Which hardware is suitable for ioBroker?

ioBroker runs wherever Node.js runs. The question, therefore, is not whether a piece of hardware can run it, but whether it can run it 24/7, for years, and unattended . The recommendations on this page are based on that.

The minimum and recommended values for RAM and disk space are listed under Requirements . This section deals with the device classes themselves.

The four classes

Raspberry Pi and other single-board computers

The standard entry point, and perfectly adequate for a home with a manageable amount of technology. Recommended for a Raspberry Pi 4 with 4 GB of RAM or larger. Smaller models and the Zero are insufficient as soon as more than a handful of adapters are running.

Two points will determine whether you're happy or annoyed:

The power supply. Mobile phone chargers are insufficient. An underpowered power supply causes errors that resemble software problems: crashing adapters, corrupted databases, spontaneous restarts. The manufacturer's original power supply is the safe choice.

Do not use an SD card continuously. ioBroker writes constantly – states, logs, databases. SD cards can only handle this to a limited extent and fail silently: first the system slows down, then inexplicable errors appear, then it's too late. A Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 boots from a USB SSD, and this is the only recommendation that applies without reservation.

Mini-PC

A used small-format office PC or a NUC-like device is the class in which most larger installations run. More RAM, a proper SSD, significantly more processing power than a single-board computer – and often only a few watts more power consumption at idle.

For anything that goes beyond simple home automation – a time-series database, Grafana, cameras, speech processing – this is the lower limit.

NAS

Anyone already running a NAS can run ioBroker there in a Docker container . This saves on a physical device, but has two drawbacks: The NAS has to provide the resources in addition to its own tasks, and adapters that search for devices on the network or access connected hardware require special container settings.

Server with virtualization

Multiple systems can run side-by-side on a single computer; ioBroker is one of them – see Proxmox . The advantage is the separation: a snapshot before an update, and if necessary, the previous state can be restored within a minute. The price is another layer that needs to be understood and maintained.

This applies to all devices

Electricity. A device running continuously costs about three euros per watt per year. The difference between an energy-efficient and a standard setup can easily be 20 watts – a more noticeable difference than the purchase price.

Operating system without a user interface. The server version without a desktop. A graphical interface consumes resources for something no one sees and increases the attack surface.

Debian or a derivative. Ubuntu and Raspberry Pi OS are examples. Other distributions are possible, but the scripts, instructions, and forum answers are geared towards Debian.

64-bit. Even on a Raspberry Pi. Node.js' support for 32-bit systems is becoming increasingly poor.

Plan for a reserve. An installation grows. The adapter that isn't needed today will be installed in a year, and the history, which is empty today, fills up daily.

What's not worth it

  • A device that also does something else – the work computer, the media server in the living room. ioBroker should run when nobody thinks about it.
  • Use Wi-Fi instead of cables if possible. A home automation system that relies on Wi-Fi will fail if the Wi-Fi stops working.
  • The cheapest storage option. The card or SSD will keep the data for years.

Upgrading to more powerful hardware is not a fresh installation: A backup withiob backup And restoring the data to the new device includes the complete installation. Therefore, it's not worth buying a larger device out of concern for the move.