Backups
Immich as the De-Google Gateway: Great App, Serious Backup Responsibility
Immich can be a fantastic Google Photos alternative, but photos raise the stakes: sync is not backup and restore tests are mandatory.
The 2026 Self-Hosted Starter Stack: What People Actually Run
A pragmatic 2026 self-hosted starter stack: host OS, Docker Compose, DNS, remote access, reverse proxy, backups, monitoring, and daily-driver apps.
NAS vs DAS vs Mini PC: The Storage Decision Tree
A practical decision tree for choosing NAS, DAS, or mini PC storage based on who needs the files, how apps run, and how recovery should work.
Homelab Backup Strategy: NAS, Offsite Copies, and Restore Tests
A practical homelab backup strategy covering 3-2-1 design, NAS backups, offsite copies, immutable or offline protection, and restore drills.
What Not to Self-Host in 2026: A Practical Risk List for Homelabs
A realistic self-hosting risk guide covering email, passwords, identity, family-critical data, public dashboards, backups, and safer alternatives.
Local-First Smart Home Without Becoming a Sysadmin
Build a smart home that keeps working when the internet is down without turning the house into a fragile homelab.
RAID, ZFS Snapshots, Sync, and Backup: What Each One Does Not Protect
Use all four for different jobs. RAID keeps storage online after some disk failures, snapshots recover recent local changes, sync moves current files between places, and backup restores data after loss, corruption.
What Should You Monitor in a Homelab?
Monitor the things that would make recovery harder or affect the household: internet, DNS, router, UPS, NAS disks, backup jobs, storage capacity, certificates, critical containers, and remote access. Start with alerts you.
Back Up and Restore Jellyfin and the Media Automation Stack
Protect Jellyfin, Plex, Arr, SABnzbd, and Tdarr state with consistent encrypted backups, an explicit restore order, and an isolated recovery test.