Hi there,

I’m hosting matrix for family use on a server at my place. The issue is my home is affected by internet and electricity outages - which we’re trying to fix. This means that there are frequent downtimes on the chat. I have a UPS but usually is not enough to power everything - router and server - for longer periods of time.

The internet downtime is easy to fix as my router supports fallback connection which I point to a mobile internet solution.

I’ve thought about moving everything to a VPS but then I’m a bit wary of privacy regarding the data there. There’s also the option of moving the server to a family member’s house but I want this this be last resort because that makes maintenance harder.

Anyone dealt with this issues and found a solution? Perhaps a fallback mechanism that temporarily hosts the sever on a VPS? :D

  • spaghettiwestern@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    2·
    10 hours ago

    After having my server fail to recover after a power failure while I was out of town for an extended period, I moved all important server apps to an relatively inexpensive (<$200) laptop.

    The battery is firmware limited to a 70% charge which means it will last for years with no significant safety concerns. Even at a partial charge, Debian indicates 7 hours of run time when the power fails (I’ve had none longer than 4), and it’s unaffected by power blinks. It saves a bit of electricity too and costs $150 less per year to run than my old UPS alone.

    It’s been running for nearly 2 years without a hitch.

    • Shimitar@downonthestreet.euEnglish
      2·
      3 hours ago

      Check periodically for bulging batteries, you might have to remove the back cover to detect such a condition depending on model.

      I used to run a laptop as well but I have had batteries die like that twice, and that’s a fire concern as well specially if you have it stored away in a closed and never physically check it.

      Keeping charge at 70% doesn’t help, you need to powercycle the battery regularly to prevent batteries to die on you

      • spaghettiwestern@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        1·
        14 minutes ago

        Similar to a mechanical device that wears out faster with heavy use, the depth of discharge (DoD) determines the cycle count of the battery. The smaller the discharge (low DoD), the longer the battery will last. If at all possible, avoid full discharges and charge the battery more often between uses. Partial discharge on Li-ion is fine. There is no memory and the battery does not need periodic full discharge cycles to prolong life. - https://www.batteryuniversity.com/article/bu-808-how-to-prolong-lithium-based-batteries/

        Your chance of being struck by lightning in the course of a lifetime is about 1 in 13,000. Lithium-ion batteries have a failure rate that is less than one in a million. The failure rate of a quality Li-ion cell is better than 1 in 10 million. https://www.batteryuniversity.com/article/bu-304a-safety-concerns-with-li-ion/

        Battery swelling (not caused by manufacturing defects) is primarily caused by overcharging, deep-discharge, physical damage, and heat, none of which are problems for my server installation.

        The risk of fire while parking your car in your garage is hundreds of times higher than using a laptop as a server.