Background
Many people know how to install a computer program, but wouldn’t even know where to begin if asked how the cloud works. As we increasingly rely on the Cloud (or digital services hosted on someone else's computer), we must consider how this affects our personal privacy and security. We have the right to control our digital ecosystem.
cloudWhat is the Cloud?
Computers and their networks have been intentionally designed to be abstract – masking inner depths though a shared common language. We don't need to understand electrical engineering to build a computer, just which parts work together.
These systems consist of collective parts working towards a desired outcome. We must not lose sight of the small details lost in translation. When we create digital spaces, we must not forget the effect we have on our physical world – from the server in our garage to the data center down the street.
We leave a mark on the spaces left in our care and our personal decisions have reverberating effects that can be felt by others. The “Cloud” has taken control over the way corporations handle digital infrastructure. By 2025, an estimated 96% of corporations will rely on the cloud with a majority of corporate data stored outside their business.
By extension, everyday consumers have been progressively forced into the “Cloud” alongside them. But, what does this mean and how does it work? Open-source software solutions can put us back in control of our digital experiences. By joining these open collaborative communities, we can add diverse voices throughout their growth process.
Learning Objectives
We believe that anyone can host their own server, but there are questions we must ask ourselves first. How does this power translate into responsibility?
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Hardware |
Practical Be able to assess computer hardware components, install a working operating system and host a simple web server using open-source cloud computing technologies.
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| Engineering |
Technical Understand the historical context, significance, and potential applications for cloud computing.
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Social Explore the role that cloud computing has on mediating our relationships between people, places, communities, and “Technology”.
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| Psychology |
Personal Critically analyze and assess the vulnerabilities that can arise through reliance on cloud technologies.
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Before you make the decision to learn how to build a server from my perspective, it may help to learn more about the person writing.
What You'll Need Need
There are several things we will need in order to operate a self-hosted server from home. You can fulfill each of these requirements at a variety of price points, including free options where available.
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Desktop_windows |
Computer $50 – $1500
You will need computer hardware to host your server.
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Accessories $0 – $300
You will need a display, mouse and keyboard to interact with your computer, as well as cables and a USB flash drive.
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Internet Service $30+/month
You will need internet access for your home server. Preferably, it is a hardwired internet connection – such as cable or fiber – as opposed to wireless – like satellite.
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| Router |
Router $50 – $150
You will need a router that
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VPN Provider Free to $9+/month
A Virtual Private Network provider is an excellent way to maintain privacy and anonymity on the internet.
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| Domain_verification |
Domain Name Free – $20,000
Accessing our server over the internet will generally require a domain name – such as example.com – and there is a wide price variability.
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Before you commit yourself to this project, take this opportunity to explore everything you'll need to follow along. It's also important to reflect on how you will approach this learning experience.
Process & Format
Aside from curiosity and hardware, you will need to create the space for reflection – about yourself and world being shared. While you might not need to know how to write program code, you must be comfortable to think critically.
This will not be just about about how to do it, but also a reflection of how and why we arrived where we are. When we take back responsibility for our digital selves, we also gain the power and community to shape the digital world. Your perspective is vital for creating equitable technologies. Together, we can learn how to talk back and forge a new relationship with technology.
"Your Personal Cloud" will be a five-part series, divided into five books through this digital repository. These will follow a book metaphor with chapters and pages, progressively leading the way through making your own server.
This is a self-led learning experience geared towards personal reflection and growth. Each book will contain do-it-yourself guides that progressively build on the last, standing as tangible milestones for your progress. Throughout, we will explore why computers came to be, how we first connected them and what that means for global communities as we continue forward together.
These resources can be exported for your own personal archive.
These books will provide quick links to community-crafted resources – like Wikipedia – to help place ideas within larger concepts. Links within the text to academic, corporate and community resources will attempt to lend weight to the claims. Illustrations, digrams and visual resources are heavily leveraged to express and communicate abstract concepts.
We will be the same techniques and technologies used by many companies to host their own websites and cloud services. Created through community-powered projects, these technologies are robust enough for corporations while still accessible to someone looking to host a small home server.
A Project Notebook is offered alongside these lessons to keep trackAll of technical notes, as well as to provide a central space for reflection and brainstorming. This can be printed – or downloaded as a form-fillable PDF – to act as a reference throughout all five books.
Outcome
We will be creating a personal home server that can be used to host our own cloud applications using the same tools that tech giants use. These can be services for yourself, your family, your community or even your small business. Allsoftware you will need to bring is youroffered ownfree-of-charge hardwareby the original developers and internetcan services.
be downloaded from their servers.
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This
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This
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| Group_work |
This community-supported application makes it easy to create and
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This open-source software is a web
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Services
the Throughfoundation thishas guide,been youlaid, canthere exploreare a wide gamut of open-source alternativesapplications that can be self-hosted on your server. These provide services ranging from cloud office suites to manypersonal media management. We dedicate a book to each unique service, providing a more in-depth examination of the cloudproject, servicesit's you'repurpose alreadyand familiar with.
There are so many cloud serviceshow to chooseinstall from, including self-hosting your own:it.
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Personal cloud and office suite for managing your files, contacts and calendars. |
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Multimedia streaming server with automated downloads and up-to-date metadata.
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Professional platform for building a community and gathering feedback |
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Personal blog for connecting with your friends and family. |
Many self-hosted services focusoffer on modern andmodern, responsive web application interfacesapplications that runyou incontrol through your browser. browser Thisor meansplatform-specific software. Organizr enables you canto securely access your self-hosted services from any computing device. Many also support desktop and mobile apps built for your operating system.
Home Page
By self-hosting Organizr, or other tools like it, we can create a personalized homepage thatto keeps all of ouryour services accessible in one place – on desktop and mobilemobile. devices.
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| OutcomeYou will be create a personal home server using available hardware – such as a Raspberry Pi single-board computer or a refurbished desktop computer. This will host a basic website that is available at a domain name that you own. Additionally, you can self-host your own services and make them Installation will require physical access to a monitor and | setup
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