RDAP has taken over as the modern way to look up registration data for domains, IP ranges, and autonomous system numbers. xTom’s open source Rust client wraps that protocol in a fast CLI with readable output, smart query detection, and flexible JSON support. Learn more about it in this article.

GRE tunnels encapsulate one packet inside another so traffic can move between remote systems or networks over an IP path. In this article, we'll explain more about them.

RAID can improve uptime, performance, and fault tolerance, but it doesn't magically make data safe from every kind of loss. Here's what RAID actually does, how each RAID level works, and where ZFS, software RAID, and hardware RAID fit in.

Debian and Ubuntu are closely related, but they don't feel the same once you start running real workloads. Here's what actually changes, and when those differences matter.

OpenClaw is an open-source, self-hosted AI agent that lets you chat with your own personal assistant through Telegram, Discord, Slack, WhatsApp, and more. This guide walks you through running it on your own machine or Linux server so your data stays yours.

The internet connects billions of devices across the globe, but most people have no idea what's actually happening behind the scenes. This guide breaks down how data travels from one point to another, in plain English.

A looking glass is a web-based diagnostic tool that lets anyone query your network's routing tables and run traceroutes from your perspective. Learn what it does, why networks use them, and how to set one up yourself.

The Linux kernel is the core component that manages hardware resources and system operations in Linux distributions. In this article, we'll explain more about it.

An ASN (Autonomous System Number) is a unique identifier assigned to networks that control their own routing policies. Learning what an ASN is and how to obtain one is essential for organizations managing their own network infrastructure.

BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) is the routing protocol that makes the internet work by enabling networks to exchange routing information and find the best paths for data. Understanding BGP helps you grasp how global internet connectivity actually functions.

When your connection slows or fails, ping, traceroute, and MTR help you pinpoint exactly where the problem lies. Learn how these three essential network diagnostic tools work and when to use each one.

IP transit is the service that connects networks to the global internet through an upstream provider. Understanding how it works helps you make informed decisions about connectivity, bandwidth, and routing for your infrastructure.

While both sudo and su commands elevate privileges, they work in fundamentally different ways and serve distinct purposes in system administration. Here's how.

Package managers handle software installation on Linux, but APT, DNF, and Pacman all work differently depending on your distribution. Here's what sets them apart and how to use each one.

Learn the key differences between chmod and chown in Linux, two commands that control different aspects of file security. We'll explain when to use each one and how they work together to protect your system.

Systemctl is the command-line interface for managing systemd, the init system that controls services, processes, and system states on modern Linux distributions. It's your go-to tool for starting, stopping, and monitoring everything that runs on your server. Here's how it works.

In this article, we break down what curl is, how it works, and how you can use it to transfer data right from your terminal.

Ever wondered about the difference between curl and wget? This guide breaks down when to use each command-line tool for downloading files and testing APIs.

Choosing between systemd and cron for scheduled tasks? We explain the key differences, benefits, and when to use each for your Linux server.

Ever wonder how servers run automated tasks like nightly backups? Learn what a cron job is, how the syntax works, and how to schedule your own tasks on Linux.

Learn what systemd is, how it became the default init system for most Linux distributions, and how to manage services with basic systemctl commands.

Wget is a free command-line utility that downloads files from the web using HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, and FTPS protocols. It's a go-to tool for Linux users who need reliable, scriptable, and resumable downloads.

Telnet is a network protocol that allows remote access to systems over a network. While largely replaced by SSH for security reasons, understanding Telnet remains valuable for grasping fundamental networking concepts and troubleshooting legacy systems.

Proxmox Virtual Environment 9.0 introduces Debian 13 Trixie, kernel 6.14, and LVM snapshot support alongside SDN fabric capabilities. Here's what changed from version 8 and how to upgrade your virtualization infrastructure safely.

Grafana is an open-source analytics and visualization platform that transforms your metrics into interactive dashboards. Learn what makes it essential for modern infrastructure monitoring and how to get it running.

