Written 27 Aug 2026. This is a how-to, not a product card. Buy links are not tagged yet.

See if any house jobs failed to start

After a reboot, check failed units before you blame the network or buy a new box.

After a reboot, or when the share, ad block, or backup feels dead, ask which house jobs failed before you rip cables or buy gear. A unit is one house program systemd tries to keep running (Pi-hole, Samba, a backup timer). systemctl --failed lists the ones that tried and lost.

Skip until SSH works

If ping fails and SSH hangs, start with is the leftover box still on? If you have never logged in from the couch, that is SSH from the couch. If the leftover box just came back up and you have not checked the house jobs yet, start with after a reboot, check the leftover box still does its jobs. This note assumes you can log in from the couch.

What this is

A look, not a shopping trip. After a reboot, or when the share, ad block, or backup feels dead, ask which jobs failed before you rip cables or buy gear. You are not buying a switch for this look.

Ask which jobs failed

SSH in from the couch, then ask:

systemctl --failed

Empty, or a line that says 0 loaded units listed, means nothing failed this way. If names appear (smbd, pihole-FTL, a timer), that is the clue. Do not buy a switch for this look.

Optional one-liner for one failed name

If a name showed up and you want a short reason:

systemctl status NAME

Replace NAME with the short name you saw. Enough to see Active: failed and a short reason. For a deeper diary, that is when something broke, look at the leftover-box log. Do not edit unit files tonight.

If something failed

Restart that one job only if you already know it:

sudo systemctl restart NAME

One careful restart, then re-check:

systemctl --failed

If it fails again, read the log. Do not stack random installs. The morning checklist is after a reboot, check the leftover box still does its jobs.

What next

Leave it. The morning checklist stays after a reboot, check the leftover box still does its jobs. Logs stay when something broke, look at the leftover-box log. If the leftover box feels slow, memory is see if the leftover box still has free memory and disk is see if the leftover box still has room.

Skip

• Skip if SSH fails. That is is the leftover box still on? or SSH from the couch.
• Skip buying a new mini PC for one failed unit.
• Skip editing unit files tonight.
• Skip a NAS for this look.
• Skip Proxmox tonight. That is what a VM is, and when you do not need one.