This work centered on administering an OpenWrt-based homelab network and the services that depend on it. A router-level Tailscale subnet route was added so approved remote devices can reach selected LAN services without placing the routing role on an application host. The public write-up is intentionally sanitized and does not expose private addresses or sensitive firewall details.

• Maintained router software and verified service health after updates
• Worked with LAN-side services such as DNS, DHCP, and remote administration workflows
• Deployed Tailscale directly on the router as the approved subnet-routing path
• Created a dedicated firewall zone with controlled forwarding between the tailnet and LAN
• Used SSH-based management and documentation to reduce configuration mistakes
• Coordinated network monitoring and log visibility with the rest of the homelab stack

1. Reviewed router health and current service state before making changes.
2. Applied updates and configuration changes using repeatable administration steps.
3. Backed up the firewall configuration before adding the Tailscale interface and forwarding rules.
4. Validated the advertised subnet route and remote LAN reachability after the change.
5. Validated DNS, DHCP, and internal service reachability after the maintenance window.
6. Used monitoring and centralized logs to catch regressions or connectivity problems quickly.
7. Documented the workflow so future network maintenance would be safer and easier to repeat.

• Router administration and change validation
• DNS, DHCP, and internal service troubleshooting
• Overlay networking, subnet routing, and firewall-zone design
• Operational documentation for repeatable maintenance
• Network-aware troubleshooting across router, host, and service layers

• Add a sanitized network diagram to the public documentation
• Document backup and rollback procedures in more detail
• Expand alerting around service reachability and admin-surface changes