Posts about self-hosting
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- Setup Apt-Cacher NG as a caching proxy server in your homelab and configure your other Linux hosts to use it
4 min read
If your homelab has more than a few servers or VMs running Debian-based distributions, it makes sense to set up a package caching proxy on one of your servers. This guide will show how to set that up, configure your other Linux hosts, and optionally how to use Ansible to automate configuring those other hosts.
- How I set up a home server for self-hosting and as a NAS with secure remote access via Tailscale
19 min read
I turned my old Dell PC into an all-in-one home server and network attached storage to self-host all my data, my photos, and my media library, running Home Assistant, Plex and other services, all securely accessible from outside my home with Tailscale.
- Setting up a reverse proxy for HTTPS with a custom domain using Nginx Proxy Manager, AdGuard Home and Cloudflare
12 min read
I've used a reverse proxy to access my self-hosted apps and services for years, and used Pi-Hole as my home network DNS for even longer, but recently switched to AdGuard Home. That meant redoing all my DNS records within AdGuard so I could get my reverse proxy back up and running, and I decided to write down the steps I took. When done, we'll be able to access our apps and services through a custom domain, with unique sub-domains for each app or service, with full HTTPS and accessible only locally.
- Setting up a reverse proxy for HTTPS with a custom domain using Nginx Proxy Manager, Pi-Hole and Cloudflare
14 min read
I've used a reverse proxy to access my self-hosted apps and services for years, but I recently re-did everything from scratch and decided to write it down. When done, you'll be able to access your apps and services through a custom domain, with unique sub-domains for each app or service, with full HTTPS and accessible only locally.
- Setup Watchtower to auto-update Docker containers with notifications
7 min read
I'm running almost 30 containers on my home server at this point, and I'm extremely lazy when it comes to updating them. Watchtower is a lightweight set-it-and-forget-it solution to auto-updating containers, and it even has built-in notifications. Here's how to set it up using either Pushover or Discord.
- Using MergerFS to combine multiple hard drives into one unified media storage
5 min read
My situation was simple -- my server's media storage was filling up and I wanted to add more drives, but without having to keep track of which drive specific files were for Plex. How to pool multiple hard drives together when they're all different brands, models and capacities? Enter mergerfs, an open source union filesystem that essentially merges multiple drives into one mount point.
- Set up Home Assistant Supervised on a Libre Computer Sweet Potato SBC
4 min read
Home Assistant is an open source home automation solution that gives you local control over your smart home. It can also be run on Libre Computer's boards, but I ran into some issues following the official instructions from Libre, so here's how I got it working.
- Complete guide to self-hosting a website through Cloudflare Tunnel
11 min read
Self-hosting a static web blog has never been easier thanks to Cloudflare Tunnel. In this guide I explain how to expose a static website self-hosted on a Linux server inside my home network to the internet using Nginx and Cloudflare Tunnel, and securing it with various other free Cloudflare services.
- Setting up a Libre Computer Sweet Potato SBC with Debian and Pi-Hole
9 min read
I've been wanting to get a Raspberry Pi for ages, but they were out of stock for the longest time, so I never ended up with one. Recently I learned about the Le Potato from Libre Computer as a Pi-alternative, and after some research paid the $30 early access price for their new Sweet Potato SBC. Here's how I set it up.
- OpenMediaVault Quick Reference
4 min read
I've been using OpenMediaVault 6 for over a year now, and it's user interface can be a bit obtuse, so I wrote myself a series of quick step-by-step guides for enabling certain features within the OMV workbench UI.
- Setup a Cloudflare Tunnel to securely access self-hosted apps with a domain from outside the home network
10 min read
Cloudflare Tunnels have been around for a few years and are well regarded alternatives for VPNs or port-forwarding on a router. They are often used to expose access to self-hosted apps from outside the local network with minimal config or hassle. Here's how it's done.
- Reverse proxy OpenMediaVault, Plex and Navidrome with Nginx Proxy Manager and Pi-Hole
7 min read
My scenario was simple: I wanted to access the web GUIs of OpenMediaVault, Plex and Navidrome via a URL like plex.home.arpa without having to remember IPs and ports, inside my home network only and without the need for SSL/HTTPS. Nothing fancy, nothing accessible from outside my house. Here's how I did that with Nginx Proxy Manager as the reverse proxy and Pi-Hole as the DNS.
- Set up PhotoSync app to backup photos from your phone to an SMB share on your home server
3 min read
Google Photos began limiting free storage back in 2021, limiting you to 15 GB of storage when uploading photos in their original size uncompressed. Rather than wait and see if I hit the cap, I decided to try replacing Google Photos with a self-hosted solution. Here's how I did it.
- How to run self-hosted FileBrowser in Docker
2 min read
FileBrowser is a self-hosted file manager for a specified directory in a Linux machine that lets you upload, download, move, copy, create, delete, rename, and edit your files in a nice web interface through your browser. Here's a quick guide to setting it up in Docker.
- Setup Prometheus, Node Exporter, Cadvisor and Grafana in Docker
3 min read
When running a headless home server, you may want to set up a monitoring solution to keep track of your server's performance. Node Exporter will expose your server's metrics, cAdvisor will expose metrics for Docker containers, and Prometheus will scrape and collect those metrics, which is then used as a data source for Grafana dashboards. Here's how to get it all set up in Docker.
- Setup self-hosted Jellyfin Media Server in Docker
5 min read
Plex is a popular media server for self-hosting, but it's not open source and recently locked the ability to remotely stream your own content behind a paywall, so one cannot be blamed for seeking an alternative to Plex. Jellyfin is a free and open source self-hosted media server that just might be what you're looking for.
- Setup self-hosted Plex Media Server in Docker
3 min read
Plex Media Server is one of the most popular services to self-host since serves your personal media library -- videos, music and even photos -- with a nice Netflix-like UI. Though you can install and run it bare-metal, the most common and easiest way is in a Docker container. Here's how.
- Set up Pi-Hole for network-wide ad blocking and Unbound for recursive DNS (Updated for Pi-Hole v6)
20 min read
Besides just using a browser extension for ad blocking, I've been using Pi-Hole for years to prevent all devices on my network from getting ads, and stopping smart home devices from phoning home for telemetry and tracking. Pi-Hole will run on almost anything that can run Linux, is very easy to set up, and super effective with the right blocklists.
- Setting up a Docker container stack with Docker Compose
2 min read
I've been running a bunch of services on my home server in docker containers for a few years now. It's quick and easy to set up once you get used to it. Here's a quick and dirty guide to installing Docker and Docker Compose, and getting several containers up and running.