● Covered by 1 source · 1 reportLow impact1 neutral
Personal VPS Replaced by CMF Phone 1 Running Web Apps
Key points
- Replaced a Hetzner VPS with a CMF Phone 1.
- Phone runs Surf, finance tracker, and other web apps.
- Attempted to flash postmarketOS but reverted to stock Android.
- Motivation was to avoid VPS costs and utilize existing hardware.
Transition from VPS to Smartphone
A user migrated their personal infrastructure from a small Hetzner VPS to a CMF Phone 1. The VPS previously hosted several web applications, a remote browser named Surf, and Caddy. The primary driver for this change was the recurring cost of the VPS, especially for dedicated CPU machines required for applications like Chrome.
Smartphone Hardware Utilization
The CMF Phone 1, equipped with eight ARM cores, 8 GB of RAM, 128 GB of flash storage, Wi-Fi 6, a 5G modem, and a built-in battery, was identified as an underutilized resource. This hardware configuration was deemed sufficient to run the user's personal web services, including Surf and its managed Chrome instance, a personal finance tracker, and a screen-sharing service.
Operating System Challenges
An initial attempt was made to flash postmarketOS onto the CMF Phone 1 to run a standard Linux distribution. However, this effort was unsuccessful due to non-functional components like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and hardware acceleration, rendering the device unusable as a server. The user subsequently restored the phone to its factory Nothing OS using a Windows flashing utility.
Current Server Setup
The CMF Phone 1 now successfully runs the specified web applications under its stock Android operating system. The setup ensures that applications survive reboots, deploy from Git, and remain accessible even when the phone changes networks, effectively replacing the previous VPS.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
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Reporting from
A user replaced a paid virtual private server (VPS) with a CMF Phone 1 to host personal web applications, including a remote browser and a finance tracker. This shift was motivated by the cost of VPS services and the underutilized hardware capabilities of the smartphone.