LinuxQuestions.org - [SOLVED] Getting started suggestions

I've got a work notebook on which I run RHEL 6 w/all kinds of company required software, + KVM for a Windows guest. Installing DevStack (OpenStack) was a train-wreck that caused a nightmare I fought long and hard to back out. I have since bought a home miniTower w/1Tb hard drive, 16Gb mem, and then I bought a 240Gb SSD that I will be putting in. Goal is to have a virtualization environment (based on KVM) using Chef/Puppet (not because I have to, but because those appear to be some of the better tools out there and I want familiarity with them. Looking to use DevStack or OpenStack, but to share binaries between guest where possible (ie: WebSphere Liberty binaries (installDir) in one spot that many guests can use ... each w/their own userDir (WebSphere is good with this split, not sure what other software is. Anyone running this type of setup (at least with DevStack or OpenStack on KVM). Is it simple enough to have a masterGuest (who installs much core software) and clones (that access that software)? Is DevStack the best cloud layer out there? Are Chef and Puppet the best config Managers to use? I hope to break ground during May and feel no need to run into every ditch others have hit. Thanks,