Practical write-ups I've compiled from running a home Synology RS1221 alongside a handful of Ubuntu VPS boxes. Hardening, networking, disk, backups, the stuff that keeps a single-admin lab from catching fire at 3 a.m.
13 posts on keeping Linux servers quiet, fast and secure.
The checklist I run on every fresh box before anything else touches it.
Dec 3, 2024 · 9 min read SecurityKeys, a non-standard port, fail2ban — what actually earns its keep.
Dec 8, 2024 · 7 min read NetworkingOne stateful ruleset that covers 95% of what a small server needs.
Dec 14, 2024 · 8 min read Administrationjournalctl patterns that save hours, and how to read a failed unit.
Dec 19, 2024 · 6 min read Performanceswappiness, vm.dirty_ratio and the bits that matter on a 1–2 GB VPS.
Dec 24, 2024 · 8 min read Storagenoatime, scheduled fstrim, and when to actually reach for ZFS.
Dec 30, 2024 · 9 min read Performanceworker settings, keepalive, gzip and caching that move the needle.
Jan 4, 2025 · 7 min read NetworkingKernel socket knobs that are safe to touch and the one to leave alone.
Jan 9, 2025 · 8 min read BackupsDeduplicated, encrypted backups and why testing restores matters.
Jan 15, 2025 · 10 min read AdministrationCron quirks, systemd timers, and logging jobs so you can prove they ran.
Jan 20, 2025 · 6 min read Securityunattended-upgrades, livepatch and knowing when to reboot manually.
Jan 26, 2025 · 6 min read PerformanceHow I found a 0.1% of traffic path that was eating all the CPU.
Feb 1, 2025 · 9 min read Disaster recoverySetting up a quarterly restore drill and the mistakes that bite first.
Feb 6, 2025 · 8 min read