From Obsidian to SiYuan: Why Your Homelab Needs a Database, Not Just Notes 📚💻
As a system analyst, I’ve always been obsessed with structuring chaos. For years, Obsidian was my go-to "Second Brain." It’s powerful, but as my Homelab expanded, I realized I didn't just need notes — I needed a living documentation engine that I could access via web from any device in my network.
I’ve tested the whole spectrum: Docmost, Trillium, and AFFiNE.
- AFFiNE is beautiful (Notion + Miro vibes), but its "infinite canvas" often leads to visual chaos. It's great for sketching a network topology, but terrible when you need to find a specific CLI command via Ctrl+F.
- SiYuan changed the game for me. It’s currently at the heart of my local stack.
Why
SiYuan is the "Final Boss" of Self-Hosted Note-taking:
1. Block-Level Granularity (JSON Power): 🧩
Unlike standard Markdown, SiYuan assigns a unique ID to every single paragraph and list item. This allows for transclusion—you can pull a specific VPN setup instruction into five different guides, and when you update the original, it updates everywhere.
2. The SQL Killer-Feature: ⚡
This is where it turns into a professional CMDB (Configuration Management Database). I don't manually track my 50+ Docker containers in a table. I just add custom attributes to my service notes:
custom-ip: 192.168.1.10custom-port: 8080Then, I use a native SQL query on my Dashboard to automatically generate a real-time "Service Matrix." If I change a port in a note, the master table updates itself. No more IP conflicts.
3. Performance & Sovereignty: 🛡️
- Resource Efficiency: While AFFiNE is a bit of a resource hog, SiYuan is incredibly light, idling at just 31MB in my Docker container.
- No Vendor-Lock: Even though it uses
.sy (JSON) files for its advanced logic, the export to Markdown is flawless and can be automated via Kernel API.
The Verdict:
If you have 3-4 services, stick to Obsidian. But if you’re running a Proxmox cluster with complex networking, you need a tool that speaks SQL.
Don't let your documentation become legacy hardware. Give it a database-driven brain.
What about you? Are you a "pure Markdown" purist, or have you embraced the power of block-based databases like SiYuan or Notion? How do you track your Homelab inventory?
#SelfHosted #Homelab #SiYuan #Obsidian #KnowledgeManagement #SQL #SysAdmin #Documentation #TechStack #Privacy #OpenSource
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Danny Hayes