Learn what Rclone is and why it's a go-to tool for managing files across different cloud storage services. This guide covers the basics of installation, configuration, and common commands to get you started.

Learn the key differences between FTP and SFTP, two common protocols for transferring files. We'll cover security, functionality, and help you decide which one is right for your needs.

Learn what SSH (Secure Shell) is, how it provides encrypted communication for managing servers remotely, and why it replaced older protocols like Telnet. This guide covers the basics of its cryptographic handshake and how to connect.

Explore the key differences between Debian 12 "Bookworm" and the new Debian 13 "Trixie," from updated packages to new security features. Our guide walks you through the upgrade process step-by-step.

Learn what CloudLinux OS is and why it's a popular choice for shared hosting environments. We'll cover its key features like LVE and CageFS and walk you through the installation process.

Learn what Hestia Control Panel is and why it's a popular open-source choice for managing web servers. This guide provides step-by-step instructions for installing HestiaCP on Debian and Ubuntu.

Learn the essential command-line tools for checking your CPU details in Linux. We'll cover everything from simple commands like `lscpu` to more detailed files like `/proc/cpuinfo`.

Managing software is a fundamental aspect of using Linux. This guide walks you through various command-line tools to list all the packages currently installed on your system.

DokuWiki is a lightweight, self‑hosted wiki that stores pages in plain text files, so you don’t need a database. This guide explains what it does well and walks you through a clean install on Ubuntu or Debian with Nginx or Apache.

htop is an interactive tool that helps you monitor your Linux server’s performance in real-time. Here's how to use it.

top and htop are two of the most common ways to monitor Linux system resources, but what's really the difference?

NetHogs is a Linux command-line tool that shows network bandwidth usage per process in real-time. Learn how to install and use this powerful monitoring utility to track which applications consume your server's network resources.

Symbolic links (symlinks) are file system shortcuts in Linux that point to other files or directories. In this article, you'll learn how to create, manage, and remove symlinks.

Following the end of CentOS, two RHEL-based distributions emerged to fill the void - AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux. This article compares their differences to help you decide which is the right choice for you.

Caddy is a modern, open-source web server known for its automatic HTTPS and simple configuration. Learn about its pros, cons, and how to set it up on your Linux server.

This step-by-step guide walks you through the simple process of generating and installing a free Let's Encrypt SSL certificate on your Linux server using the Certbot tool.

This guide explains SSL, TLS, and HTTPS, the key protocols that work together to protect your personal data from being seen/stolen by others.

Understanding GNU helps explain not just how Linux came to be, but why the entire open-source movement exists as we know it today. Learn about the project that provided the tools, philosophy, and legal framework that made modern open-source possible.

Manually configuring servers is slow and prone to errors. We explore what Ansible is and how this powerful automation tool can streamline your IT operations.

Compare the best project management software across free, paid, and self-hosted categories. From Monday.com's visual approach to Plane's modern open-source solution, and beyond, find the perfect tool for your team's needs and budget.

Learn more about Plane.so, a comprehensive team management tool, and how to self-host it.

Stop digging through paper stacks and build your own searchable digital archive. This guide makes it easy to set up Paperless-ngx with Docker Compose in under an hour.

Linux swap acts as a safety net when your server runs low on RAM, but do modern systems really need it? In this article, we explore when swap is essential, when to skip it, and how to configure it properly for optimal server performance.

In this guide, we'll teach you what hidden files are in Linux and how to work with them.

Learn more about the differences between Vim, Nano, Emacs, and Neovim to find your perfect match for any server task.

In this article, we break down the key differences between Ubuntu, Debian, and Linux Mint, as well as their best use cases.

This guide covers Docker volumes, bind mounts, and Docker Compose configurations for maintaining data across container restarts.

Confused about whether to use a VPN or proxy and what the difference is? This guide will break down everything for you.

In this article, we break down the five best server distributions in 2025, comparing Ubuntu Server, RHEL, Rocky Linux, Debian, and SLES to help you make the right choice.

Mautic is an open-source marketing automation platform that simplifies email campaigns, lead generation, and automated marketing. This guide covers how to self-host it on shared hosting or a VPS.

