[Software] Best Self-Hosted Apps for a Home Server in 2026: Seven Worth Running Right Now

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Quick answer: If you are building a home server this
fall, start with Proxmox VE 9.2 or plain Docker as the
base, then add the apps that replace the most-used cloud services:
Immich 3.3 for photos, Jellyfin 12.4
for your media library, Home Assistant 2026.11 for the
smart home, Vaultwarden for passwords,
Paperless-ngx for scanned documents and
Ollama for local AI models. All seven are actively maintained. Six shipped a stable release in the past month, and Proxmox VE follows a slower point-release schedule (9.2 in May 2026). Start with
one or two, because every app you add is one more thing to back up and
keep updated.

This list is a guide to what exists and what each project says about
itself, not a hands-on test. We did not install these apps for this
article. Version numbers, release dates and requirements were checked
against each project’s official pages and GitHub releases on
November 3, 2026.

How we chose

We looked for apps that meet four tests:

  1. Active development. A stable release within the last month, as shown on the project’s official release page (or, for Proxmox VE, a regular point-release schedule).
  2. Open source. The project publishes its source code
    under a recognized license.
  3. Official install path. The project documents a
    supported way to run it, usually Docker.
  4. Useful at home. It replaces a service most
    households already pay for or depend on.

That rules out plenty of good software. Pi-hole, Nextcloud and others
are worth a look, but we left them out because we could not line up a
clean, current set of facts for every one of them today.

The list at a glance

App What it replaces Latest checked License
Proxmox VE Hypervisor / VM host 9.2 See project
Immich Google Photos v3.3.6 AGPL-3.0
Jellyfin Plex, Netflix-style library 12.4 GPL-2.0
Home Assistant Cloud smart-home hubs 2026.11 Apache-2.0
Vaultwarden Hosted password manager 1.37.5 AGPL-3.0
Paperless-ngx Filing cabinet v3.4.2 GPL-3.0
Ollama Cloud AI chat v0.40.15 MIT

License names come from each project’s GitHub repository. For Proxmox
VE, check the project’s own licensing page.

1. Proxmox VE: the foundation

Proxmox VE is a virtualization platform that runs virtual machines
and Linux containers from a web interface. It is the “layer under the
apps.” Many home server builders install it first and then run each app
in its own container or VM, which makes snapshots and rollbacks
easy.

  • Current release: Proxmox VE 9.2, released May 21,
    2026. It is based on Debian 13 “Trixie” (13.5), with QEMU 11.0, ZFS 2.4
    and Ceph.
  • ARM: A 64-bit ARM edition of 9.2 followed on August
    5, 2026, based on Debian 13.6. Proxmox’s docs list NVIDIA Grace Hopper
    and Vera as the supported arm64 platforms, with best-effort support on
    other UEFI-based ARMv9-A hardware. Device-tree-only boards such as the
    Raspberry Pi are not supported.
  • Hardware: The admin guide lists a 64-bit x86 CPU
    with Intel VT or AMD-V, and 1 GB of RAM as the bare minimum for
    evaluation. For real use it recommends at least 2 GB for the OS and
    Proxmox services, plus whatever your guests need. ZFS and Ceph need
    more: about 1 GB of RAM per TB of used storage.

Good fit: You want several isolated services on one
box and easy snapshots. Skip it if: You just want one
or two apps. Plain Docker on a Linux install is simpler.

2. Immich: your own photo
library

Immich is a self-hosted photo and video backup app with web, iOS and
Android clients. The mobile app uploads your camera roll to your own
server, and the server handles search, face recognition, shared albums
and memories.

