Thank You to the Open-Source Tools Powering Our Business

VPS1 would not exist without open-source software. Every application we deploy, every server we configure, and every client we serve runs on code that someone wrote and shared with the world for free. This post is a thank you to the projects and maintainers whose work makes ours possible.

The Projects We Rely On Every Day

Docker and Docker Compose. Before Docker, deploying a server application meant installing dependencies, resolving conflicts, and troubleshooting environment differences. Docker gave us a universal packaging format. Docker Compose gave us a way to define entire stacks in one file. Nearly every deployment we do starts with a docker-compose.yml. We cannot overstate how much complexity this removes. Thank you to the Docker team and the wider container ecosystem.

Linux. The operating system that runs the internet. Every VPS1 server runs Ubuntu, which is built on Debian, which is built on the Linux kernel. Thousands of contributors over three decades have built an operating system that is free, stable, secure, and runs on everything from a Raspberry Pi to a supercomputer. We do not think about it every day because it just works. That is the highest compliment we can give.

Nextcloud. The application our clients ask for most. It replaces Google Drive, Google Calendar, and Google Docs with a platform they control. Nextcloud has grown from a file sync tool into a full collaboration suite with video calls, groupware, and office document editing. All open source. All self-hosted. It is the flagship application of the self-hosting movement, and it proves that open source can compete with the biggest companies in the world on user experience, not just on price.

Mattermost. Team chat is essential infrastructure, and Mattermost proves that you do not need to pay per user to get it. It is Slack-quality communication without Slack's pricing model. Mattermost's commitment to remaining open source alongside their enterprise offering is a model we respect deeply.

Vaultwarden and Bitwarden. Password management is the foundation of business security, and Bitwarden made it accessible. Vaultwarden made it self-hostable with minimal resources. Every VPS1 client uses Vaultwarden. It is the first application we deploy on every new server. Thank you for making security simple and free.

n8n. Workflow automation that does not charge per task. n8n's fair-code licensing model keeps the core open while building a sustainable business. It connects every application in our clients' stacks. A lead in the CRM creates a task in the project manager which triggers a notification in Mattermost. All automated. All free. Thank you for proving that automation should not be taxed per execution.

Nginx, Traefik, and Nginx Proxy Manager. Reverse proxies are the invisible backbone of self-hosting. Every request to every application flows through them. They handle SSL, routing, load balancing, and security. They do this reliably, at scale, and for free. We deploy them on every server and they just work. Thank you.

EspoCRM, FreeScout, Paperless-ngx, Uptime Kuma, CrowdSec, Authelia, Outline, Plausible, and every other application in our supported stack. Each of these projects solves a specific problem well. Each is maintained by people who could have built a SaaS product instead but chose to share their work openly. The self-hosting ecosystem exists because of their generosity.

What Open Source Makes Possible

Open source is not just about free software. It is about freedom. The freedom to inspect the code you run. The freedom to fix a bug yourself instead of waiting for a vendor's release cycle. The freedom to know that your data is on your server, processed by code you can audit, governed by laws you understand. The freedom from per-user pricing that penalises growth. The freedom from vendor lock-in that makes migration painful.

For a small business in Brunei, these freedoms are not abstract. They mean the difference between affording professional infrastructure and making do with whatever free tiers are available. They mean being able to compete with larger companies on technology without matching their software budgets. They mean staying in control of client data when your jurisdiction and legal obligations require it.

Open source also creates capability. Every self-hosted application teaches something. The first Docker Compose file is intimidating. The tenth is routine. The hundredth is boring. Over time, self-hosting builds real technical capability within an organisation. That capability compounds. It makes the business more resilient, more independent, and more adaptable. That would not be possible without open-source software to learn on.

How We Give Back

Every VPS1 client runs open-source software. Every deployment is an installation of Nextcloud, or Mattermost, or EspoCRM, or Vaultwarden. Every client who moves from Google Workspace to self-hosted Nextcloud is one more organisation proving that open-source alternatives work in production. Their success stories are the best advocacy these projects can have.

We also share what we learn. Our blog publishes deployment guides, cost comparisons, and migration playbooks. When we figure out a configuration that works well, we document it so others can benefit. When we encounter a bug and find a workaround, we share it. This is knowledge that cost us time to acquire and costs us nothing to share. It is the least we can do for projects that have given us everything.

To the Maintainers

If you maintain an open-source project that appears on our supported list: thank you. We know that maintaining software is hard. You deal with bug reports from frustrated users, pull requests that do not follow your contribution guidelines, and feature requests that miss the point of your project. You do this on nights and weekends, often unpaid, because you believe in the work. Your code runs on servers around the world, including every server we deploy. You may never know how many businesses depend on your work, but at least from us, you should know that one MSP in Brunei could not operate without it.

If you are a user of open-source software and have never contributed back: start small. File a clear bug report with reproduction steps. Improve a confusing paragraph in the documentation. Sponsor a maintainer on GitHub for a few dollars a month. Answer a question in the community forum. You do not need to write code to contribute. Every bit of help makes the ecosystem stronger, and every stronger project benefits every user downstream.

Open source built the internet. It built the cloud. It built every tool VPS1 uses. We are grateful to be a small part of this ecosystem, and we are grateful to every maintainer who makes it possible.

From everyone at VPS1: thank you.