Mailcow is an open-source email server suite built on Docker that simplifies email hosting for individuals and businesses. In this article, you’ll learn what makes Mailcow unique and how to self-host it.

Sendy is a self-hosted email newsletter application that works with Amazon SES for affordable email marketing. In this guide, you'll learn how to run it on shared hosting or a VPS.

Tor, short for “The Onion Router,” is a browser and network that anonymizes your online activity by sending it through multiple layers of encryption. In this article, we'll explain everything about it.

In this guide, you’ll learn step by step how to set up, configure, and maintain a Tor relay, helping to build a freer, more privacy-friendly internet for everyone.

Denial of Service attacks can cripple even the most powerful servers by overwhelming resources with malicious traffic. Understanding these threats is the first step to protecting your business.

Discover the 18 best Linux benchmarking scripts to evaluate your server's real-world performance (CPU, memory, storage, network, and more).

Learn how to take control over your own crypto payment processing with BTCPay.

Curious about GitLab and how it can simplify your development workflow? This article covers what GitLab is and how you can self-host it on your own server.

Should you store data in a table-based model or opt for a flexible, non-relational approach? This article clarifies the differences between SQL (relational) and NoSQL (non-relational) databases so you can pick the best option for your project.

Learn how to archive, compress and extract files in Linux using gzip, zip, and tar. Save space, speed up file transfers, and keep your data organized.

Monitor website changes and receive a notification automatically, whether you’re waiting for a restock, tracking a price drop, or beyond.

Learn more about what OpenVPN is, how it works, and how you can set up a VPN with it.

Take a detailed look at popular VPN protocols like OpenVPN, WireGuard, SSTP, L2TP/IPsec, and PPTP to understand their differences and discover which one suits your needs best.

In this article, we’ll explain how IPSec works, how it relates to IPv4 and IPv6, and why it’s often used as a VPN protocol.

Learn all about IP addresses and the advantages and limitations of both IPv4 and IPv6.

Learn how Docker and Docker Compose make development and self-hosting easier than ever.

Learn how to self-host Wiki.js, a modern open-source documentation/wiki solution, on Linux using Docker Compose. We'll guide you through the process step by step.

Learn how to protect your Linux server from brute force attacks using Fail2Ban. This guide covers installation and configuration steps for both Debian-derived and RHEL-derived systems.

Learn how to secure your Debian servers using UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall). Perfect for both beginners and experienced administrators looking to simplify their firewall management.

Here are the best Linux firewalls right now (from beginner-friendly to extremely sophisticated).

cPanel seems to be an increasingly controversial choice of web hosting control panel, but is DirectAdmin truly ready to compete? Let's compare the two and find out.

Comparing the 7 best self-hosted password managers available in 2024.

WooCommerce is an incredible eCommerce platform, and it can be much easier than you think to launch a new store (you don't have to be a Linux guru). Let us show you how.

Learn how to secure your Linux server's SSH access with seven essential security measures, including key-based authentication, two-factor authentication, firewall configuration, and more.

Learn step-by-step how to install and configure the LAMP stack on Debian and Ubuntu systems.

Learn how to find someone's IP address on Windows, Mac, and Linux, and discover various methods to protect your own IP address.

Learn how to setup NGINX as a reverse proxy for Apache on Debian and Ubuntu to improve performance.

Configure NGINX as a reverse proxy for Apache on AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux to improve performance.

Explore the key differences between NGINX and Apache, and find out when combining both web servers can offer the best of both worlds for performance and flexibility.

Learn how to set up Coolify, an open-source PaaS that simplifies self-hosting for your applications, databases, and services.

With DNS.SB, only you and the websites you access know your browsing history. Best of all it's free.

Ditch expensive hosted email marketing tools and check out these self-hosted options instead.

Discover which self-hosted invoicing software is the right solution for your needs.

When it comes to reverse tunneling solutions, you have 3 main options - FRP, Rathole, and ngrok. In this article, we'll be explaining and comparing them in depth.

