Subscription creep is a real problem. It’s $20 a month, then another $5, and before you know it, you’re spending hundreds a month on services you won’t even be able to use. If you have a Raspberry Pi sitting around waiting for a project, you can turn it into a small self-hosting hub that can replace several subscription services, as long as you take the right precautions.
These are the four subscription services I started running on an extra Raspberry Pi I discovered in a drawer.
The Pi makes a decent backup server
You need to buy a special hard drive
Everyone needs backups, and if you don’t want to keep paying for a cloud-based backup like Dropbox or Google, you can turn your Raspberry Pi into one. You’ll need to add a hard drive with a USB enclosure, but that’s not too bad compared to the $100 or more you’ll pay annually for a comparable amount of storage from a cloud provider.
The simplest option I use for this purpose is Seafile; it is a purpose built file sync and sharing service with end-to-end encryption. If you need a simple file backup, it’s hard to beat. However, after experimenting for a while, I chose to use Nextcloud instead.
It functions like Nextcloud your personal Google Drive or OneDrive suite. It provides self-hosted file synchronization with desktop, mobile and web interfaces. It also has a word processor, PowerPoint-like presentation software, and many other features.
You definitely need a Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 for this – Nextcloud is a bit heavy.
You’re also responsible for keeping your backups safe, which is a big deal if you’re talking about important legal documents.
- Storage Capacity
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2 – 26 TB
- Work load
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550TB/year
- suitable for
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NAS
Western Digital’s Red Pro NAS hard drives come in sizes from 2TB to 26TB.
Immich replaces the trusted Google Photos
It’s long past the beta stage
Use it if you want automatic phone photo backup with Google Photos style experience Immich. It provides a timeline view, search capabilities, and mobile auto-download, just like the Photos app.
Its smart features require a Pi 4 or 5 with decent RAM (8GB or more) to run properly, and large libraries will require proper external storage. I would also strongly recommend that you avoid storing important photos on a microSD card – you’ll just end up with tragic data loss. .
Vaultwarden is your own password manager
It already works with existing Bitwarden apps
Vaultwarden is a lightweight open source server that is fully compatible with standard Bitwarden applications and browser extensions. It can replace most of the features of the Bitwarden subscription, which currently costs $40 per year.
If you care about privacy and are on a budget, this is a great option because it is light enough to even run on a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 Wit only costs $20.
As with all self-hosting, the big hurdle is risk. Your Pi stores your password vault, and while it’s protected from theft by strong encryption, hardware failures can still cause it to be irretrievably lost. Be sure to make regular backups to avoid losing access.
Pi-hole is a great alternative to premium DNS services
Block trackers and malware before they reach your computer
Alternative DNS services popular because many provide basic malware and content filters and some sophisticated services NextDNS– provides extremely granular control.
However, if you don’t want to pay the subscription fee and want to manage it manually, you can use the Pi-hole.
Pi-hole acts as a DNS sink that blocks ads and trackers across your entire network. Instead of paying for premium DNS filtering or a VPN’s ad-blocking add-on, you can use it to simultaneously cover every device in your home, including phones, smart TVs, and IoT devices.
Note that since it works at the DNS level, it won’t catch every in-app or first-party ad. You will also sometimes need to manually allow a blocked domain.
You don’t need a dedicated Pi for this; even an older or underpowered Pi will work.
Making a Pi juggles several services
An ounce of prevention is necessary
If you intend to run multiple services simultaneously on a Pi, there are a few things you need to do.
First, if you have multiple ways to install a service, stick with Docker. This makes it very easy to install and run multiple services.
Second, you need to boot from a USB SSD rather than a microSD card. MicroSD cards are prone to failure, and SSDs provide both better speed and longer life.
Finally, remember that self-hosting gives you a safety net. Back up your configurations, databases, and important data regularly.
A Pi with a handful of jobs
Now your Pi will be responsible for many important tasks and you may want to access it from anywhere, not just when you are at home.
Instead of exposing your services directly to the internet, I’d recommend using a self-hosted WireGuard server (which can run on a Pi) or something like Tailscale to give you access. They are well vetted, reliable and easy to get going.
