Projects

Welcome to the Projects section of PHP Systems Blog. This is where ideas turn into reality - whether it’s building custom electronics, setting up automation systems, crafting 3D-printed prototypes, or self-hosting entire services. Every project here is something I’ve built, tested, and documented so you can learn from both my successes and mistakes.

Breaking Up with Google: Replacing Google Photos While Keeping Nest Hub Photo Displays

Want to leave Google Photos but still enjoy slideshows on your Nest Hub? Learn how to move your photos to private, secure alternatives like Nextcloud or PhotoPrism while keeping your smart displays working beautifully.

🐦Home Assistant - It's for the birds! [Part 2]

Automate music for your feathered friends with this smart Home Assistant setup! Our BirdMusic automation plays soothing tunes at 9 AM and stops at 8:30 PM—but only when the birds are home and people aren’t. Learn how to set it up using Music Assistant and a simple YAML script.

Home Assistant - It's for the birds! [Part 1]

If you are looking for a post that is bashing home assistant, you have probably come to the wrong place. Recently I was asked to look after a flock of birds. The only trouble here was that I was away for some of the time. This time I set up cameras to monitor the birds.

Improving an Ikea lantern with a Cricut Joy - for Hallowe'en

Just over a year ago, I was given a Cricut joy. During that time, I've gotten to grips with the software and it has helped quite a few projects become a reality. I have used the Joy from things like sencils for painting Warhammer models to making T-Shirts.

FreePBX and Zen Digital Voice

As part of a money saving effort along with improving my internet speeds, I needed to do something with the telephone number coming in to my house. Fortunately, I have been playing with Asterisk for quite a few years now.

Updating docker hosts with Kestra

Patching is a balancing act. There are some who say you shouldn't if it works, others who say you should, but stay a certain about of time behind and those that think that bleed edge is the way to stay protected.

More Kestra Automation

While I am working through some issues and they may well be the subject of another post, this time I thought I'd shamelessly extend what I have done before extended with some of Christian Lempa's files.

Kestra webhooks and Home assistant

Welcome back to another blog post on Kestra. Starting from where I left off last time, I'm going to try to fix a few little niggles I had with the time based triggers.

Automating Ansible playbooks with Kestra

Recently, after watch Christian Lempa videos, I have started playing about with Kestra. Kestra is a work flow orcestration platform to schedule playbooks or tirgger them when I want them. Example using unpackerr.

Smart doorbell failure #2?

Following on from my failure to detect my doorbell button being pushed, I considered a few different alternatives solutions. The first solution to spring to mind was to use a zigbee button.

About the author

Tim Wilkes is a UK-based security architect with over 15 years of experience in electronics, Linux, and Unix systems administration. Since 2021, he's been designing secure systems for a telecom company while indulging his passions for programming, automation, and 3D printing. Tim shares his projects, tinkering adventures, and tech insights here - partly as a personal log, and partly in the hopes that others will find them useful.

Want to connect or follow along?

LinkedIn: [phpsytems]
Twitter / X: [@timmehwimmy]
Mastodon: [@timmehwimmy@infosec.exchange]

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