Build a Sysadmin Sandbox

Every sysadmin I know has at least four new technologies they would like to play with—and that's just before breakfast. But finding the time to do this can be difficult, often because of the effort it takes to find a machine, set up the network connection, firewall it from the other machines, and so on... If you want to try something that requires multiple components, that's even worse.

What you need is a sandbox: a place where you can experiment with new technologies, mess with cool tools, test the latest versions of software, prototype new services, and so on, without any sort of heavyweight effort.