This... It is ease vs control. If you have needs inside the box Proxmox has planned for, it is very easy. But if you want to step outside that box, you are in for a world of surprise. I install Proxmox for clients that do not have solid Linux chops. I run KVM/libvirt on my own stuff. And if you need a web front end, oVirt exists...

I used to be all white box, and now I am all business class cast offs... If I lose a motherboard I can get one on ebay or a complete system for next to nothing if it is common like Dell. And now I just treat the boxes like cattle rather than pets. One dies and I move the hard drive to a new one.

This is incorrect and bad advice. A Dell or Lenovo business class motherboard will not bolt into an ATX case, nor connect to an ATX power supply.

I wouldn't recommend it to my friends, maybe techie friends, but it is so hard to configure.

I hear ya, but some of the new stuff is worse! It will get better, but then there is the next hurdle; stability. Zoneminder can run for months with no baby sitting... Other stuff, not so much. But I keep watching, and hoping!

Thanks. I want a fallback for problematic mail servers (Microsoft) only, and do not want to pay the tool to the people causing the problem. :)

When you turn your NAS into a hosting platform, it is no longer just a NAS.

I think the problem with Clear OS is that it has a very narrow market. People comfortable with Linux and containers have their own preferred method. And band new users don't know it exists.

As for your OPNsense issue, I have never seen anything like that before and can not understand it. Hardware conflict perhaps? You can also try OpenWRT or there is a free Sophos firewall. Also Firewalla, but it is a bit old...

I was looking at their policies, and I am worried about the "Forbidden Services" where they forbid "Forward-only service for massive numbers of domains on one account." I have 5 domains... Any idea what "massive numbers" means?

Also, can you send to an sms gateway a single email?

With these tools and others, that game is just about over. So many consumers are just done with all the BS, and I think a larger shift is coming.

Much more likely to gain access via a compromised desktop, or smart phone.

Depends on how you buy it. If you keep power consumption at the top of mind, and you stay about 3 years back in the early refresh cycle, you can do very well.

More spindles means better performance. But also more power use. Only you can decide which is more important.