The hosts discuss the results of their user survey on self-hosting, including reasons for self-hosting, hardware options used, and the cost associated with free services. They also talk about using Proxmox as a Docker host and NAS solution, utilizing hosted cloud storage for offsite backups, and the popularity of using containers for deploying self-hosted software. They discuss their remote access setup, the results of the user survey on media streaming, home automation, and game servers, as well as reliable software applications, demographics of the audience, and the rise of self-hosting as a hobby. They also analyze the survey results on educational degrees.
Self-hosters prefer containers for deploying software for ease and convenience.
Hosted cloud storage, especially Backblaze, is popular for offsite backups among self-hosters.
Many self-hosters deploy a firewall in addition to their ISP router, with OpenSense and PFsense being popular choices.
Self-hosters commonly access their software remotely through VPNs or reverse proxies, with VPNs being slightly more popular.
Deep dives
Main Idea 1
The majority of self-hosters prefer to use containers to deploy their self-hosted software due to the ease and convenience they offer.
Main Idea 2
Many self-hosters utilize hosted cloud storage for offsite backups, with Backblaze being the most popular provider.
Main Idea 3
There is a significant number of self-hosters who deploy a firewall aside from the router provided by their ISP, with OpenSense and PFsense being popular options.
Main Idea 4
Self-hosters commonly access their self-hosted software remotely through VPNs or reverse proxies, with VPNs being slightly more popular.
Main Idea 5
The majority of self-hosters use a custom domain for their self-hosted applications, with Cloudflare being a popular domain provider.
The trend towards simplicity in domain name and DNS management
More people are leaning towards buying their domain name from Cloudflare because it offers instant DNS change compared to other registrars. The top domain name providers mentioned by respondents were Cloudflare, Namecheap, Porkbun, and Google Domains.
The popularity of Nginx as a web server for self-hosting
Nginx is the preferred web server for self-hosting, with many people using plain Nginx, Nginx Proxy Manager, or swag (Linux Servers Team's implementation of Nginx). While some criticize the use of Cloudflare tunnels for self-hosting, it is acknowledged that using what works for you and is reliable is more important.