5 Linux servers that let you ditch the public cloud and reclaim your privacy – for free

Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• With these ready-to-run home/SMB Linux servers, you can preserve your privacy and improve your security.
• There are three kinds of servers: SaaS and apps, storage, and a Windows Server replacement
• All require some technical expertise, but you don’t need to be a system administrator. 

You may have noticed that many European Union (EU) governments and agencies, worried about ceding control to untrustworthy US companies, have been embracing digital sovereignty. Those bodies are turning to running their own cloud and services instead of relying on, say, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. If you prize your privacy and want to control your own services, you can take that approach as well.

Of course, if you’re a techie’s techie, you could always run your own cloud. I’ve been running my own servers for decades. These days, I use AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, and Ubuntu on my machines. 

Also: Why even a US tech giant is launching ‘sovereign support’ for Europe now

However, most people don’t have many years of Unix/Linux system administration behind them. Fortunately, there are pre-built Linux servers suitable for home and small-business users. With these servers, you still need to be a power user to get the most out of them, but they don’t require you to be a Linux expert. 

There are three types of ready-to-run Linux server distributions. The first are those that provide software-as-a-service (SaaS) addons and programs. Then there are the distros that focus on providing file server/storage services. Finally, believe it or not, there’s one approach meant to replace Windows Server. 

1. The privacy-first approach: FreedomBox

FreedomBox, the project initiated by Free Software Foundation (FSF) legal expert Eben Moglen, has matured into Debian’s official self-hosting solution. 

Also: Why France just dumped Microsoft Teams and Zoom – and what’s replacing them

As Moglen said when he introduced FreedomBox in 2011, “We’re building software for smart devices whose engineered purpose is to work together to facilitate free communication among people, safely and securely, beyond the ambition of the strongest power to penetrate. They can make freedom of thought and information a permanent, ineradicable feature of the net that holds our souls.”

The platform is now integrated as Debian Linux Blend. This approach enables you to transform a fresh Debian installation into a privacy-focused server via the Plinth web interface.

For file storage, you can use FreedomBox as a network-attached storage (NAS) server with NextCloud, an open-source program that began as a pure file server. Nextcloud has since evolved into a full-scale cloud replacement, complete with an office suite. Deploying the technology in full glory requires an expert’s touch, but anyone can set it up as a simple file server.

Also: SUSE Enterprise Linux 16 is here, and its killer feature is digital sovereignty

FreedomBox includes the XMPP chat server Ejabberd, Mumble server for voice chat, Matrix/Synapse for chat rooms, and Janus for video conferencing. The platform also comes with webmail and email client options.

If you want to run your own web server, FreedomBox supports many wiki and blog engines. Personally, I’d go with WordPress. You’ll find a lot of free support online to get you up to speed. 

Also: The best VPN services (and how to choose the right one for you)

For privacy, FreedomBox supports two types of virtual private network (VPN) servers: OpenVPN and, my favorite, WireGuard. 

With these VPNs, you can use your server securely even when you’re far from home. For delving into the dark web with greater privacy, FreedomBox also includes support for the Tor node and Tor proxy, the Shadowsocks client and server, and the Privoxy web proxy.

All these server applications run in containers and receive automatic daily updates at 2 a.m. FreedomBox is designed for homes or small firms that want to host their own services with minimal technical expertise. You can run the platform on pretty much any computing device you have at hand, from a Raspberry Pi 2 to a 32-bit Intel computer you have in the garage. 

FreedomBox won’t cost you a penny. It’s completely free.

2. YunoHost: Self-hosting democratized

YunoHost is best described as a “make self‑hosting boring” layer on top of Debian. As its volunteer creators say, “YunoHost is primarily designed for people who want things to ‘just work.'” 

Similar to Freedom Box, YunoHost functions as both a standalone operating system and a package you can install on an existing Debian installation. Unlike FreedomBox, which can be scaled up for a small business, the YunoHost crew warns, “YunoHost is not designed to ‘scale’ in the traditional sense. It is intended for a relatively modest number of user accounts and simultaneous users.” So, a few dozen users? No problem. A few hundred? No, just no.

YunoHost comes with a small, integrated server stack. Everything else is added from its catalog. On a fresh YunoHost install, you get these main components by default: a web admin interface and a user portal for installing and logging in to all the applications. This setup is supported by Nginx as the web server and reverse proxy, with SSOwat for single sign-on to all installed web apps.

Also: Windows 11 has 1 billion users – and they’re furious

You can also install an email server stack from the start. Your default programs are Postfix for the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) server, Dovecot as the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) server, and Rspamd, with DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) handling for spam filtering and mail authentication. As e-mail server programs go, these are the easiest to manage, and YunoHost does a great job of installing them. 

However, speaking as someone who’s been running email servers for decades, setting them up and managing them on the internet is hard work. You’ll need to set up a proper domain, DNS records (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC) with a static IP address. If your eyes just glazed over, don’t try running your own email server.

For security, YunoHost includes Let’s Encrypt integration to obtain and renew Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificates. SSL security is a must if you’re going to expose your server to the internet. YunoHost also includes Fail2ban for intrusion detection and banning.

Also: Why people keep flocking to Linux (and it’s not just to escape Windows)

Beyond that base, the community maintains an extensive app catalog that includes Jitsi Meet, GitLab, OnlyOffice, the Mastodon social network server, and many others. Unlike FreedomBox, YunoHost provides its own management interface rather than relying on Debian packages directly, which some users find more polished but less flexible for customization.

