Used thin client PCs are an unsexy, readily available Raspberry Pi alternative

"Raspberry Pi boards are hard to get, probably also next year," says Andreas Spiess in his distinct Swiss accent. He is not incorrect. In order to survive without new boards, Spiess suggests looking in one of the least captivating areas of computing: used, corporate-minded thin client PCs.

Many of Spiess' commenters have suggested and refined replacements for the Pi, which include the Futros, ThinkCentres, and other small systems. You can find them on eBay, refurbished on Amazon Renewed, or through other enterprise and IT asset disposition sources. Given their use and environment, they are usually in good shape. Compared to single board enthusiast systems, many more are being made and replaced each year.

It makes sense to take a closer look at them now. In an analogy we're not entirely sure works, Spiess says "back to the future"

Modern NUCs are too expensive and overpowering for Home Assistant, PiHole, or even a multi-container system, as Spiess' journey for make-do Pi server moves him past them. Two types of thin clients are looked at by him. If you want a single-purpose Pi replacement, you'll need at least 4 gigabytes of memory and 8 gigabytes of solid state storage. To run multiple Pi-scale projects off a single box, Spiess suggests searching for a newer processor, 8GB of memory, and 64 or 128 gigabytes of storage. For his single-purpose projects, he found a 34 euro Futro with anAMD GX-222GC, and for multiple containers, he got fourth- generation i5 and i7 ThinkCentres for less than $109.

The software is next. If you want to install Home Assistant or similar Pi-focused images on the lower-powered client, you'll have to use a liveusb or a sd card. Proxmox is used for a multi-VM or multi container machine. Home Assistant is installed in one virtual machine, followed by the internet stack in another.

It's not a revelation that a more powerful computer can do the same job as a less powerful computer, but the difference in power consumption and processing may surprise some. The i5 and i7 were more than three times faster than the cheaper Fujitsu, which was slower at ESP home.

The Spiess used a meter to measure their power use. The i5 and i7 had spikes up to 25 W during high activity, while the twoRaspberry Pi units consumed 12 Watts at a mostly inactive state. Buying thin clients with newer processors and better power efficiency would lower those numbers more, but Spiess' scratch math shows a savings of only about 24 euros per year, compared to the hundreds of dollars more they cost to buy.

More work is needed to find the right balance of cost and size in the used thin client market and more work is needed to get one running project for the distinctive Pi platform. If a machine perfect for home automation ends up in your network closet, bolstering the market for second-hand computers is a good idea. There's a tip of the hat to Hackaday.