While I am not averse to using VMs in my personal computers for hosting testing tools like my local office install of GitLab, I really wanted to create a lab with multiple computers and some persistence that would not rely on my PC being operational all the time. I tend to switch from my Desktop to my Laptop multiple times per day. Having been inspired by the work of Jeff Geerling over the years and his immersive work with Raspberry Pis, I had something of a “why not” moment after the Pi 4B was released.

While I am not averse to using VMs in my personal computers for hosting testing tools like my local office install of GitLab, I really wanted to create a lab with multiple computers and some persistence that would not rely on my PC being operational all the time. I tend to switch from my Desktop to my Laptop multiple times per day. Having been inspired by the work of Jeff Geerling over the years and his immersive work with Raspberry Pis, I had something of a “why not” moment after the Pi 4B was released.