#546: Self hosting apps for Python people

The cloud is convenient until it isn't. You upload your photos, sync your contacts, click through the cookie banners. Then prices go up again or you read about a family that lost their entire Google account over a medical photo sent to a doctor. At some point, the question shifts from "why would I run this myself?" to "why aren't I?" My guest this week is Alex Kretzschmar, head of DevRel at Tailscale, longtime host of the Self-Hosted podcast, and co-founder of Linuxserver.io. We cover what self-hosting really means in 2026, the apps worth running yourself like Immich and Home Assistant, why Docker Compose ties it all together, and how Tailscale lets you reach any of it from anywhere, without opening a single port. If you've been thinking about pulling your digital life back behind your own walls, this is your roadmap. Episode sponsors Temporal Talk Python Courses Links from the show Guest Alex Kretzschmar : alex.ktz.me Bitflip podcast : bitflip.show Self-Hosted podcast (Alex's previous show) : selfhosted.show Perfect Media Server : perfectmediaserver.com KTZ Systems on YouTube : youtube.com/@ktzsystems Linuxserver.io (co-founded by Alex) : linuxserver.io "How Tailscale Works" blog post : tailscale.com/blog/how-tailscale-works : tailscale.com Self-hosted apps discussed Awesome Self-Hosted (GitHub list) : github.com Immich (Google Photos alternative) : immich.app Home Assistant : home-assistant.io Open Home Foundation : openhomefoundation.org Plausible Analytics : plausible.io Umami Analytics : umami.is Python integration for umami : pypi.org Pi-hole : pi-hole.net AdGuard Home : adguard.com NextDNS : nextdns.io Coolify : coolify.io Docker + ufw : docs.docker.com Storage, backup & filesystem OpenZFS : openzfs.org ZFS.rent (offsite ZFS replication) : zfs.rent Backblaze : backblaze.com Hetzner Storage Box : hetzner.com DigitalOcean : digitalocean.com Secrets management mentioned OpenBao (open-source Vault fork) : openbao.org HashiCorp Vault : hashicorp.com Bitwarden : bitwarden.com 1Password : 1password.com Hardware mentioned Proxmox VE : proxmox.com Minisforum MS01 : minisforum.com Zima Board / Zima OS : zimaspace.com Other references Cory Doctorow on "enshittification" (Cory's blog where he coined the term) : pluralistic.net Linus Tech Tips' WAN Show (Linus mentioned NAS-building going mainstream) : linustechtips.com Watch this episode on YouTube : youtube.com Episode deep-dive : talkpython.fm/546 Episode transcripts : talkpython.fm Theme Song: Developer Rap 🥁 Served in a Flask 🎸 : talkpython.fm/flasksong ---== Don't be a stranger ==--- YouTube : youtube.com/@talkpython Bluesky : @talkpython.fm Mastodon : @talkpython@fosstodon.org X.com : @talkpython Michael on Bluesky : @mkennedy.codes Michael on Mastodon : @mkennedy@fosstodon.org Michael on X.com : @mkennedy

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#546: Self hosting apps for Python people is an episode from Talk Python To Me - Python conversations for passionate developers by Michael Kennedy.

This episode is 63:12 long.

This episode was published on Apr 27, 2026.

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