Managed hosting is the right start. It is rarely the right place to stay.
Hiring a DevOps engineer to fix it costs $8,000 to $15,000 a month. Most small teams do not need one. They need the setup done right once, written down, and handed over.
Per seat, per GB, per add-on. The database costs more than the app.
Most apps run on $40 to $100 a month, whatever traffic does.
You find out whether they work on the worst day possible.
Point-in-time backups off-site, and a real restore before handover.
When they are away, nothing ships.
Push to deploy, with a runbook that explains every step.
Usually on a weekend, usually in a support ticket.
Alerts for downtime, full disks and failed backups.
Timeouts, cold starts, and workers you are not allowed to run.
Background jobs, queues and cron, on your own terms.
Me, not an agency.
I'm Akash, a Staff Software Engineer at Levels.fyi and previously at Postman. Backend and infrastructure is my day job.
On the side I build and run my own products, all on servers I set up myself. The setup you get is the one they run on, and I do the work myself from the first email to the handover.
- 100M+
- records in production databases
- 1TB+
- of data under management
- 4
- production apps, self-hosted
Running in production right now.
Everything a production app needs, nothing it does not.
A server that is locked down
SSH keys only, a firewall, automatic security updates, and nothing exposed that does not need to be.
Deploys that stay boring
Docker, a reverse proxy with automatic SSL, and a deploy you trigger with a push, not a checklist.
Databases with backups that restore
Postgres, MySQL, MongoDB or whatever you run, backed up continuously off-site so you can restore to any point in time. We test a restore before I hand over.
Monitoring and alerts
Uptime, disk, memory and failed backups. You hear about it before your users do.
A written runbook
How it all fits together, how to deploy, and what to do when something breaks. Your team owns it, not me.
A handover call and 14 days of fixes
We walk through it together, and anything that comes up in the first two weeks is on me.
See what your bill could be.
Drag to your current monthly bill. Some apps really are better off where they are, and the numbers will usually say so.
- Your own server
- ~$80/mo
- Setup pays back in
- ~4 months
A rough estimate. The audit gives you the real number for your app.
Fixed prices. No hourly billing.
Production setup
One app and its database, moved onto a server you own and set up with everything above. Done for you, documented, and handed over.
Get a quote- Everything listed above
- Usually done in 1 to 2 weeks
- Fixed quote before any work starts
- 50% upfront, 50% at handover
- Several services? Quoted from $4,000
Infra audit
A written review of what you run today, what it costs, and what I would change. Delivered within 5 working days.
The fee counts toward a setup if you go ahead.
Start with an auditCare plan
Security updates, backup checks with a monthly restore test, and up to 2 hours of fixes a month.
For setup clients. Cancel any month.
Ask about careFrom first email to handover.
- 01
Tell me about your app
Fill in one sentence below. It takes a minute and it is most of what I need.
- 02
I reply in 1 to 2 days
An honest yes or no, and a few questions. A short call if it helps.
- 03
You get a fixed quote
What I will do, what I will not, and when it is done. No hourly billing.
- 04
I build it and hand it over
The cutover is planned with you. You get the runbook and a handover call.
Before you write.
Want to do it yourself? Almost everything I know is on this blog for free. Start with the VPS series and database backups, or run the free production checklist to see where you stand.
Which hosting providers do you work with?
Hetzner, DigitalOcean, Netcup, Vultr, AWS and most others. If you do not have one yet, I will recommend one for your app and budget.
Will my app go down during the move?
The cutover is planned with you. For most apps it is a few minutes or none, and we pick a quiet time for it.
Do you need access to my accounts?
Yes, while I do the work. I use my own keys and user, which you remove at handover. Nothing stays with me.
Do you change my app's code?
No. Only what is needed to deploy it, like a Dockerfile and config. Your code stays yours.
What happens if something breaks later?
The first 14 days are covered. After that the care plan covers it, or I fix things one at a time.
Should every app move off managed hosting?
No. Some are better off where they are, and if yours is one of them I will say so before you pay for anything.
Start with one sentence.
Fill in the blanks. It takes a minute, and it is most of what I need to know.
Prefer plain email? [email protected]