Earlier in 2025, I signed up for Oracle’s “Free Forever” cloud offer. It was, and still is, one of the most generous free tiers available, especially for developers and hobbyists. I wrote a post to document my setup, and today I’m updating it with a more modern, simpler stack and...
Continue reading...Linux
A SysAdmin’s Tale: From a “Simple” Sync Error to a Full Server Health Check
This is the story of how I fixed a broken file sync. Except, it wasn’t just about the file sync. It was about what the sync error was hiding: a server at 93% disk capacity, applications silently crashing, and gigabytes of space being wasted by runaway logs. Join me as...
Continue reading...A Step-by-Step Guide to Installing Portainer with Docker and Caddy on an ARM Server
Managing a server with multiple Docker applications can quickly become a juggling act of docker ps, docker logs, and docker-compose commands. While powerful, the command line isn’t always the most efficient way to get a high-level view of your services. That’s where Portainer comes in. It’s a lightweight, powerful, open-source management UI that gives...
Continue reading...Supercharging Your Cloud Server Management: Mountain Duck + Tailscale + ARM Ubuntu Done Right!
Managing files on a remote server can sometimes feel like navigating a maze. Public IPs, firewalls, SSH keys – it’s a lot to keep track of. But what if I told you there’s a “super cool” way to get seamless, secure file access, even to your Oracle ARM Ubuntu server,...
Continue reading...Conquering “Permission Denied”: A Quick Guide to Ubuntu File Permissions
Ever been in the middle of setting up a new project, run a command, and then BAM! You’re hit with the dreaded Permission denied (os error 13)? It’s a common stumbling block, especially when dealing with directories that might have been created by root or another user. I recently ran into this exact...
Continue reading...