A series of articles about Self-Hosting — running services and applications yourself on your own servers. We cover installing and configuring popular solutions: Nextcloud, Mealie, Linkwarden, Audiobookshelf, as well as tools for backup, proxying, and access management.
ProHomeLab is open to authors who want to share their knowledge and practical experience in the world of homelabbing.
If you’re building your own home infrastructure, experimenting with servers, virtualization, containers, networking, NAS, monitoring, or automation, I’d love to feature your experience on the site.
It doesn’t matter how big your home lab is. What matters isn’t the number of servers in the rack, but real experience, interesting solutions, and knowledge worth sharing with others.
What you can write about # The topics ProHomeLab covers are fairly broad. For example:
Setting up Gotify in Docker and configuring push notifications from Proxmox VE, CrowdSec, and Komodo - a dedicated channel for infrastructure events, without a single message in the shared Telegram chat.
Breaking down a real case: after moving to a dedicated Docker network per compose stack, I hit the could not find an available, non-overlapping IPv4 address pool limit. Why this happens, how to diagnose it, and how to fix it for good via default-address-pools in daemon.json.
An overview of Arcane - a young but fast-growing web interface for Docker - and a step-by-step guide to installation, configuring secrets, connecting existing compose projects, and basic socket protection.
A step-by-step overview of Dozzle - a lightweight self-hosted tool for viewing Docker container logs in real time through a web interface. Installation via Docker Compose, setting up authentication, multi-host mode via agents, and recommendations for docker.sock security.
The second part of the series on a shared PostgreSQL for a home server. We create a dedicated, minimally privileged user and database in pgAdmin for a specific application, connect Authentik to the shared database instead of its own container, and cover basic maintenance - VACUUM, ANALYZE, REINDEX, and when you actually need to do any of this by hand.
I set up self-hosted Postiz and try to connect it to YouTube, VK, and RuTube - walking through the real steps, the required env variables, and known bugs. In the end, out of three platforms, only one works reliably, and I honestly explain why.
A step-by-step guide to installing Komodo as a Portainer alternative: docker-compose, MongoDB, bind mounts instead of volumes, login via Authentik (OIDC), and connecting additional hosts via Periphery.
A rundown of 36 Obsidian plugins that replaced Trilium Notes’ built-in functionality after the move - from Templater and Bases to Excalidraw and Kanban. I compare the philosophy of the two systems and explain why the deciding factor was YAML Front Matter support for publishing articles via Hugo.
Continuing the series of articles about a home NAS on Fedora Server 44. This time we set up automatic creation and cleanup of ZFS snapshots using Sanoid, go over the snapshot retention policy and systemd timers, and get acquainted with Syncoid for future data replication to a backup server.
We build a modern home NAS on Fedora Server 44 with the OpenZFS filesystem, the Cockpit web interface, and the Samba file server. A complete step-by-step guide to installation, ZFS configuration, SELinux, and publishing an SMB share.
A complete guide to installing and configuring Dockhand - a simple and convenient web UI for managing Docker containers in homelab and production environments.
Netbird lets you publish local services to the internet without opening ports, using secure tunnels and a convenient web interface - an ideal solution for a home server and homelab.
Pangolin lets you publish local services to the internet without opening ports, using secure tunnels and a convenient web interface — an ideal solution for a home server and homelab.
A detailed walkthrough for installing and configuring Grimmory: deploying it in Docker, adding books, organizing your library, and using the built-in web reader.
A detailed guide to installing and configuring BookLore: deploying it in Docker, adding books, organizing your library, and using the built-in web reader.
We go through installing and configuring Memos - a minimalist self-hosted app for quick notes and a personal journal. I’ll show how to run it in Docker, its core features, how to organize notes, and homelab use cases.
A detailed comparison of Karakeep and Linkwarden - self-hosted bookmark and link archive managers. We break down features, differences, architecture, a comparison table, and recommendations for homelab and DevOps.
In this article we’ve rounded up the most interesting self-hosted apps that appeared in 2025. From media servers and productivity tools to security and automation systems — let’s look at what’s worth trying and why.
Homelabbing is building a home lab for experimenting with servers, networks, and services. It helps you learn technologies, test new solutions, and develop practical IT skills.
A detailed guide to installing and configuring Diun for tracking Docker image updates. Covers deployment steps, integration with notification services, and monitoring automation, so you can update your containers on time and improve system security.
A detailed comparison of Obsidian and TriliumNext: two powerful systems for organizing notes and a personal knowledge base. Which one should you choose for your workflow?
A step-by-step guide to installing and configuring Trilium for organizing notes and knowledge bases on a personal server. Covers installation via Docker, web interface setup, users, and recommendations for effective note management.
A step-by-step guide to installing Vaultwarden - a lightweight self-hosted version of Bitwarden. From a basic docker-compose to an advanced configuration with SSO and push notifications.
A step-by-step guide to installing and configuring Mealie for managing recipes on your own server. Covers installation via Docker, database setup, the web interface and mobile access, integration with external recipe sources, plus the new AI features (importing recipes from video) and unit standardization.
A detailed guide to installing and configuring PostgreSQL on a server. Covers installation steps, creating users and databases, setting up backups, and basic security for stable and reliable operation.
A complete guide to installing and configuring Audiobookshelf for storing and listening to audiobooks on your own server. All steps are covered, from installation to the web interface and mobile access.
A step-by-step guide to installing and configuring Linkwarden for securely managing your links. Covers server installation, user setup, browser and mobile device integration, and basic security settings.
A detailed guide to installing and configuring Fedora Server 42. Covers the main steps: installing the system, configuring users, network services, and a baseline configuration for a secure and stable server.
