MQTT is one of those services that quietly becomes more important the longer you use it. At first, I was only using it for a few simple messages. Then more things started depending on it. The Raspberry Pi used it.…
Some of the best home lab problems are the ones that look completely ridiculous once you finally understand what happened. This was one of them. During the earlier versions of my Raspberry Pi TARDIS project, Node-RED was responsible for triggering…
One of the bigger changes in Realm Labs was moving Node-RED away from a Raspberry Pi and into a more centralised setup. At first, Node-RED had been running directly on the Pi because it was convenient. The Pi already handled:…
Home Assistant, Node-RED, Raspberry Pis, ESP32 microcontrollers and custom projects all need a simple way of exchanging commands and status information. Rather than building direct connections between every device, MQTT provides a central messaging layer that everything can use. I…
Node-RED Home Automation: Building Visual Automations for Realm Labs Node-RED has become one of the key automation tools behind Realm Labs. Home Assistant provides the central smart-home platform, MQTT provides a lightweight way for devices to communicate, and Node-RED sits…
Step 1: Storage & Folder Structure Step 2: Docker / Portainer Deployment When launching the container (via Portainer, Docker CLI, or Docker Compose), configure network and volume mappings as follows: Volume Mapping Map your NAS path directly to the internal…
I use Home Assistant to bring devices from different ecosystems into one place, and Tuya devices are a good example of why that is useful. Rather than relying entirely on the Smart Life or Tuya app, the device can be…
I wanted to create a control panel for my home, so I decided to recycle an old tablet, host Home Assistant on my Docker engine, and connect my various devices through HACS or standard integrations. Here is the final dashboard…
If you’ve spent any time tinkering with home automation or DIY electronics, you know how easy it is to fall down the rabbit hole. What starts as a simple single-board setup—like running Home Assistant or Node-RED routines off a Raspberry…
Some of the most rewarding technology projects are the ones where engineering meets something completely unnecessary but genuinely fun. The Realm Labs TARDIS started as a static display model and gradually evolved into a network-connected automation project with programmable lighting,…