  • Current release: v3.3.6, published November 4, 2026, which turns off ONNX Runtime telemetry that sent anonymous metrics to Microsoft. Upgrade from v3.3.5. v3.4.0 release candidates (latest November 6) are out, but they are pre-releases, so we list the latest stable version. The 3.3 series
    arrived October 7 with shared people, birthday memories and auto-stacked
    mobile edits.
  • Requirements: Immich’s docs list 6 GB of RAM and 2
    CPU cores as the minimum, installed with Docker Compose.
  • Worth knowing: v3.3.5’s release notes flag a
    security-related update, including patches for a certificate authority
    compromise and Node.js security fixes, and recommend updating as soon as
    possible. It is a good reminder to subscribe to release notes for
    anything exposed to the internet.

Immich also says downgrading is not supported, so back up before
every upgrade. We have a full walkthrough in our
Immich 3.3 guide.

Good fit: You want to leave Google Photos or iCloud
Photos and keep the originals yourself. Skip it if: You
can’t commit to a real backup plan. The docs are clear that Immich’s
automatic database dumps are not a substitute for backing up the photos
themselves.

3. Jellyfin: your media
library

Jellyfin is a free media server for movies, TV, music and, as of this
release, books and comics. It runs on Windows and Linux, in Docker, and
on other platforms listed in its install docs.

  • Current release: Jellyfin 12.4, published October
    26, 2026. The project dropped the old “10.” prefix, so what would have
    been 10.12 is now 12.0 (released September 7, 2026).
    12.1 through 12.4 are bugfix releases.
  • What 12.0 adds: faster browsing from a reworked
    database, alternate versions for episodes, and built-in support for book
    metadata, comic covers and audiobook chapters, much of which previously
    needed the Bookshelf plugin.
  • Upgrade warning: The Jellyfin team says to take a
    full manual backup of the data and config directories first. You must be
    on 10.10.7 or any 10.11.x release to upgrade directly. Usernames are now
    case-insensitive, and accounts that differ only by capitalization will
    make the migration fail. Third-party plugins built for 10.11 will not
    load on 12.0, and a full library scan is required afterward.

Good fit: You own digital media and want a polished
library on every TV and phone. Skip it if: You rely on
third-party plugins that haven’t been updated for 12.0 yet.

4. Home Assistant: the
smart-home brain

Home Assistant is open-source home automation that, in its own words,
puts local control and privacy first. It works with a very large number
of devices through integrations.

  • Current release: 2026.11, published November 4, 2026. The 2026.10 series (October 7) had patch releases up to 2026.10.4 on October 24. Check the release notes before you upgrade.
  • What’s new in 2026.10: trigger IDs now have a
    proper interface, the map moved to OpenStreetMap with a vector map and
    redesigned markers, there is a panel for Modbus connections, and 15 new
    integrations.
  • Name change coming: Home Assistant Cloud is being
    renamed Home Assistant Link. The release notes say the change is planned
    for the December release.
  • Hardware: The project sells Home Assistant Green
    and also documents installing on a Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 (minimum 2 GB of
    RAM), an Odroid or an x86-64 machine. It also supports running in a
    container or virtual machine.

Good fit: You want automations that keep working
when the internet doesn’t. Skip it if: You have only a
couple of smart bulbs. The built-in apps from each maker are
simpler.

5. Vaultwarden:
passwords on your own server

Vaultwarden is an alternative implementation of the Bitwarden server
API, written in Rust. You use the official Bitwarden apps and browser
extensions, and point them at your own server.

  • Current release: 1.37.5, published November 1,
    2026. License: AGPL-3.0. The release notes say it contains security
    fixes for two medium-severity advisories and strongly advise updating as
    soon as possible.
  • Important: Vaultwarden is an unofficial project. It
    is not made or supported by Bitwarden, and the wiki says it implements
    the APIs required for most functionality, not every feature of the
    official product.

A password manager is the most sensitive thing on this list. If you
host it yourself, you own the backups, the updates and the uptime. If
the server is unreachable, so are your passwords unless your clients
have cached copies.

Good fit: You already use Bitwarden and want to run
the server yourself. Skip it if: You are not ready to
maintain a service that holds every credential you have.

6. Paperless-ngx: a
searchable paper archive

Paperless-ngx is a document management system that turns scanned
paper into a searchable online archive. It is the official successor to
the original Paperless and Paperless-ng projects.

