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@jasonulbright jasonulbright released this 02 May 17:31
v1.0.0
9034fa2

MECM HomeLab is a native PowerShell + Hyper-V engine that builds a
fully-functional Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager 2509 home
lab from a fresh Windows host. One cmdlet (Install-HomeLab), no
external module dependencies.

Highlights

  • One-cmdlet deploy. Install-HomeLab provisions three VMs (DC,
    CM site server, Windows 11 client) on an isolated Hyper-V vSwitch
    with NAT, joins them to a domain, installs SQL Server 2022 +
    ConfigMgr 2509, configures discovery / boundaries / SUP / NAA /
    client push, and lays down PostCM customization (collections,
    maintenance windows, boot image, OS image, OSD task sequence
    stub). Clean end-to-end in roughly an hour on a healthy host.
  • PowerShell 7.6 LTS / .NET 10. Host orchestrator. No external
    module dependencies; vendored everything (MahApps, ControlzEx,
    Xaml.Behaviors).
  • Bare-metal recovery model. Remove-HomeLab strips the lab
    back to base images; re-running Install-HomeLab rebuilds. The
    engine is the recovery story.
  • Server 2025 + CM 2509 validated. Engine targets the latest
    Microsoft eval ISOs and CM 2509 site install (with the fixed
    cmdlet schema, ODBC 18.5.2.1 pin, and MSOLEDBSQL19 prereq).
  • GUI wizard. WPF + MahApps front-end (gui/start-homelab-gui.ps1)
    for hosts that prefer a click-through topology / template /
    PostCM picker. The wizard composes the same Install-HomeLab
    call.
  • Idempotent re-run. Running Install-HomeLab against an
    existing lab short-circuits each phase via "AlreadyExists" /
    "AlreadyInstalled" / "AlreadyPromoted" probes; a no-op re-run
    finishes in well under 10 minutes.

Topology

VM Role IP OS
DC01 Domain controller, root CA 192.168.50.10 Windows Server 2025
CM01 SQL 2022 + ConfigMgr 2509 (site server / MP / DP) 192.168.50.20 Windows Server 2025
CLIENT01 Managed test client 192.168.50.100 Windows 11 Enterprise

Domain contoso.com, NetBIOS CONTOSO, site code MCM. All
configurable via templates/default.psd1.

Architecture

  • modules/HomeLab/ -- the engine. Public surface: 7 cmdlets
    (Install-HomeLab, Remove-HomeLab, Start-HomeLab,
    Stop-HomeLab, Test-HomeLab, Connect-HomeLabVM,
    Enter-HomeLabSession).
  • Private/ is organized by phase (01-Prereq through 11-PostCM)
    so each phase is independently auditable and re-entrant.
  • Helpers/ provides session pooling, logging, file copy,
    unattend INI generation, and predicate-based readiness gates.
  • gui/ is a self-contained WPF wizard that drives the engine.

Hardware floor

Resource Minimum Recommended
RAM 32 GB 64 GB
Disk 300 GB SSD/NVMe 500 GB+
CPU 4 cores 8+ cores

Known limitations

  • CAS hierarchy topology is not implemented; only standalone
    primary sites.
  • Client install is verified once per deploy; re-running the
    ADWS / SMS provider gates after a long idle window may need
    a session refresh.
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