Like FreedomBox, YunoHost is completely free.

3. TrueNAS: The network storage server

iXsystems‘ TrueNAS Community Edition is the free, open‑source edition of the TrueNAS storage OS for x86 hardware. This technology turns a PC or server into a dedicated NAS appliance built around OpenZFS. It’s effectively the “DIY” version of the same codebase TrueNAS uses in its paid appliances, just without commercial support and with some enterprise features held back.

Unlike the other TrueNAS, this community edition isn’t a general-purpose server. It’s best used for when you want a storage‑first home or small‑business box. I use my edition for video storage for my Jellyfin media server. With a couple of terabytes of 1930s through 1950s movies, I need all the help I can get. This system is also very useful for virtual machine images and massive database storage. 

Also: Europe’s plan to ditch US tech giants is built on open source – and it’s gaining steam

The community edition is also very useful for small-office NAS jobs, such as sharing files over SMB/NFS to Windows and Linux PCs. The system also works great for backups and archival storage.  

TrueNAS is also available for free. If you want to use it in a business, though, you can buy TrueNAS Enterprise on an iXsystems rack server. This comes with high-availability (HA) features and commercial support. Its pricing is quote‑based and not listed as a flat fee. TrueNAS reseller prices for a low-end TrueNAS X10 2U Unified Storage Appliance with 20TB of raw capacity begin at $15,000,

4. Rockstor: BTRFS-powered NAS

Rockstor is another NAS Linux. This system differs from TrueNAS by building on the B-tree file system (BTRFS), a modern copy-on-write (CoW) filesystem for Linux designed for high scalability, fault tolerance, and ease of administration. 

Rockstor supports advanced features like snapshots, data compression, and built-in RAID. The system is for users who want storage flexibility without enterprise complexity. 

Now built on openSUSE, Rockstor supports both x86_64 and ARM64 architectures, including the Raspberry Pi 4 and RPi 400.

Also: German state replaces Microsoft Exchange and Outlook with open-source email

Key capabilities include:

• “Rock-ons” Docker-based plugin system for applications like Plex and Nextcloud.
• Live capacity scaling — add or remove disks without downtime.
• Instant share and snapshot cloning.
• BTRFS anti-bitrot protection.
• SMB, NFS, and SFTP sharing protocols.
• Apple Time Machine backup support (beta). 

Personally, I prefer TrueNAS, but that is probably because I’ve been using TrueNAS for many years. 

Rockstor is free, but access to the Stable Channel, which is recommended for business production systems, costs  €24 per year per installation.

5. Zentyal: Windows server alternative

If you’re running a small Windows-based business or you’ve worked as a Windows network administrator, you might want to give Zentyal a try. Zentyal 8.0 is based on Ubuntu Server 22.04 LTS. This SMB server targets organizations seeking to replace Microsoft Windows Server without disrupting existing workflows. 

Zentyal comes with native Active Directory (AD) compatibility, which enables: 

• Seamless Windows client domain joining.
• Group Policy Object management through RSAT.
• No Client Access License requirements.
• Integration with existing Windows domains as an additional domain controller.

Beyond directory services, Zentyal includes:

• SMTP and POP3/IMAP mail servers with ActiveSync and webmail.
• Gateway services, with firewall, IDS/IPS (Suricata), and HTTP proxy.
• VPN capabilities via OpenVPN and IPSec/L2TP.
• DNS, DHCP, NTP, and CA services.

Zentyal is available as a free “Development Edition,” the community edition that you can download as an ISO or install on top of Ubuntu Server/Desktop using their installer script. However, you’re on your own for support. If you’re not already a Microsoft Certified: Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate, this operating system isn’t for you. 

If you want to use Zentyal in business, pricing starts at $230 per server per year, with support for up to 25 users.

Platform comparison

Choosing the right platform

If privacy is most important to you, FreedomBox offers the best approach to digital sovereignty. Backed by the Debian ecosystem’s stability and integrated high-security programs, it’s your best choice. 

If you want to run your own applications and SaaS solutions, YunoHost offers the largest application catalog. Its excellent single sign-on integration makes the system ideal for small organizations running multiple services.

Want a full SaaS suite? Run Nextcloud on FreedomBox or YunoHost. Or, if you already have a home or SMB Linux server, install Nextcloud. You will need to put some elbow grease into it to make the technology work just the way you want. However, once done, this approach should fill all your SMB SaaS needs. 

Also: I tried a Claude Code rival that’s local, open source, and completely free – how it went

For storage-centric deployments, TrueNAS SCALE offers the best combination of ZFS data integrity and modern container support. Rockstor provides a lighter-weight BTRFS alternative that also runs well on ARM hardware.

For Windows network integration, Zentyal remains the clearest path to replacing Windows Server in SMB environments without Microsoft’s licensing fees. 

Taken together, these projects show Linux reclaiming the low‑end server market it helped create, but on very different terms than in the Linux, Apache. MySQL, Python/Perl/PHP (LAMP) era. Instead of expecting a part‑time admin to assemble services piece by piece, these server distros ship as curated appliances with opinionated defaults, auto‑updates, and catalog‑style app install flows

The era of depending on third-party cloud services is yielding to practical self-hosting alternatives. Whether prioritizing privacy, collaboration, storage, or network services, the Linux ecosystem now offers mature, well-maintained options for users willing to invest a modest amount of technical effort in exchange for data sovereignty.