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I was reading this excellent article about the Mini PC revolution when something clicked. The author was right - mini PCs have quietly revolutionized self-hosting. Not in a flashy, headline-grabbing way, but in the practical, “oh, this actually works” way that real change happens. A modern mini PC like the Beelink SER8 - capable of handling enterprise workloads in a tiny form factor ...

Originally published on soundleafapp.com SoundLeaf: A Beautiful iOS Home for Your Audiobookshelf Library So here’s the thing - I love audiobooks. There’s something weirdly satisfying about having someone tell you a story while you’re doing the dishes or stuck in traffic. But if you’re using Audiobookshelf for your self-hosted library? Finding a good iOS app has been… frustrating, to say the least. That’s why I built SoundLeaf. How This Happened This whole project started because my wife couldn’t get into the Audiobookshelf TestFlight beta. Her exact words were “I cannot live without audiobooks,” which felt just dramatic enough to be a call to action. I’m primarily a backend dev with zero mobile experience, but hey, how hard could it be? (Narrator: It was quite hard.) ...

My iPhone 8 Refuses to Die: Now It’s a Solar-Powered Vision OCR Server After running for over a year, my solar-powered setup has processed 83,418 OCR requests and 48GB of images using nothing but Apple’s Vision framework and renewable energy. Most people toss their old iPhones in a drawer when they upgrade. Me? I turned mine into a server that saves me money while running completely off-grid. Note: The OCR processing serves a separate side project unrelated to this blog, maybe I’ll write about it later. ...

Homelab: Hosting multiple Game Servers on a Single Mini PC When my electricity bill jumped by $60 after running my first gaming server rig for a month, I knew I had a problem to solve. That power-hungry desktop was heating up my room and emptying my wallet at the same time. If you’re looking to host multiple game servers without the punishing electricity costs, you’ve found the right guide. After three years of trial and error, I’ve refined a setup that can run DayZ, Project Zomboid, Valheim, and other demanding multiplayer games simultaneously on a single, efficient mini PC. ...

Most of us have a drawer (or a box) stuffed with old gadgets—a sort of tech graveyard we can’t quite bring ourselves to throw out. You know the one I’m talking about: that chaotic nest of tangled cables, forgotten adapters, and mysterious dongles that looks like a digital snake pit (yeah, exactly like that mess in the photo below). ...

The Ultimate Guide to Running a Minecraft Server on a Mini PC (2025 Edition) Listen up, fellow block enthusiasts! So, you want to run your own Minecraft server but don’t want a PC the size of a small refrigerator hogging your desk? Been there, done that, got the electricity bill to prove it. After countless hours of testing (and maybe a few rage quits), I’ve figured out how to make these adorable little computers run Minecraft servers like champs. ...

Looking for the Perfect Mini PC for Your Home Lab? Here’s My 2025 Guide Hey there, tech enthusiasts! If you’re looking to build or upgrade your home lab in 2025, you’re in for a treat. I’ve spent countless hours testing and comparing the latest mini PCs, and I’m here to share everything you need to know about choosing the perfect compact powerhouse for your setup. ...

Setting Up a Robust PostgreSQL High-Availability Cluster on Azure Are you looking to deploy a production-ready PostgreSQL cluster on Azure? This guide will walk you through setting up a highly available PostgreSQL environment. I’ve spent countless hours testing these configurations, and I’m excited to share what actually works in the real world. Understanding Your Options When setting up PostgreSQL on Azure, you have several deployment options: Production Features High availability with automatic failover Zone-redundant or same-zone replicas Advanced monitoring and alerting Flexible compute resources Comprehensive storage options 1. Getting Started with Azure PostgreSQL Let’s start with the basic setup. Later sections will cover scaling to HA when you’re ready. ...

How to Create Your Own Free VPN Server Using Oracle Cloud (2025 Guide) Let’s face it - VPN subscriptions aren’t cheap, and who really knows what these companies do with our data? After getting fed up with monthly fees and privacy concerns, I decided to build my own VPN server. The best part? It’s completely free using Oracle Cloud’s Always Free tier. I’ll show you exactly how I did it, and trust me, it’s easier than you might think. ...

How to Set Up a Free Minecraft PE Server Using Oracle Cloud in 2025 This is the updated 2025 edition of our original Minecraft PE server guide. We’ve completely revised the tutorial with the latest Oracle Cloud features and Minecraft PE updates. Looking to create your own Minecraft PE server without spending a dime? You’re in the right place! In this guide, I’ll walk you through setting up a completely free Minecraft PE server using Oracle Cloud’s Free Tier. As someone who’s helped numerous gamers set up their servers, I can tell you that Oracle Cloud offers one of the best free solutions available for MinecraftPE today. ...