  • Current release: v3.4.2, published November 3, 2026, following v3.4.1 (October 31) and v3.4.0 (October 29). License:
    GPL-3.0.
  • How it works: You feed it scans, it indexes them,
    and you search instead of digging through folders.
  • A hosted demo is available from the project, with a
    note that demo content resets frequently and you should never upload
    confidential documents to it.

Good fit: You have years of tax forms, manuals and
receipts. Skip it if: You don’t have a habit of
scanning. The software can’t create the habit for you.

7. Ollama: local AI models

Ollama runs open large language models on your own computer or
server, with a command-line tool and a local API.

  • Current release: v0.40.15, published November 3, 2026. License: MIT. The v0.40.13 release notes (October 28) feature Liquid AI’s LFM3 models,
    which now run on Linux and Windows as well as Apple silicon.
  • Install: one command on macOS and Linux, a
    PowerShell command or installer on Windows, and an official Docker
    image.
  • Default context: Ollama’s FAQ says the default
    context window is 4,096 tokens, which you can change with the
    OLLAMA_CONTEXT_LENGTH environment variable.
  • Network access: By default it listens locally.
    Setting OLLAMA_HOST to 0.0.0.0:11434 makes it
    reachable from other machines, so only do that on a trusted
    network.

Good fit: You want private AI chat, or an API for
other apps to call. Skip it if: Your server has no GPU
and little RAM. Larger models need far more memory, and the FAQ shows
how to tell whether a model loaded onto the GPU, the CPU or both.

Planning your hardware

There is no single right box, but the official requirements give a
baseline:

Use case Official baseline
Immich 6 GB RAM, 2 CPU cores
Home Assistant Raspberry Pi 4 or 5, 2 GB minimum
Proxmox VE 2 GB for host, plus guests
Ollama Depends on the model

These numbers are minimums for each app on its own. Running several
together means adding them up. A machine with 16 GB or more of RAM and
an SSD gives most households room to grow. That is our rule of thumb,
not an official figure.

Basics that matter
more than the app list

These are general good practices, not claims from any one
project:

  • Back up outside the box. Follow a 3-2-1 approach:
    three copies, two kinds of storage, one off-site.
  • Update on a schedule. Read the release notes before
    major upgrades. Jellyfin 12.0 and Immich both warn that you can’t simply
    roll back.
  • Keep it off the open internet unless you must
    expose it. A VPN into your home network is safer than opening
    ports.
  • Use separate accounts and strong passwords, and
    turn on two-factor authentication where an app supports it.

FAQ

What is the best
first app for a home server?

For most people, Jellyfin or Immich. Both give you something your
family can use right away. Home Assistant is the best pick if automation
is the goal.

Do I need Proxmox?

No. Proxmox is helpful if you want several isolated machines and easy
snapshots. For a handful of apps, Docker on a Linux install is
simpler.

Is self-hosting
cheaper than cloud services?

Not always. The software is free, but you pay for hardware, power,
storage and your time. The main reasons to do it are control and
privacy.

Is Vaultwarden official
Bitwarden?

No. It is an unofficial, community-built server that works with the
official Bitwarden clients.

Can a Raspberry Pi run all
of this?

Home Assistant supports Raspberry Pi 4 and 5 with at least 2 GB of
RAM. Immich’s stated minimum is 6 GB of RAM, so a Pi alone is a tight
fit for a full stack.

Will Jellyfin 12 break my
plugins?

Possibly. The Jellyfin team says plugins built for 10.11 will not
load on 12.0 and need updated builds from their authors. Official
plugins have been updated.

Is Ollama safe to
expose to the internet?

Ollama’s docs show how to make it listen on all interfaces, but that
is not the same as hardening it. Keep it on a trusted network, or put it
behind a VPN or authenticated proxy.

Sources

All checked November 3, 2026.

By Early Adopted Editorial Team. Last updated: November 10, 2026

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