Self-Hosting Basics
The server-side steps every self-hosted app shares: Docker, a reverse proxy with free TLS, systemd services, backups, and keeping dashboards private.
- Install Docker and Docker Compose Install Docker Engine and the Compose plugin from Docker's repository on Ubuntu, Debian, AlmaLinux, or Rocky, and run a first Compose project safely. Updated Aug 15, 2026
- Reverse Proxy with Free TLS Put Caddy or nginx with Let's Encrypt in front of your self-hosted apps for automatic HTTPS, websockets, and one entry point for every hostname. Updated Aug 15, 2026
- Run an App as a systemd Service Keep any program running with a systemd unit: start at boot, restart on failure, log to journald, and schedule jobs with timers instead of cron. Updated Aug 15, 2026
- Back Up a Dockerised App A nightly pattern for Compose stacks: dump the database, back up volumes off-server with restic, prune old copies, and rehearse the restore. Updated Aug 15, 2026
- Keep a Dashboard Private Reach admin UIs, AI agent dashboards, and databases without exposing them: bind to localhost, then use an SSH tunnel, a tailnet, or a gated proxy. Updated Aug 15, 2026
- Deploy Hermes Agent on a VPS Run Hermes Agent on a server of your own: prepare the machine, keep it alive across reboots, keep the dashboard private, and back up what it learns. Updated Aug 30, 2026
- Deploy OpenClaw on a VPS Run the OpenClaw assistant gateway on your own server: Node and npm, the daemon, who may talk to it, a private dashboard, and backing up its data. Updated Aug 30, 2026
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