Raspberry Pi is a small and capable computer that can run multiple tools without requiring a large amount of power. It is not a PC replacement, but it can help you run self-hosted tools that attempt to replace popular paid services available as a web tool or licensed copy. Instead of spending money every month on a popular tool, you can use a self-hosted alternative due to its multiple advantages.
These tools are open source; Don’t try to use your data for personal benefits and include equally good features. The only investment I need to make is to buy SBC. Since I have a few, using them as mini servers makes more sense than emptying my pocket on expensive tools.
next cloud
Save money on Google Drive
Instead of continuing to upload data to Google Drive, I switched to next cloud as a reliable alternative. It is not just a file backup solution and includes a complete set of applications that can replace the dependency on Google service. I use it to sync some crucial folders from my laptop and phone, and it works flawlessly.
Nextcloud is not difficult to configure and you can use it as a Docker container or as a direct installation. I previously experimented with a Pi Zero 2W and it produced some interesting results. The file synchronization and web interface worked great, but viewing media files and large documents was a bad experience. A Pi 4 or 5 will handle Nextcloud better and you should skip the SD card for an HDD or NVMe drive to store the files.
Nextcloud has a dedicated apps section that I can use to add more features. The first is to add support for external storage, and without it, the entire setup becomes useless. There is a huge library of apps that you can use to integrate other locally hosted tools, integrate a calendar, hold video conferences, and more.
BentoPDF
Goodbye Adobe Acrobat
Editing PDF files beyond basic actions like minor annotations and signatures requires a good PDF editor. Adobe Acrobat is good, but paying $15 a month for the basic level is not something I can sustain for long. I use Bento PDF as a Docker container on one of my Raspberry Pis and it does a great job replacing the paid Adobe software I used before.
BentoPDF It includes most of the editing features I need, including editing and converting PDF files. You can batch process files, convert them to other document formats, and create PDF forms. I relied on Stirling PDF for a while, but it was resource intensive for a Pi, and that prompted me to make the switch.
BentoPDF uses the client-side processing approach, so my Pi doesn’t need to bear the stress. The tools use my PC’s resources through the browser and can handle batch processing with ease. It offers encryption features if you want to protect the generated file and can even compare documents.
Vault Guardian
No more LastPass
I was a LastPass user for quite some time, but the service became unreliable after data breaches. Rising subscription prices and fear of losing passwords in the event of a breach pushed me toward a self-hosted alternative. Vaultwarden is an extremely lightweight password manager that I host on my Raspberry Pi Zero 2W without any problem. It remains isolated on my home network and I can access the passwords even when I’m outside with the help of Tailscale.
Vault Guardian It’s surprisingly feature-rich, with almost all the necessary ones I need. It needs the official Bitwarden extension to work within Chrome or any other browser, and can save and auto-fill passwords, generate random and complex passwords, and apply an automatic lock for the vault.
The server-side user interface can help remove weak passwords and find those compromised in a data breach. There is also a file sharing feature that can help share media or documents within the home network. Everything, including my passwords, stays on the local network and I don’t need to worry about exposing it to the Internet.
Manage file-related tasks without paying a dime
My daily workflow requires file format conversions and image-related adjustments. While there are some standalone apps that can do these things, none offer everything in one package. I’ve had to use some web tools in the past, but they required a one-time payment or subscription to download the final results after a few tries. Juggling between different applications is also an unpleasant experience.
OmniTools It has more than 50 utilities within a single web user interface and that covers almost all my potential needs. I can quickly convert a doc file to PDF, a PNG to JPEG, extract audio from a video, batch process multiple files at once, and more similar tasks. It also offers a compression feature, which is great for reducing the size of videos and images for uploading and sharing. Like BentoPDF, it works entirely within the browser and imposes minimal load on the Raspberry Pi.
Jellyfish
Plex Pass is ridiculously expensive
The idea behind Plex was to build a convenient media streaming server in a few minutes and then add all the metadata. It was easy to set up and didn’t act fussy or lock even core features behind a paywall. I never paid attention to the lifetime pass because the free tier worked for me. But now media streaming seems to be a small part and the app is full of internal content and promotional material.
Jellyfin is an excellent alternative to host my personal media library and doesn’t lock any features behind a paywall. I’m glad I don’t have to pay for the Intro Skipper feature or the ability to stream my media remotely when I’m away from my home network. Plex also dropped plugin support, which is another strong point of Jellyfin for me. After the recent increase in the price of the lifetime pass, I will never go back to Plex again.
Self-hosting saves money
I’m glad I switched to these self-hosted tools and now I don’t need to spend money every month. Vaultwarden and Jellyfin are two absolutely wonderful tools that I use daily. Nextcloud works silently in the background and BentoPDF and OmniTools come in handy when the need arises. Keeping my data private is an added benefit of self-hosting and I expose all of these tools outside of the home network with Tailscale.
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Windows, macOS, Linux
- Key Highlights
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Self-hosted and open source
Locally hosted cloud service that offers a complete set of office plugins and applications.
