After a month of research, weighing hardware options, and diving deep into reviews, I finally made the decision to build my new home lab setup. As a VMware enthusiast, I wanted something that was compact but powerful enough to handle everything in VCF, all while fitting neatly into my workspace. That’s when I landed on the ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ with the Intel Core Ultra 9 285H processor-the perfect little powerhouse!
🧠 The Heart of the Build: ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ with Intel Core Ultra 9 285H
This isn’t your typical NUC. While the specs officially list support for 96GB of DDR5 RAM (SODIMM), I was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually supports 128GB-just what I needed. I picked up the Crucial 128GB Kit (2x64GB) DDR5 RAM, 5600MHz, which is more than enough to power my ESXi setup and handle multiple virtual machines simultaneously. It’s fast, responsive, and easily handles the demands of a small private cloud setup at home.
Everything can be installed completely tool-less and it can be mounted to any surface. During initial testing, it generated very little heat and was very responsive.
💾 Dual NVMe Setup: Unmatched Speed and Capacity
When it comes to storage, I wasn’t willing to compromise on speed. I opted for the Corsair MP600 Micro 2TB NVMe PCIe x4 drive in the 2242 slot as my primary storage. The performance is stunning, and with PCIe 4.0 support, it’s more than enough to handle everything I throw at it.
But I didn’t stop there-who can resist the urge for more speed and storage, right? In the 2280 slot, I installed a Samsung SSD 9100 PRO 1TB. This is where the fun begins: I’m using it for NVMe Memory Tiering in ESXi and to carve out some capacity for VMFS. Together, these two NVMe drives offer the perfect balance of performance and storage capacity, handling everything from VM storage to memory-intensive tasks-keeping everything in my virtual environment running smoothly.
🌐 Networking: Thunderbolt 4 Speed for Seamless Performance
I didn’t neglect networking either. To ensure I get maximum throughput, I added the OWC Thunderbolt 4 10G Ethernet Adapter. Fast networking is a must in any lab, and this adapter lets me transfer large files, run multi-node clusters, and test configurations without hitting any bottlenecks. With Thunderbolt 4 connectivity, I can rest assured that network speed will never be a limiting factor in my home lab.
I decided to give the OWC TB4 version a try myself. Unfortunately the OWC TB4 version wasn't compatible with the ESXi USB NIC Driver Fling. I ended up swapping it out for the TB3 version.🔧 Why This Build?
Why the ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ and these specific components? Simple: I wanted a setup that was compact yet powerful, with potential to expand to a 2-node or 3-node. The Intel Core Ultra 9 285H CPU gives me all the processing power I need, while the dual NVMe storage ensures I’ll never run out of fast, responsive space. The Thunderbolt 4 adapter takes care of any networking requirements, ensuring smooth operations even with heavy workloads.
It’s the perfect mix of size and performance for getting started.
Looking back, I realized that the ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ with the 285H doesn’t have enough cores to support VCF Auto, which means I can’t fully unlock the potential I was hoping for from the ASUS unless I run a 2nd box with different hardware.🧪 Final Thoughts: Lab Ready, Future-Proof, and Compact
This lab is built to last. Whether I’m testing VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), experimenting with ESXi features, or just refining my skills, this setup is ready for it all-well, except for VCF Auto, but that’s a topic for another day. The ability to leverage NVMe Memory Tiering to increase the amount of Memory for additional workloads is a game-changer, and the enhanced speed and connectivity make this NUC the center of my lab.
I’m eager to see how this setup performs over time, and I’ve already started rolling out VCF. Stay tuned for more updates as I continue optimizing and tweaking this lab.
For anyone thinking about building their own home lab, I highly recommend the ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ setup. It’s compact, powerful, and the perfect platform to elevate your VCF knowledge to the next level.
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