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🚀 Server-Hub: Build Your Own QEMU/KVM Virtual Home Lab

stable release

Transform your Linux workstation into a powerful, automated virtual datacenter! This project allows you to build and manage a virtual home lab, making it easy to deploy, break, and rebuild Linux VMs effortlessly. It automates VM provisioning, manages the complete lifecycle of your VMs, and provides a flexible environment for learning, testing, and experimenting with Linux-based technologies.

Although many open-source alternatives exist, I built this project for the fun of creating something of my own and sharing it with anyone with similar interests.

⚠️ DISCLAIMER: This project is intended for testing, development, and experimentation purposes only.

🎯 What You'll Get

  • 🚀 Automated VM provisioning via PXE boot & golden images
  • 🌐 Dynamic DNS management for your local domain
  • 🔧 Full infrastructure-as-code automation
  • 💻 Professional datacenter experience on your workstation
  • 🎮 Complete VM lifecycle management with enterprise-grade tools
  • 🧪 Experiment freely – Spin up and destroy VMs in seconds

🖥️ Automated Lab Environment for Provisioning and Managing Linux VMs

🧠 Central Infra Server VM's OS

The central lab infrastructure server VM is designed to run on AlmaLinux 10 by default, providing all the essential services for managing the lab environment.

📦 VM Guest OS Provisioning

The lab infrastructure server centrally manages all guest VM provisioning using automation scripts and configuration templates.

The toolkits provide automated VM provisioning for all three major Linux families, including ready-to-use configurations for:

Distro Family Supported OSes Provisioning Method Status
Red Hat-based AlmaLinux Kickstart ✅ Included by default
Rocky, Oracle Linux, RHEL, CentOS Stream Kickstart 🔧 Customizable
Debian-based Ubuntu LTS Cloud-init (cloud-config) 🔧 Customizable
SUSE-based openSUSE Leap AutoYaST 🔧 Customizable

🧾 Minimum System Requirements

These are the minimum recommended values. You can adjust them later based on your specific use case and workload.

🔹 Central Infra Server VM

  • 🧠 Memory: 2 GB RAM
  • ⚙️ CPU: 2 vCPUs
  • 💾 Storage: 30 GB

🔸 Provisioned VMs

  • 🧠 Memory: 2 GB RAM
  • ⚙️ CPU: 2 vCPUs
  • 💾 Storage: 20 GB

📥 Quick Start: Get Up and Running in 5 Steps

Step 1 – Download the Latest Release

stable release

sudo mkdir -p /server-hub
sudo chown ${USER}:$(id -g) /server-hub
curl -sSL https://github.com/Muthukumar-Subramaniam/server-hub/releases/latest/download/server-hub.tar.gz | tar -xzv -C /server-hub
cd /server-hub/qemu-kvm-manage/

📦 Using Latest Release: This downloads the latest stable release directly from GitHub.

Alternative - Clone from the Repository:

If you prefer to use the latest code from the repository:

sudo mkdir -p /server-hub
sudo chown ${USER}:$(id -g) /server-hub
git clone https://github.com/Muthukumar-Subramaniam/server-hub.git /server-hub
cd /server-hub/qemu-kvm-manage/

Step 2 – Install QEMU/KVM

Run the automated setup script to configure your virtualization environment:

./setup-qemu-kvm.sh

This will install and configure all necessary packages and dependencies.

Step 3 – Download AlmaLinux ISO

Grab the latest AlmaLinux ISO for your lab infrastructure:

./download-almalinux-latest.sh

☕ Pro tip: This might take a few minutes depending on your network speed. Perfect time for a coffee break!

Step 4 – Deploy Your Lab Infrastructure Server

Now comes the magic! This fully automated script will:

  • ✨ Guide you through the setup with interactive prompts
  • 🔄 Install and configure the centralized lab infrastructure server
  • 🎛️ Set up DNS, DHCP, PXE boot, and web services
  • 🤖 Run Ansible automation for consistent configuration
./deploy-lab-infra-server.sh

What to expect:

  • First Reboot: After OS installation and initial configuration
  • Second Reboot: After services are configured via Ansible playbook
  • Final Step: Once you see the login prompt, press Ctrl + ] to exit the console

🎬 Sit back and watch the automation work its magic!

