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Welcome to Pat's Bytes

Welcome to my corner of the internet where I share tutorials, document tech experiments, and try to save my future self some debugging time. Grab a coffee and dive in.

What You'll Find Here

This blog isn't trying to cover everything - it's a focused collection of real-world guides and solutions I've actually implemented. Most content comes from homelab adventures, work challenges, and concepts I'm solidifying through writing.

Current Focus Areas

  • Ansible Automation Ansible with Execution Environments, Navigator, and Collections

  • Infrastructure Tools Packer, Terraform, Podman, and other tools

  • Homelab Chronicles (Coming Soon) Proxmox VE, self-hosted services, and lessons learned from breaking things at home

Why This Site Exists

We've all been there - you solve a complex problem or setup up a new service, write zero documentation, and six months later you're googling the same issue again. This site is my anti-pattern to that cycle. It's equal parts:

  • Learning in public - Writing helps me understand things better "how did that work again?"
  • Personal reference - My searchable record of "how did I get this working again?"
  • Shared experiments - Maybe my homelab/tech adventures can help you

Back in Action

After a year-long hiatus, I'm dusting off the blog and migrating from Hugo to MkDocs. Some articles are getting fresh rewrites, others are being retired, and new content is in the pipeline. The rust is coming off slowly but surely.

Before You Dive In

Fair warning: I tend to favor open-source solutions, automate against Proxmox VE, and have strong opinions about YAML indentation. Your mileage may vary, but the patterns should translate to your environment.

If you spot errors, have questions, or want to share a better approach - please reach out. The best part of learning in public is learning from others.

*Last updated: August 2025