I think you have enough people here stating their pfSense / OPNSense works fine, so I’d guess you have something unique with your setup - maybe it’s a dodgy cable, or you’re running both In & Out traffic over vlans on the same NIC on your PC and getting problems with unmanaged switches dealing with that…

I had an issue with my pfSense box not negotiating to 1Gb on a Cat6 cable to a switch. I tried all sorts of diagnostics and it turned out to be a problem with the wall socket crimping, so hardware issues do need to be checked… I’m obviously assuming you didn’t use the exact same cables as your firewalla…

Just some different angles to think about…

Shelly

I use the vintage ones as they look nice.

I have 12 of them because my house wiring is 💩 so I can’t get smart switches to work properly

They’re wifi and can operate with the Shelly integration and / or MQTT. No need for an app, they have their own wifi when you first power them up to configure them.

The only reason I let them loose on the internet is to update their firmware, then I isolate them again.

I also have a pair of Lifx bulbs in the bedroom as they’re inside shades so it’s more about the RGB colour for sunrise / sunset than their visual appeal as a bulb.

Lowest common denominator: Plaintext / Markdown files?

They’ll work with Logseq, web browsers, notepad, your phone… and maybe sync it all via syncthing?

That’s what I use.

I also write up my system notes in Logseq with the intention that I’ll just sync in my ansible files too… one day…

Massively offtopic and definitely over reaching, I know, but… from reading this post, as well as journalling, I’d recommend you also consider a counsellor if it’s heavy life issues.

Seeing one myself has helped me a hell of a lot… I only wake at 3am due to work stress now, rather than (all the other stuff)

Try journalctl -xe to get more info

Just as a reality check, disable systemd-timesyncd and verify if that is the problem - tbh, I’d be surprised it’s that.

There can be an issue with things like databases holding up the shutdown / reboot (I have an issue with a systemd service waiting for mariadb that I’ve not found time to resolve)…

I don’t use kde, but perhaps there’s something there that might help point to the issue.

I’d say try to push for Thread, but be ready to fall back to Zigbee

Not sure on the scale of your strip lighting, but I have a small length (gigity) under a waal mounted kitchen cupboard which is connected to a zigbee socket. That allows me to extend the range for some other zigbee devices… so… if you’re wanting to get more devices connected in the future, that might be worth considering.

Genuine question: How’s this different to rsync?

I have rsync installed locally, but not remotely and I’m able to sync changes, so how does this differ?

Edit: ok, I read the article a bit further and found the rsync comparison

Thst’s the guy!

Thanks.

Mobile: Fossify Calendar with DavX5 as the interface (both from FDroid)

Laptop: Vivaldi’s built-in Calendar

Tablets around the house: Home Assitant’s calendar (I don’t recall the specific integration, but it was a HACS one from memory)

Why the 1-off release with no further development? (9 months ago)

Interestimg take though, using MQTT instead of XMPP

You might try installing just one of the apps for that DE that you do want and let it pull in the dependancies… that might result in a leaner install.

Have a look on yoochoob for “the guy with the Swiss accent” (I forgot his real account name) - he did an interesting article on soil sensors.

I bought a zigbee sensor off Ali Express and it’s fine, but it’s waaay to.big for a small pot plant, but fine for a large one… so “big” vs “small” is kinda relative to the plant you’re monitoring.

Radicale - I ditched Nextcloud for it as no-one needed to see a calendar, it’s on their phone…

I also use it to sync a calendar for Home Assistant too

And it effectively backs up my Contacts too.

To compare…

We’re running brand new Dell laptops with Windows 11 and most are failing.

Some are hardware issues (laptop won’t charge!) Some are software (BSOD, random issues, etc)

So, TBH, I’d like to buy back all our old laptops, replace Windows with Linux and do away with all the corp. spyware and I bet my team’s productivity doubles.

Just think of all those Azure and AWS VMs needing age verification as they’re spooled up, destroyed and receated every few minutes…

@MindfulMaverick@piefed.zip definitely do Step1 from here.

Make sure it’s memtest+ and not the others.

It might fail quickly, it might take all night, but this will find bad RAM.

If it passes, move on to the next steps… I’d also add: check PSU

Correct.

That conversation has finished, the dust has settled and syncthing-fork is fine.

Yep, agreed… it’s an amazing tool - esp. as it’s (almost?) like Photoshop and other expensive tools.

I just can’t suggest it to my friends without being afraid / avoiding / making excuses for an acronym… they’ll have to find it themselves and they won’t want to admit it either…

I’m sure this would get more mainstream acceptance if they changed the name.

Definitely look for a 2nd hand one, you’ll have less issues.

Don’t go toooo old as some had wifi issues back in the day (no / partial drivers)

There’s a lot of refurbs by major brands (ie Dell) that are ex-corp lease models with some kind of warranty (which won’t cover the battery) because of the Win10 purge.

I think the GPU is the main issue if you’re wanting to play games… and as others have said, gimmicks like touchscreens and fingerprint readers can be hit & miss.

I’ve installed Mint on Lenovo, Dell and HP laptops with no major issues.