A working drawing set

Five plates that carry the whole design.

Each plate is one sheet from a working set. Move between them, then break a dependency to see which record still stands.

Start with the outcome

The question sheet

A homelab follows from three answers. Everything downstream is a consequence of them.

Select a dependency to see what still holds when it breaks.

Plate 01, The question sheetA homelab follows from three answers. Everything downstream is a consequence of them. A drafting sheet titled The question sheet. It shows three pencilled questions on a card: who is this actually for, what data cannot be recreated, and what must keep working when you are away. To the right, a layer stack lists four destinations. Each destination has a tick box and the condition that adds it: learn, create value, add resilience, add bounded automation. A footer reminds the reader to stop at the destination that solves the problem.PLATE 01Start with the outcomeThe question sheetREV 2026-07THREE QUESTIONS, IN ORDER01Who is this actually for?Name a person, not a persona.The service level is set by who notices when it breaks.02What data cannot be recreated?Name the folder or the record.Recovery, not storage, is where that data survives.03What must keep working when you are away?Name the hour, not the aspiration.That list is the local-first side of the design.FOUR DESTINATIONS, IN ORDERSTOP AT THE ONE THAT SOLVES YOUR PROBLEMLEARNWhen you can name the first workload and its owner.01CREATE VALUEWhen someone else depends on the service you keep.02ADD RESILIENCEWhen downtime has a cost you can name.03ADD BOUNDED AUTOMATIONWhen the operating loop is provable and the change surface is narrow.04Complexity is not progress by itself. Complexity is a cost you pay for a capability.

Plate 01, Start with the outcome

The question sheet

A homelab follows from three answers. Everything downstream is a consequence of them.

  1. WHO IS THIS FOR

    Name a person, not a persona. The service level is set by who notices when it breaks.

  2. WHAT CANNOT BE RECREATED

    Name the folder or the record. Recovery, not storage, is where that data survives.

  3. WHAT MUST KEEP WORKING

    Name the hour, not the aspiration. That list is the local-first side of the design.

  4. CHOOSE ONE DESTINATION

    Learn, create value, add resilience, or add bounded automation. Stop at the one that solves your problem.

  5. COMPLEXITY IS A COST

    Every added layer earns its place. A quieter design that recovers is more mature than a louder one that does not.

  1. 01-plan
  • ● verified or healthy
  • ▲ degraded or needs attention
  • ■ failed dependency

Plate 01

The question sheet

Scroll or drag to move across the drawing. Pinch to zoom on touch devices.