Set up a NUC or mini PC

Your mesh host is the always-on box at home that runs Incus and the VMs for your family mesh. This guide covers Intel NUCs, ASUS NUCs, and AMD-based mini PCs (Beelink, Minisforum, and similar). It matches tracker step 3 — Mesh host ready.

Goal

When you are done, the host runs Incus on your LAN, has a stable IP address, and your workstation can run incus remote add and incus list <remote>: without errors — then you are ready for task home:up from your laptop.

Hardware options

Platform	Examples	Notes
Intel NUC	Intel NUC , NUC 12/13/14+	x86_64, common mesh host. Check Intel NUC support for BIOS and drivers.
ASUS NUC	NUC8i5BEH , NUC8i3BEH	Legacy Intel NUC models manufactured by ASUS. Download BIOS from ASUS support for your exact model.
AMD mini PC	Beelink, Minisforum, GMKtec	Same install flow as Intel (x86_64). Use the vendor support page for BIOS updates — process is similar to NUC.
Mac Mini	Intel or Apple Silicon	Different path — see Mac Mini notes on the requirements page.

Minimum: 16 GB RAM and 256 GB storage. Recommended: 32 GB RAM and 512 GB NVMe for Talos + VPN + family apps.

1 — Update BIOS (recommended)

Before installing the OS, flash the latest BIOS from your manufacturer. On Intel/ASUS NUCs this is usually a .bio file on a FAT32 USB stick, boot with F7, and let the updater finish.

Find your exact model on the vendor site (sticker on the device or current BIOS screen).
Download the latest BIOS ZIP, extract the .bio (and updater tool if included).
Copy files to a FAT32 USB drive, boot the NUC from USB (F7 boot menu), run the update.
After reboot, enter BIOS (F2) and enable USB boot first for the OS install.

See the full guide: Intel NUC BIOS update.

2 — Choose how to install Incus

Pick one path. Both end with Incus listening on https://<host-ip>:8443 on your LAN.

Path A — IncusOS (recommended)

Purpose-built OS for Incus. Minimal surface area, Secure Boot, good for a dedicated mesh host.

UEFI + Secure Boot + TPM 2.0
50 GB+ internal storage, wired Ethernet
Custom image from the IncusOS Customizer
Write image to USB (8 GB+), boot NUC, automatic install to NVMe
Embed your Incus client cert in the customizer so your laptop can connect without a trust token

Customizer tips: architecture x86_64, target drive nvme- for typical NUC M.2 SSDs.

Path B — Ubuntu 24.04 + Incus

Full Linux server you can SSH into. Install Incus after Ubuntu is running.

Download Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS (headless mesh host)
Write ISO to USB (Balena Etcher, dd, or Windsor device:write-ubuntu-img)
Boot USB (F10), erase disk and install Ubuntu
Install OpenSSH, set static IP or DHCP reservation
Install Incus per Incus install docs

Install checklist (both paths)

Ethernet to your router (Wi‑Fi is not recommended for the mesh host).
USB boot — F10 or F7 boot menu, select the install USB.
Target disk — internal NVMe (not the USB stick). Wipe old partitions for a clean install.
IncusOS only: Secure Boot → Custom mode, reset to setup mode before first boot.
Note the host LAN IP from your router DHCP list after install.

3 — Network and Incus remote

Your workstation (laptop) drives deploy; the mesh host only runs Incus and VMs.

Static IP or DHCP reservation

Reserve an IP on your router for the mesh host MAC address, or configure netplan on Ubuntu. You will use this IP in ws-sovereign-home context and for incus remote add.

# From your workstation (same LAN)
incus remote add my-nuc https://192.168.2.101:8443
incus list my-nuc:

Replace the IP with your mesh host. Accept the server certificate when prompted. If you embedded a client cert in IncusOS, trust is automatic.

IncusOS: direct network for VMs

For VMs to get LAN IPs (Talos nodes, VPN VM), add the instances role to your physical interface in incus admin os system network edit, then create a physical network. See IncusOS on Intel NUC — steps 6–7 (network and ZFS pool).

4 — Verify mesh host ready

Host powers on and stays on Ethernet
Incus API reachable: https://<ip>:8443 (browser may show cert warning — that is OK)
incus list <remote>: succeeds from workstation
Check off step 3 on the progress tracker

Detailed guides

Step-by-step runbooks on this site — same content family as the operator workspace bootstrapping docs:

Troubleshooting

NUC will not boot USB — Enable USB boot in BIOS (F2), try another port, disable Secure Boot temporarily on Ubuntu path.
Wrong disk wiped — Double-check lsblk / IncusOS target drive identifier (nvme-).
Cannot reach Incus :8443 — Confirm Ethernet link, firewall, and IP. Ping the host from your laptop.
DNS fails after Ubuntu install — Set resolvers in netplan or /etc/resolv.conf (8.8.8.8, 1.1.1.1).

More: site troubleshooting and the bootstrapping guides.

Continue — mesh host step Back to requirements