This started after the particular mess of crewing the Bigfoot 200 through a cell dead zone. I wanted reliable internet when I genuinely needed it, but I did not want to power the Starlink dish just to watch a movie or look up a packing list at camp.
The satellite side boosts a 12-volt source to 48 volts and feeds Starlink through a PoE injector and LAN adapter into a separate wireless router. An independently switched circuit powers the network and a Raspberry Pi 4, so the local services can run while the dish stays off.
The Pi holds two terabytes of local media and runs Plex alongside a small MediaWiki for recipes, supply lists, and offline directions. An external USB port triggers a script that copies new media into the server without opening the enclosure or transferring files over FTP. Status LEDs confirm when a transfer has finished and report the network state.
Rather than permanently mounting the box, I added a passthrough port for the PoE cable. That kept the whole system mobile: it can move around the camper, operate outside, or be brought inside when needed. I also made adapters for a standard 12-volt car socket and an external battery.
The hardware build was an excuse to return to Linux administration and learn Docker Compose. The result was one compact box that can bring up the satellite connection when needed and remain useful offline the rest of the time.