Not Your Server, Not Your Files

The UK government recently forced Apple to weaken iCloud encryption. That was the final push I needed to get my files off iCloud and onto a server I control.

I’d been thinking about it for years, ever since reading horror stories of people being locked out of their accounts or losing years of photos and documents in a single glitch. Gone. Just like that.

When it comes to digital assets, I follow one rule: Not your server, not your files. Call it paranoia, but I don’t like the idea of a government official poking through my data—or a tech giant holding my digital life hostage.

The best part? Self-hosting isn’t as scary as it sounds. For about $20/month, I run Immich for my photos and OwnCloud for my files (both completely free), all hosted on Hetzner. I had it up and running in under 30 minutes by copy-pasting a few commands from ChatGPT.

It’s not just about privacy—it’s about control, freedom, and knowing no one can pull the plug on my digital life.