Self-hosting: Difference between revisions
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'''Self-hosting''' is the practice of implementing digital services with server applications under one's own control. This is opposed to relying on | '''Self-hosting''' is the practice of implementing digital services with server applications under one's own control. This is opposed to relying on large public services or [[Cloud (service)|cloud services]]. | ||
Self-hosting is typically done for several reasons, including to enable users to have more control over the services they use, or to allow the user to have more control over their privacy<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kehayias |first=John |date=2021-09-02 |title=Meet the Self-Hosters, Taking Back the Internet One Server at a Time |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-the-self-hosters-taking-back-the-internet-one-server-at-a-time/ |url-status=live |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=2025-08-12 |website=VICE}}</ref>. As self-hosting gives the user more control over their data, it is often used by people to avoid companies from using their data in ways the user does not want or consent to. | Self-hosting is typically done for several reasons, including to enable users to have more control over the services they use, or to allow the user to have more control over their privacy<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kehayias |first=John |date=2021-09-02 |title=Meet the Self-Hosters, Taking Back the Internet One Server at a Time |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-the-self-hosters-taking-back-the-internet-one-server-at-a-time/ |url-status=live |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=2025-08-12 |website=VICE}}</ref>. As self-hosting gives the user more control over their data, it is often used by people to avoid companies from using their data in ways the user does not want or consent to. | ||
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The term "server" has several popular definitions in computing. Throughout this article it will refer to "a computer program that controls or supplies information to several computers connected in a network"<ref>{{Cite web |title=server (noun) |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/server |access-date=2025-10-12 |website=Oxford Learner's Dictionaries}}</ref> and not comparably common "hosts that have software installed that enable them to provide information, like email or web pages, to other hosts on the network"<ref>{{Cite web |title=1.1.2.2 Clients and Servers |url=http://cisco.num.edu.mn/CCNA_R&S1/course/module1/1.1.2.2/1.1.2.2.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407111300/http://cisco.num.edu.mn/CCNA_R&S1/course/module1/1.1.2.2/1.1.2.2.html |archive-date=2024-04-07 |website=Cisco Networking Academy}}</ref>. | The term "server" has several popular definitions in computing. Throughout this article it will refer to "a computer program that controls or supplies information to several computers connected in a network"<ref>{{Cite web |title=server (noun) |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/server |access-date=2025-10-12 |website=Oxford Learner's Dictionaries}}</ref> and not comparably common "hosts that have software installed that enable them to provide information, like email or web pages, to other hosts on the network"<ref>{{Cite web |title=1.1.2.2 Clients and Servers |url=http://cisco.num.edu.mn/CCNA_R&S1/course/module1/1.1.2.2/1.1.2.2.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240407111300/http://cisco.num.edu.mn/CCNA_R&S1/course/module1/1.1.2.2/1.1.2.2.html |archive-date=2024-04-07 |website=Cisco Networking Academy}}</ref>. | ||
== Origin of the practice == | ==Origin of the practice== | ||
Self-hosting typically refers to usage of digital services '''hosted''' by a person for just themselves (hence the '''self-''' prefix), but they're often made available also to a circle of family and friends, especially services that feature collaboration. Before self-hosting rose to prominence similar installations were typically limited to organizations and housed internal tools, such as company chats and internal knowledge bases.{{Citation needed}} This is still common in organizations, only partially supplanted by [[Software as a service|software-as-a-service (SaaS)]]. | Self-hosting typically refers to usage of digital services '''hosted''' by a person for just themselves (hence the '''self-''' prefix), but they're often made available also to a circle of family and friends, especially services that feature collaboration. Before self-hosting rose to prominence similar installations were typically limited to organizations and housed internal tools, such as company chats and internal knowledge bases.{{Citation needed}} This is still common in organizations, only partially supplanted by [[Software as a service|software-as-a-service (SaaS)]]. | ||
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==Further reading== | ==Further reading== | ||
*[[Cloud]] | *[[Cloud (service)]] | ||
*[[Local Area Network]] | *[[Local Area Network]] | ||
*[[Right to own]] | *[[Right to own]] | ||