📝 devlog v3 [ 2025-12-02 ]

- installing debian on a dell vostro a100 x64 machine, for a low powered (under 25w) NAS
- staged sudo + passwd for clean privilege escalation
- xfce4 + lightdm layered, surprisingly snappy on SSD
- pci gigabit nic installed, static ip locked in via systemd networking
- external drive detected (600gb + 300gb), planning resize + cleanup before samba shares
- zsh + oh-my-zsh + powerlevel10k + jetbrains mono nerd font staged for shell expressiveness
- btop tested, smooth even on legacy hardware

🔍 insights

- netinst failed, hangs at ISOLINUX; meaning bootloader cant find kernel
- switched USB drives to sandisk, attempted again
- used DVD iso in place of netinst
- switched to text based install, graphical shung at 97%
- text based install hung again at 97%, reinstall with basic sysutils & ssh only.
- install succeeeded. proceeded to install xfce, lightdm.
- xfce responsiveness exceeded expectations on legacy hardware

---