Homelab design, setup & care

Your data should belong to you.

We build and look after private home servers so you can leave the subscriptions behind and take ownership over your data. Your data lives on a machine you own: no storage rent, no AI training on your photos, no subscription fees.

In-person around northern Colorado and Denver · free, no-pressure first call

 home.yourdomain.com
Immichphotos.yourdomain.com
Jellyfinmedia.yourdomain.com
Nextcloudoffice.yourdomain.com
FreshRSSnews.yourdomain.com
Pi-holedns.yourdomain.com
Proxmox Backupnightly

Nobody else's server

Your photos and files sit on hardware in your home. No scanning, no training, no policy change that moves the goalposts next year.

No rent

Cloud storage bills never stop. A server is a one-time cost plus a few dollars of electricity a month, and it keeps working as long as the software has somewhere to live.

Open formats

Everything we install is free and open-source software storing plain files on a plain filesystem. Your data stays yours, forever, with no subscription fees.

Someone to call

Setting up a homelab is fun. Maintaining it can be a headache. Call us for help anytime.

How it goes

From first call to a server you trust

Free consult

Thirty minutes on what you want to stop paying for, who else in your community needs access, and how much data you're carrying.

Plan & quote

A written plan: which apps, which hardware, what it costs up front, and what it costs to keep. You approve before anything is bought.

Build & migrate

I set up the server, install your services, move your data in, wire up remote access and backups, and test a restore before calling it done.

Handover

You get documentation, every password, and a walkthrough. Then it's yours. Forever.

Software

Replacements for the things you already pay for

Every app below is free and open-source unless noted, and every one links to its own site so you can read up before you commit to anything.

Google Photos/iCloud → Immich

Automatic phone backup, face grouping, search, shared albums, and a timeline that feels like the app you're leaving, but you ditch the Google or Apple subscription fee.

Netflix/Hulu and Spotify/Tidal → Jellyfin

Your own films, shows, and music with apps on TVs, phones, and consoles. No account, no ads, no titles disappearing because a licence lapsed. If you own it, it's available everywhere.

G-Suite/Office365 → Nextcloud

Synced files, calendars, contacts, and collaborative documents for the whole community, with no per-seat fee and no storage ceiling but your own drives.

Straight answers

Common questions

Is this legal / safe / a security risk?
Running your own server is ordinary and legal. It's a risk only if it's exposed to the internet and then neglected. That's why the default build puts everything behind a Tailscale VPN or a single TLS-terminating Caddy reverse proxy, keeps one port open at most, and has an update path from day one.
What happens if you disappear?
You own the hardware, you hold every credential, and everything installed is open-source software that thousands of other people also run. We hand over written documentation at the end of every build specifically so that you are never dependent on us. If you'd rather not deal with it you can hire us to handle it, but that should be a choice and not a trap.
How much does electricity cost?
A modern mini PC or small-form-factor desktop idles around 10–25 W, which is typically one to three dollars a month. Spinning hard drives add a couple of watts each. A used rack unit runs between 100-300W under load, which translates to between ten and thirty dollars a month, but most people don't need that much computing power.
I already have a server / old PC / NAS. Can you work with it?
Usually yes, and that's the cheapest path. Bring-your-own-hardware setups are quoted at a flat rate based on the services you want. If the machine turns out to be a bad fit (too little RAM, no room for drives, a CPU that can't transcode) we'll tell you before you spend anything else on it.
Do I need a domain name?
Not for a VPN-only setup. If you want to reach services from a browser anywhere, or share with family who won't install a VPN client, a domain (around $10–15 a year) makes it far nicer: real HTTPS certificates and addresses like photos.yourname.com instead of IP addresses and port numbers. we'll help you pick a registrar and set the DNS up.
Where are you, and do you travel?
Most of the work (setup, updates, troubleshooting) happens remotely over a screen share or a secure remote session. In-person visits and hands-on classes are available around the Denver area and northern Colorado. Hardware can be built and shipped anywhere in the country.
Next step

Let's find out what you actually need

A free 30-minute call. We talk about what you want off the cloud, what hardware you have, and what it would take. No obligation, and if the honest answer is "you don't need us for this," you'll get that answer.