View source for Self-hosted alternatives

Once your data is backed up, the next step is reducing dependence on US-based services. The alternatives below are either self-hostable or operated by European providers.

== Communication ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Service !! Replaces !! Notes
|-
| [https://nextcloud.com Nextcloud Mail] || Gmail / Outlook || Self-hosted, runs on your own server
|-
| [https://signal.org Signal] || WhatsApp / iMessage || End-to-end encrypted, open source
|-
| [https://delta.chat DeltaChat] || WhatsApp || Uses email as transport, no central server
|-
| Nextcloud Talk || Zoom / Teams || Self-hosted video calls and chat
|-
| [https://mattermost.com Mattermost] || Slack || Self-hosted team messaging
|}

== Storage & productivity ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Service !! Replaces !! Notes
|-
| [https://nextcloud.com Nextcloud] || Google Drive / iCloud / OneDrive || Files, calendar, contacts, photos — all in one
|-
| [https://www.libreoffice.org LibreOffice] || Microsoft Office / Google Docs || Local office suite, free and open source
|-
| [https://bitwarden.com Vaultwarden] || LastPass / 1Password || Self-hosted Bitwarden-compatible password manager
|}

== Development & code ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Service !! Replaces !! Notes
|-
| [https://about.gitlab.com GitLab CE] || GitHub || Full Git hosting, CI/CD, issues — self-hosted
|-
| [https://www.postgresql.org PostgreSQL] || Cloud databases || Self-hosted relational database
|}

== AI & machine learning ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Service !! Replaces !! Notes
|-
| [https://ollama.com Ollama] || ChatGPT API || Run large language models locally
|-
| Local LLMs (Llama, Mistral) || OpenAI models || Runs fully offline, no data leaves your machine
|-
| Draw Things || Midjourney / DALL-E || Local image generation on Mac/iOS
|}

== Media ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Service !! Replaces !! Notes
|-
| [https://jellyfin.org Jellyfin] || Netflix / Plex || Self-hosted media server, no subscription
|-
| [https://joinpeertube.org PeerTube] || YouTube || Federated video hosting
|-
| [https://github.com/tubearchivist/tubearchivist TubeArchivist] || YouTube || Archive and self-host YouTube content locally
|-
| [https://www.openstreetmap.org OpenStreetMap] || Google Maps || Open map data, usable offline
|}

== Infrastructure notes ==
The author runs all of the above on a Netherlands-based VPS. See [https://ddq.nl ddq.nl] for the software development context.

Key self-hosted services running at ddq.nl:
* '''cloud.ddq.nl''' — Nextcloud (files, calendar, contacts, photos)
* '''git.ddq.nl''' — GitLab CE (code hosting)
* '''chat.ddq.nl''' — Mattermost (team messaging)

== Next steps ==
* [[Data backup]] — back up your existing data first before switching services
* [[Offline preparedness]] — prepare for scenarios where the internet itself fails