Step 5 – Access Your Infrastructure Server

Time to explore! SSH into your newly deployed infrastructure server:

ssh lab-infra-server.lab.local

💡 Replace lab-infra-server.lab.local with your actual server name and domain if different.

✅ Your Lab is Ready! Time to Build Something Amazing! 🎉

🛠️ Your New Superpowers: VM Management Tools

Your workstation is now equipped with powerful lab management tools:

📦 VM Deployment & Management

qlabvmctl build-golden-image        # 🎨 Create reusable golden base images
qlabvmctl install-golden            # 🚀 Deploy VMs instantly from golden images
qlabvmctl install-pxe               # 🌐 Deploy VMs via network PXE boot
qlabvmctl reimage-golden            # 🔄 Reinstall VMs from golden images
qlabvmctl reimage-pxe               # 🔄 Reinstall VMs via PXE boot

🎮 VM Operations

qlabvmctl list                      # 📊 View all VMs and their status
qlabvmctl info                      # ℹ️ Display detailed VM information
qlabvmctl console                   # 🖥️ Connect to VM serial console
qlabvmctl start                     # ▶️ Power on VMs
qlabvmctl stop                      # ⏹️ Force power-off VMs
qlabvmctl shutdown                  # 🔽 Graceful VM shutdown
qlabvmctl restart                   # 🔄 Hard restart VMs
qlabvmctl reboot                    # 🔃 Graceful VM reboot
qlabvmctl remove                    # 🗑️ Delete VMs completely

🔧 VM Configuration

qlabvmctl resize                    # 📏 Resize memory, CPU, or disk
qlabvmctl disk-add                  # 💾 Add new storage disks to VM
qlabvmctl disk-resize               # 📐 Resize additional disks
qlabvmctl disk-attach               # 🔗 Attach disks from detached storage
qlabvmctl disk-detach               # 📤 Detach and save disks for later use
qlabvmctl disk-delete               # 🗑️ Permanently delete detached disks
qlabvmctl nic-add                   # 🌐 Add network interfaces to VM
qlabvmctl nic-remove                # ❌ Remove network interfaces from VM

🌐 Network Management

qlabvmctl ipv6-route                # 🛣️ Manage IPv6 default routes (enable/disable/auto/status)

🌍 Infrastructure Management

qlabstart                           # 🏁 Start the entire lab infrastructure
qlabhealth                          # 🏥 Check lab infrastructure health
qlabdnsbinder                       # 🌐 Manage local DNS records

Pro tips:

  • Use qlabvmctl --help or qlabvmctl <subcommand> --help for VM management help

🎭 The Secret Sauce: Backend Automation Tools

These powerful tools run on your infrastructure server, making everything work seamlessly:

  • 🌐 dnsbinder – Automatically manages DNS records for your local domain as you create/destroy VMs
  • ⚡ ksmanager – Handles iPXE & golden-image based OS provisioning using kickstart automation
  • 📦 prepare-distro-for-ksmanager – Downloads and prepares multiple Linux distributions (AlmaLinux, Rocky, Ubuntu, openSUSE, and more!)

🎊 Congratulations! Welcome to Your Virtual Datacenter!

You've just built a professional-grade, fully automated home lab that rivals enterprise infrastructure!

🌟 What Can You Do Now?

  • 🧪 Experiment freely – Spin up and destroy VMs in seconds
  • 📚 Learn by doing – Practice DevOps, automation, and infrastructure management
  • 🏢 Simulate production – Test multi-tier applications in realistic environments
  • 🚀 Develop skills – Master tools used in real enterprise datacenters
  • 🔬 Test and break things – Build, destroy, rebuild without fear

Your journey to infrastructure mastery starts here! 🧑‍💻🖥️🧠

💬 Support & Contributing

  • Need help? Found a bug? Have ideas? Open an issue on GitHub!
  • Want to contribute? Pull requests are welcome! Feel free to improve the automation, add new distros, or enhance documentation.

📜 License

This project is open source. See the LICENSE file for details.

Built with ❤️ for the home lab community