Build a safer self-hosted stack

Practical, tested guides for self-hosting services, hardening Linux servers, and understanding the vulnerabilities that matter.

WireGuard VPN gateway inside a Docker container connected to persistent configuration storage and two client devices
Latest article wireguard

WireGuard Server with Docker Compose: Secure 2026 Guide

enim Aug 29, 2026 6 min read

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Editorial illustration showing public application behind a private network, outbound tunnel route, reverse-proxy dashboard, firewall boundary and exposed ports.
Self-Hosting

Pangolin vs Nginx Proxy Manager (2026)

TL;DR: Choose Nginx Proxy Manager for the simplest way to publish ordinary web apps; choose Pangolin when you need encrypted tunnels,

enim Jul 27 · 9 min
Editorial illustration showing three password vaults, individual and team users, Docker host, resource and administration tradeoffs.
password managers

Vaultwarden vs Bitwarden vs Passbolt (2026)

TL;DR: Vaultwarden is my pick for individuals and small teams, official Bitwarden is the safer supported choice for businesses, and Passbolt

enim Jul 25 · 8 min
Nginx Proxy Manager routing encrypted web traffic to isolated Docker services through a central reverse proxy
nginx-proxy-manager

How to Set Up Nginx Proxy Manager with Docker

TL;DR: Run Nginx Proxy Manager 2.15.1 with ports 80 and 443 public, bind its admin port 81 to localhost,

enim Jun 23 · 6 min
Editorial illustration showing personal VPS tunnel, commercial privacy relay, home devices, destination websites seeing different exits.
vpn

I Self-Host My Own VPN — Do I Still Need Mullvad?

TL;DR: "VPN" is really two different products that happen to share a name. A self-hosted VPN (WireGuard or

enim Jun 18 · 8 min
Editorial illustration showing three VPN gateways, laptop and phone clients, mesh peer route, manual server route.
vpn

WireGuard vs OpenVPN vs Tailscale: Self-Host in 2026

TL;DR: For most self-hosters in 2026, pick WireGuard if you want raw speed and full control, Tailscale if you want

enim Jun 11 · 9 min
Editorial illustration showing phone photo upload, Immich photo gallery, Docker containers, private VPS storage.
self-hosting

Self-Host Immich on a VPS: Your Own Private Google Photos

TL;DR: Immich is an open-source, self-hosted photo and video platform that genuinely replaces Google Photos — phone auto-backup, AI

enim Jun 8 · 8 min

Choose where to start

Three focused routes from first deploy to a hardened, observable stack.

01 Run your own services Docker · Vaultwarden · private cloud 02 Lock down your VPS SSH · firewall · fail2ban · updates 03 Learn by breaking things Web · crypto · pwn · forensics