Self hosting apps for Python people - Talk Python to Me Ep. 546
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. ▬▬▬▬ About the podcast ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ This video is the uncut, live recording of the Talk Python To Me podcast ( https://talkpython.fm ). We cover Python-focused topics every week and publish the edited and polished version in audio form. Subscribe in your podcast player of choice (100% free) at https://talkpython.fm/subscribe. ▬▬▬▬ Guests ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Alex Kretzschmar ▬▬▬▬ Links and resources from the show ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Bitflip podcast: https://bitflip.show Self-Hosted podcast (Alex's previous show): https://selfhosted.show Perfect Media Server: https://perfectmediaserver.com KTZ Systems on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@ktzsystems Linuxserver.io (co-founded by Alex): https://linuxserver.io "How Tailscale Works" blog post: https://tailscale.com/blog/how-tailscale-works https://tailscale.com/: https://tailscale.com/ Awesome Self-Hosted (GitHub list): https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted Immich (Google Photos alternative): https://immich.app Home Assistant: https://home-assistant.io Open Home Foundation: https://openhomefoundation.org Plausible Analytics: https://plausible.io Umami Analytics: https://umami.is Python integration for umami: https://pypi.org/project/umami-analytics/ Pi-hole: https://pi-hole.net AdGuard Home: https://adguard.com/adguard-home NextDNS: https://nextdns.io Coolify: https://coolify.io Docker + ufw: https://docs.docker.com/engine/network/packet-filtering-firewalls/#docker-and-ufw OpenZFS: https://openzfs.org ZFS.rent (offsite ZFS replication): https://zfs.rent Backblaze: https://backblaze.com Hetzner Storage Box: https://hetzner.com/storage/storage-box DigitalOcean: https://digitalocean.com OpenBao (open-source Vault fork): https://openbao.org HashiCorp Vault: https://hashicorp.com/products/vault Bitwarden: https://bitwarden.com 1Password: https://1password.com Proxmox VE: https://proxmox.com Minisforum MS01: https://minisforum.com Zima Board / Zima OS: https://zimaspace.com Cory Doctorow on "enshittification" (Cory's blog where he coined the term): https://pluralistic.net Linus Tech Tips' WAN Show (Linus mentioned NAS-building going mainstream): https://linustechtips.com ▬▬▬▬ Dive deeper ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Listen to the Talk Python To Me podcast at https://talkpython.fm and explore over 275 hours of Python courses at https://training.talkpython.fm/courses. ▬▬▬▬ Follow us on Social ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ Mastodon: Michael - https://fosstodon.org/@mkennedy & Talk Python - https://fosstodon.org/@talkpython Bluesky: Michael - https://bsky.app/profile/mkennedy.codes & Talk Python - https://bsky.app/profile/talkpython.fm X: Michael - https://x.com/mkennedy & Talk Python - https://x.com/talkpython