Recent work

From consumer router to managed network

Starting point: a single consumer router behind the ISP’s modem. No separation between staff, guests and devices, weak and reused passwords — while unused professional network equipment sat in the rack.

Phased approach, each phase at a fixed price:

1. Survey & documentation — all equipment mapped, a Wi-Fi scan and a risk report
2. Security basics — every Wi-Fi and admin password replaced, a password vault with two-factor authentication for the client
3. Network into production — the existing equipment put to use and switched over in a single planned session

Result: a centrally managed network with four separate networks, four Wi-Fi networks and six access points. Guests are kept apart from staff and devices, and the client has full documentation and an operations manual.

Own TV channels, smart devices and a staff portal

A Mac mini supplied by the client became the central server of the business:

• Two own TV channels playing promotions and announcements non-stop on the screens in the gym — new uploads join the loop automatically
• Upload page for staff, no technical knowledge needed
• Home Assistant with Zigbee as the base for smart devices
• Staff portal with login, including towel registration with QR cards per member
• Reachable from outside on the client’s own domain, behind login and PIN — without a single open port on the router
• User manual for the front desk and for administrators

AI assistant on a dedicated server

A dedicated, isolated server for a single client, with an AI assistant and workflow automation.

• Dedicated Proxmox server, tuned and with a firewall that blocks everything by default
• Management exclusively through a secured jump host
• AI assistant (OpenClaw) and automation with n8n; document management (Paperless-ngx) and notes (Joplin) are part of the concept
• Set up as a template: what works here, we roll out repeatably to future clients

Smart home installations with scheduled maintenance

Home Assistant installations for households, with a fixed maintenance schedule instead of “call us when it breaks”.

• Fixed schedule: a maintenance round every two months, with updates we test on our own installation first
• A file per client with configuration and history, so any technician can pick it up straight away
• Remote access through a secure tunnel where wanted

Our own platform

Everything we offer runs on our own systems first. That way we know what works — and what doesn’t.

• A cluster of three servers running more than fifty services
• DNS with automatic takeover by a second server on failure
• Daily backups to a backup server plus a weekly copy on a NAS, with tested restores
• Monitoring with an independent watchdog and push notifications
• Every public service behind its own firewall, nearly all of it reached through an encrypted tunnel
• Automated security check with more than two hundred tests

Tools we built ourselves

• Electricity balance reader — reads a prepaid electricity meter and puts the balance in Home Assistant, with an alert before it runs out
• Network diagnostics kit — a compact test kit on a Raspberry Pi for on-site troubleshooting
• Jump host — a small management server for secure access to client networks, without open ports