The author decided to repurpose a used smartphone as a home server to overcome the RAM limitations of their router, which struggled with services like AdGuard Home and v2ray. The chosen device was a Redmi Note 9 Pro (8/128 GB model), which provides 6 GB of physical RAM and 2 GB of swap memory.
The process required unlocking the bootloader via Xiaomi's Mi Unlock Tool, which necessitates a 7-day waiting period and a SIM card for account binding. The author encountered issues with the official Windows-based utility and had to use a community-provided version to proceed.
To install the PostmarketOS Linux distribution, the author used a live Ubuntu USB drive, as virtualization failed to pass through the USB connection. The system was compiled using pmbootstrap, with specific adjustments made to the boot partition size for the Redmi Note 9 Pro.
Post-installation, the device was configured to connect to the local Wi-Fi network using the NetworkManager command-line interface (nmcli). The author opted for the XFCE4 graphical interface to manage display settings and monitor system status, despite the initial plan to use a console-only setup.
