self-hosting

If you’re paying a yearly subscription for a password manager mainly because it looks nicer, it’s time to ask whether that polished interface is worth the ongoing cost — especially when a fully capable, open-source alternative exists that covers the essentials for free. Bitwarden’s free tier now...

Europe’s move to reclaim digital control has a quiet, practical counterpart in the hobbyist and small‑business IT communities: a crop of polished, ready‑to‑run Linux server appliances that let individuals and organizations run their own clouds—mail, chat, file sync, VPN, and even Windows‑style...

The pendulum that moved much personal and enterprise IT into public clouds is swinging back — not because clouds have failed, but because free, self-hosted Linux server platforms are finally mature enough to make on-premises privacy and control practical for households, small teams, and even...

If you’re ready to stop surrendering your documents, calendars, and chat history to distant data centers and start running those services where you control the power button, the network, and the backups, five modern Linux-based server projects give you that option today — and they’re all usable...

If you want to leave the public cloud, run key services at home, and regain control of your data without paying subscription fees, you no longer have to assemble a server from scratch and become a full-time sysadmin. A new generation of ready-to-run Linux server projects packages privacy‑first...

LanguageTool’s move to lock its browser extension behind a paywall is the latest reminder that the economics of AI-driven productivity tools are changing the rules for users and developers alike — and not everyone is happy about it. The company has begun showing a 14‑day Premium trial inside the...

The mainstream itch to cancel subscriptions and reclaim control of a Windows desktop has a simple cure: replace paid apps with modern, actively maintained open‑source alternatives and—where it makes sense—self‑host the cloud services you care about. A recent MakeUseOf first‑person report...

Five open-source, browser-first apps that let me leave installs on the shelf and still get real work done are ONLYOFFICE (DocSpace), Squoosh, OpenCut, StirlingPDF, and Excalidraw — the exact collection I noted when I decided to keep my Windows desktop lean and my workflow portable. shift from...

Windows is trying to do for AI agents what it once did for applications: make the desktop the obvious place to discover, run, and manage intelligent helpers that can do work for you — not just answer questions — and Microsoft has already shipped the plumbing and the guardrails that will decide...

Vikunja is the kind of productivity story the subscription economy didn’t want: a fully open-source, self-hostable task manager that replicates many of Todoist’s best features without a recurring vendor lock‑in—and with an official hosted option that costs roughly what a coffee costs each month...

Proxmox VE doesn’t feel like “another Linux distro” — it feels like a purpose-built control plane for self-hosting, homelabs, and small datacenters that removes a surprising amount of the friction that trips up hobbyists and sysadmins when they try to run many services on one machine. If you...

I canceled my Microsoft Office subscription and rebuilt my entire productivity stack with free, open‑source apps — and the results were not only cheaper, they were surprisingly practical for everyday work. Background / Overview The idea of ditching Microsoft 365 for open‑source alternatives...

I used to think total self‑sufficiency was the point: run everything on my hardware, behind my firewall, and never rely on a corporation again. After years of running a home lab, dozens of self‑hosted services, and a few expensive mistakes, the reality I live with now is more pragmatic — a...

Copyparty arrives as the kind of quiet, focused tool that makes self-hosting feel practical again: a single-file Python web server that turns any spare drive into a resumable, deduplicating file server without the overhead of a full collaboration stack. Background Why this matters to Windows and...

Open‑source software today offers Windows users a practical way to reclaim control, improve privacy, and boost productivity — and ZDNET’s compact roundup of “10 open‑source apps I recommend every Windows user try — for free” is a useful starting kit that does exactly that. Background ZDNET’s...

Open-source software quietly underpins a huge amount of the modern Windows experience, and ZDNET’s recent roundup of “10 open-source apps I recommend every Windows user download — for free” lays out a practical, privacy-conscious toolkit any Windows user can assemble without spending a penny...

VPS hosting has become the backbone of modern web infrastructure, bridging that critical middle ground between the affordability of shared hosting and the power—and price—of dedicated servers. In 2025, the best VPS hosting services combine raw performance, cost flexibility, and custom storage...

Self-hosting applications on a primary Windows PC is an increasingly common entry point for enthusiasts exploring the world of private cloud computing. Driven by cost concerns, hardware limitations, and a desire for convenience, many Windows users are experimenting with hosting services not on...

For decades, the notion of a “home lab” has been a touchstone for the most passionate technologists—those who thrive on hands-on experimentation, relentless troubleshooting, and continual learning. While the tools have evolved from test tubes and kitchen-sink chemistry to servers brimming with...

From an era when the home lab meant more mad science than microservices, the concept of tinkering at home has fundamentally shifted from kitchen-table chaos to a thriving playground for IT professionals and tech enthusiasts. Today’s home lab is not only less explosive, but it’s become a vital...