systemd targets vs runlevels on a VPS
systemd targets replaced runlevels, and systemd 258 removed even the numbered aliases. See what a target is, and how to change what your VPS boots into.
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Rust rewrites in your Ubuntu base system
Find which base tools on your Ubuntu server are Rust rewrites, which package installed them, and what that changes for your shell scripts and cron jobs.
Managed vs unmanaged VPS: which do you need?
Managed or unmanaged VPS? Price the labour: patching, firewall, backups, monitoring, the 2am reboot. What managed leaves out, plus the middle path.
Linux vs Windows Server: which to run
A practical comparison of Linux and Windows Server: cost, footprint, remote management, web stacks, Active Directory, and when each is right.
Central Linux logins: LDAP or SSH CA
Centralize Linux logins so one change reaches every server. Compare a directory with SSSD, an SSH certificate authority, and Ansible-managed keys.
SSH over a Tor onion service, no open ports
Put sshd behind a Tor onion service so the VPS answers on no inbound port. Setup, v3 client authorisation, and the exact order that avoids a lockout.
A Linux server maintenance checklist
Weekly and monthly checks for a Linux server, plus the release upgrades, with the failure each one prevents and the restore test almost everyone skips.
Claude for sysadmins: everyday server jobs
Six server jobs Claude does well: reading a failed unit's logs, drafting systemd units, reviewing nginx and Compose files, plus what you must never paste.
The watch command in Linux, properly
The watch command re-runs anything every two seconds. Pick a sane interval, highlight the diff, exit on change, and quote pipes so watch runs them.
Linux vs FreeBSD for servers
A fair comparison of Linux and FreeBSD as server systems: base design, licensing, packages, ZFS and jails, containers, and where each one wins.