A Beginners Guide To Selfhosting Part 1
What is Selfhosting?
Selfhosting is the act of freeing yourself from your dependance on big corporations like Google, Meta, Apple, and the whims of their shareholders.
And while it may seem like a daunting task at first, I can guarantee you, that it is easier than you might think. Thanks to freely available open source software, anyone can spin up a server for less than 20$ a month, replacing Spotify, Netflix, Google Photos, Google Docs, Google Drive, and so much more.
In this series, I will teach you the following skills:
- Setting up a VPS with Ubuntu Server
- Setting up Docker for your services
- Setting up Caddy as a reverse proxy
- Creating sub-domains for each service
- The services I use and how to set them up
What do I need?
Mostly curiosity and the willingness to learn. Also:
- Virtual Private Server (VPS) for about 10$ to 20$ / month
- Domain (YourDomain.com) for less than 10$ / year
Everything else is free (as in beer) and open source software (FOSS).
Ubuntu Server
The underlying operating system on which all your services run.
Docker
A container system that seperates all your services from Ubuntu and each other.
Caddy Reverse Proxy
Program running in a docker container that connects your services to differeny sub-domains. (t.ex. music.yourdomain.com to Navidrome, audio.yourdomain.com to AudioBookShelf, drive.yourdomain.com to Nextcloud, etc.)
What Services I Use
While there are many different alternatives available for each service, these are the ones I've successfully used for many years. If you are curious, I highly recommend the Awesome Selfhosted GitHub - a collection of hundreds of services you can host for yourself.
But for now, let's focus on these few first.
Immich to replace Google Photos
A powerful photo backup with machine learning for face recognition and metadata analysis.
Official Website
Official GitHub
Official Documentation
Nextcloud to replace Google Drive & Docs
A widely used cloud provider with dozens of plugins. Can replace all of Googles services by itself.
Official Website
Official GitHub
Official Documentation
AudioBookShelf to replace Audible
Listen to your DRM-free audiobooks and podcasts on desktop, mobile and the web.
Official Website
Official GitHub
Official Documentation
Navidrome to replace Spotify
Stream your music whever and whenever you want.
Official Website
Official GitHub
Official Documentation
Vaultwarden to replace Google Password
Lightweight reimplementation of the official BitWarden server. Can safely store your passwords, 2FA TOTP, PassKeys and act as an SSH Agent for your keyfiles.
Official GitHub
Official Documentation
Booklore for your eBooks / Comics
Read and access your ebooks and comics through the webinterface or on your eBook reader with OPDS and sync your reading progress across multiple devices.
Officiall GitHub
Documentation
We will continue our selfhosting journey in Part 2, where I will teach you how to set up Ubuntu Server on a VPS.