Learn how to set up Watchtower to automatically update your Docker containers.

Learn how to install Docker and Docker Compose on Debian 12 "Bookworm" with our step-by-step guide.

Immich is a great self-hosted photo and video management app that rivals cloud-based solutions like Google Photos. Here's how it compares, why you should consider it, and how to set it up.

Comparing the 15 best self-hosted photo management apps so that you can find the right one for you!

Learn how to self-host Umami, a privacy-focused alternative to Google Analytics using Docker Compose.

Find out more about the history and differences between Unix, Linux, and BSD.

Everyone knows taking notes is important. Here's the best way to do it in 2024.

Comparing KVM, OpenVZ, and LXC, it's clear that each technology caters to different needs. Let's discuss how.

Learn more about PostgreSQL including how to set up a database on Debian 12 and display some information with a simple Python web application.

A self-hosted wiki makes storing and sharing knowledge much easier. But which one is right for you?

Learn the differences between MySQL and MariaDB and how to set up a database with either.

Pterodactyl Panel makes the setup and administration of Minecraft servers a breeze. Here's a step-by-step guide for getting it installed and ready to go.

Learn how you can use Apache Guacamole for clientless remote desktop access that conveniently works anywhere, anytime.

If you're ready to break free from Slack's subscription shackles and self-host your team's chat instead, you'll love this blog post.

If you're looking to monitor the uptime of a website or application, Uptime Kuma is one of the best options available. Here's why, and how to set it up.

Selecting the right web server for your website is crucial, but with tons of options out there like Apache, NGINX, LiteSpeed, OpenLiteSpeed, and Caddy, the choice can be rather difficult. Let us help you with that.

Learn how to create an ad-free internet experience on all your devices with our guide on setting up Pi-hole and WireGuard. Say goodbye to ads and hello to privacy and speed!

It doesn't have to be a pain to self-host your own VPN. With WireGuard Easy, you'll have an incredibly simple way to securely set up and configure your very own WireGuard VPN. Here's how.

The best part about Linux is that you can customize everything... but, that also comes with a lot of difficult choices, such as which desktop environment to use. Let us help you with that decision.

It's extremely nice to have a remote desktop for work, but not everyone wants to rely on the most common solution - Windows. It's an expensive resource hog. Here's a better alternative...

Knowing your website's numbers and where your traffic is coming from is crucial, but not everyone wants to share it with Google. Here's how to have the best of both worlds.

Docker is an incredibly convenient tool for self-hosting your favorite applications. But what if you just want one of your containers routed through a VPN and not all? Here's the easiest way to do just that.

Managing all of your applications individually can be a bit of a pain. That said, YunoHost can help simplify your self-hosting experience. Let me explain more...

WordPress has been on top of the CMS game for years now, but with viable competitors like Ghost starting to gain traction... is it time to make the switch yet? Or is WordPress still king?

While WordPress has reigned king for quite a while in terms of content management systems, Ghost is catching on quickly for good reason. Here's why, and how to install it.

There is never been a better time to start an e-commerce brand. The industry is booming, and you'll consistently see two platforms mentioned - WooCommerce, and Shopify. But what's the right platform for your brand? Let's find out.

Free does not have to be a bad thing. In fact, every single one of these top 5 free control panels could compete with paid options like cPanel or DirectAdmin. Let me expand on that thought...

Guide to effortlessly install cPanel on AlmaLinux, enhancing your web hosting with stability and efficiency.

WP-CLI further streamlines WordPress management on Debian, simplifying tasks through command line instructions.

xTom offers global solutions with high-performance data centers, ensuring reliability, speed, and compliance for various operational needs.

As xTom has grown throughout the years as an Infrastructure as a Service provider, it's been important for us to invest some of our resources back into supporting a free and open source internet.

We enhance our network services with a new presence at the Global Switch Singapore Tai Seng Data Centre.

We expand in Tokyo at Equinix TY8, enhancing network services.

We successfully migrate from Equinix SY3 to SY5 in Sydney, connecting to major global network service providers.