Based on the experiences I’ve seen on this subreddit, the solution is to buy a floor to ceiling 42u rack
In a professional setting it’s 2n+ config that’s 2 racks for load balancing and redundancy and the 3rd hot spare rack. So a single 42u rack for your home is basic af it’s a shame technology is so expensive
Tell that gnome to start keeping better track of those cables
If u have the money they make 12-18u four post racks that are nice. Get some shelves. Wire management.
Looks like my setup, except for David the leprechaun ;)
Quick, cheap hits:
- Buy a roll of velcro strap and tie up those cords – for longer loops use two straps to keep the loops tidy
- If you’re sticking with the table (which is fine I think if it’s out of the way), screw your power strip to the underside so that more of the cables will be hidden from view, and you’ll just have the single power cord from the table to the wall.
- More gnomes.
If that’s a Lack from IKEA, you can turn it into a Lack Rack. There are some shelves available for racks so you could hide some stuff. You can even go as far as setting up a patch panel and a rack power strip. Some power strips have outlets on the front and back, so you can hide stuff in the back.
Now thats something I can relate to. I love it.
The gnome protects all.
Stack them
What’re you using the Pi’s for? You could run everything in Docker containers on the PC
Turn the table into a rack: https://wiki.eth0.nl/index.php/LackRack
What’s the white thing with the blue circle on top?
Put a smaller box/table/shelf underneath the black table. Now you have three layers (floor, small table, big table) to put stuff. You can even add a tablecloth on top if you want to cover the stuff underneath. That will make it look neat and tidy for $0.
I just went to the IKEA a couple of weeks ago and found 2 lack tables in the scratch and dent section for $10 each. I had a dickens of a time trying to remove the plugs in the bottom of each leg so I just ended up sawing the bottom 3 inches from one of the table’s legs. This was done in order to shove and screw a 1 & 3/4" square dowel in each leg to hold the rack rails in place. Works so far and is cheap.
The big tower can stand on its own. As to various small pieces… Shelving. Regular open-backed shelving. IKEA, if you have one nearby.