irmadlad

I have a couple Docker containers that use email as an alert system or just for info like completed jobs. The server I would like to host them on has, for whatever reason, blocked email ports and you have to pay extra to have them turned on.

It seems to me tho, that I should be able to port all email through Tailscale to a local or even remote email client. For instance, in the case of setting the parameters in the Docker compose, it would look something like this:

SITE_NAME: mycoolwebsite
DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL: email address
EMAIL_HOST: smtp
EMAIL_HOST_USER: email address
EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD: email password
EMAIL_PORT: 100.x.x.x:587

Then, configure the local email client to listen on 100.x.x.x:587.

Would this be doable, or is there a better way?

Today I gained a little more knowledge about Caddy, and I thought I'd share in case someone is having the same issue.

I've been biting my nails worrying about Caddy updating certificates. Everything I had read told me not to sweat it. That Caddy had my back and wouldn't let any certs expire. Well, two did, today. So I set about today, after I got all my chores done, to see if I could figure out wtf.

Long story short, I had a inconsistency in the format of my Caddy file. It didn't affect the function of the file to the extent that it would not provide the certificate in daily use, but apparently I confused Caddy enough so that it couldn't determine when certs were expiring, and reissue the cert.

If you run the following:

caddy reload --config /etc/caddy/Caddyfile 

And you get something like this:

2025/04/09 21:49:03.376 WARN    Caddyfile input is not formatted; run 'caddy fmt --overwrite' to fix inconsistencies{"adapter": "caddyfile", "file": "/etc/caddy/Caddyfile", "line": 1}

It's a warning that something is askew. Not to worry tho, you can fix it thusly:

Make a backup assuming etc/caddy/Caddyfile is where your Caddyfile is:

cp /etc/caddy/Caddyfile /etc/caddy/Caddyfile.bak

Next we'll ask Caddy nicely to please reformat in an acceptible form:

sudo caddy fmt --overwrite /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Trust but verify:

caddy validate --config /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Now run:

caddy reload --config /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

You should be golden at this point.

Cheers

I am toying with the idea of using one of my Tailscale instances as traditional VPN, using the exit node features. I think I have that part down to a note as far as what has to be done in order for this to happen.

My question is if there are any security risks or security provisions that need to be made to keep the envelope secure. I am the only user of my Tailscale network, so I don't have to worry about another user jacking things up. However, I am concerned about the implications of the visibility of the exit node I would be connecting to.

So, I run three VPS and one rack in the closet. Currently I have Duplicati running on all four servers. What I would like to do is have one central server back up all four servers and store the backups in an offsite repository.

I'd prefer something with a good GUI. I know you purist get a hard on thinking about the CLI, and while it is a very powerful aspect of Linux, I still like a GUI.

What are my options?

Side note, I wanted to look at Bacula but their site seems nonexistent. Is Bacula defunct?

I'm sure everyone is aware of the 'Awesome' lists on Github. There are loads of them, which makes keeping up with new apps a chore.

I came across this site that does that very thing:

https://www.trackawesomelist.com/

I didn't know if anybody would find it as useful as I do. I have it in my FreshRSS reader.

I've been into computers since around the mid 70s. First one was an Altair 8000. I have been selfhosting for years now, self taught and helped along of course by the selfhosting communities.

Not to speak bad of the dead, but I've really had it up to my back teeth with their bullshit. So I am in search of some self hosting brethren to chum around with. I figured I'd give Lemmy a try. It's kind of confusing, but hopefully I can wrap my 70 year old head around it.

I've seen a few selfhost forum around the fediverse but they all seem to have been abandoned with threads a year or more old, and no movement. So my question, is there a thriving selfhost/homelab type place that is active? Perhaps one of you good souls could point me in the right direction.

Is there any benefit to hosting your own Lemmy and mesh it with the other Lemmey's out there? What benefit would that be? From what I understand, hosting your own instance turns out to just be your own personal blog.

I mean, I understand the fediverse, and decentralization, I'm just having a bit of difficulty getting in with the right, active, group.

TIA

ETA: Thank you for the very warm welcome. Hopefully I will be turtley enough for the turtle club.