK4hYuBnN-YrfDf_2QmdLWAPTFTDmLal0SEN7jWR8qVZr6FZnXZ6rnhFY8=w2400)

My cluster will consist of the following nodes:
- Intel BOXNUC5CPYH NUC - Master
- 2x ACEPC W5 - Worker

The Intel NUC was a mini-computer which I had from a previous home lab set up. The NUC has the following specs:
- Intel Celeron N3050 - 2 cores 2.16 Ghz
- 8 GB DDR3
- 128 GB SSD

[![Cluster](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/RexfsZLi2upYIncrrlo_DNTuldb2k-VmlrBbRdvmFita6fSU5uQJ3pb7aMjLrfKqW6FI_91BLsZJGzGYCUxzi1jp-oU0I4JYgHnuEnHwwnOm6edPe8L5Y6xjKxFh71KWhxK7MzyEdow=w500)](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/RexfsZLi2upYIncrrlo_DNTuldb2k-VmlrBbRdvmFita6fSU5uQJ3pb7aMjLrfKqW6FI_91BLsZJGzGYCUxzi1jp-oU0I4JYgHnuEnHwwnOm6edPe8L5Y6xjKxFh71KWhxK7MzyEdow=w2400)

I've attached an additional 4TB USB HDD to for storage. I intend to use the master node as a network-attached storage (NAS) device as well.

The compute nodes have the following specs:
- Intel Atom z8350 - 4 cores 1.8 GHZ
- 2 GB DDR3
- 32 GB Internal SD Card

Since the resources on these mini computers is limited, I'll be using [k3s](https://k3s.io) as a lightweight alternative to [kubernetes](https://kubernetes.io/).

[![Cluster Layout](https://drive.google.com/thumbnail?id=1dHOeEqZzHaXSzrT4xgDbA1spGr9_5uTm)](https://app.diagrams.net/?lightbox=1&highlight=0000ff&layers=1&nav=1&title=Home%20Cluster#Uhttps%3A%2F%2Fdrive.google.com%2Fuc%3Fid%3D1dHOeEqZzHaXSzrT4xgDbA1spGr9_5uTm%26export%3Ddownload)

I also found that I receive better performance and stability using Debian over Ubuntu.