Problem: Lack of hands-on experience with Active Directory Solution: Build it myself in a homelab
I wanted to deepen my understanding of Active Directory because, in every environment I’ve worked in, AD was the backbone of everything — but I only ever saw it from the outside. Any time I needed something changed, I had to submit a ticket to the system administrators, and my permissions were always limited.
As I move further into cybersecurity and information technology, I realized I had gaps in my knowledge that I couldn’t fill just by reading documentation or watching videos. So I built a homelab to finally get hands-on experience with the parts of AD I never had access to before.
I switched from Windows 11 to Bazzite in late October and have enjoyed it so far. My system saw an immediate FPS boost in games like Borderlands 4—going from 40-45 FPS on Windows to 65-70 on Bazzite. The only drawback is not being able to play League of Legends. Like other Linux distros, Bazzite doesn’t always meet the expectations of Windows or Mac users, who may switch back if certain software or features aren’t supported. I avoided that by not dual-booting or using a live session.