Over the last few months, I’ve been gradually building a home server that I actually use every day. Why? You may ask, basically to be free of the usual internet (and also because Gilfoyle from silicon valley conviced me to build my own Anton).
This blog walks through why I built it, what I’m running, and how everything fits together.
Why I Built a Home Server
As a backend engineer, I wanted more than just a VPS:
- Full control over infrastructure (while AWS and GCP are good, all the internal workings are kinda abstracted)
- A place to experiment safely ()
- A deeper understanding of networking, Linux, Docker, and automation
- Most importantly, A Media Server (I was soo tired of having multiple streaming platforms just not having the content I wanna watch!)
Hardware
some shit
This runs 24/7 without noticeable power or noise impact.
Operating System & Base Setup
I’m running a Debian-based Linux distribution.
Key choices:
- No desktop environment
- SSH-only access
- Firewall enabled
- Automatic security updates
- Custom SSH port + key-based login only
Keeping the OS minimal reduces attack surface and keeps maintenance simple.
Containerization with Docker
Everything runs inside Docker containers, managed via Docker Compose.
Why Docker?
- Clean isolation
- Easy upgrades
- Reproducible setup
- Fast rollback if something breaks
Each service lives in its own compose file with persistent volumes mapped to disk.
Services I’m Running
1. Reverse Proxy & SSL
All services are routed through a reverse proxy:
- Automatic HTTPS
- One public IP, many services
- Clean subdomain-based routing
2. Home Automation
I run a local home automation server to control:
- Lights
- Sensors
- Bluetooth/Zigbee devices
Everything works locally, even if the internet goes down.
3. Media & File Sharing
- Private file-sharing service
- Local media streaming
- LAN-first, cloud-optional access
4. Monitoring & Logs
- System metrics (CPU, memory, disk)
- Container health checks
- Logs centralized for debugging
If something breaks, I know why.
Networking & Remote Access
My ISP doesn’t provide a static IP, so I use:
- Dynamic DNS
- Reverse tunneling for secure access
- No exposed services without authentication
Security always comes before convenience.
Backups & Data Safety
One rule: assume the disk will fail.
My strategy:
- Nightly backups to a secondary drive
- Configuration files version-controlled
- Encrypted backups for sensitive data
Rebuilding the server from scratch takes under an hour.
What I Learned
This setup taught me more than most cloud tutorials ever could:
- Linux internals
- Real networking (NAT, DNS, ports)
- Docker beyond “hello world”
- Security tradeoffs
- How systems fail in practice
Most importantly, it gave me confidence. I know exactly what’s running, where my data lives, and how to fix things when they break.
What’s Next
Planned upgrades:
- Local AI / LLM inference
- Custom voice assistant backend
- Smarter monitoring & alerting
- Power usage optimization
This server isn’t “done”—it’s a living system.
Final Thoughts
A home server isn’t about replacing the cloud.
It’s about understanding it.
If you’re a developer who enjoys building systems end-to-end, I highly recommend setting one up. Start small. Break things. Learn fast.