How do you host documentation for your spouse or other users? reddit / selfhosted ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 03:40 Currently I'm using Confluence for our household documentation. At the time I wanted something outside of my self hosted / homelab stuff because I wanted it to be always available for my wife when she needs to access processes and such for our household. I recognize that Confluence and/or the free tire could go away at some point, I generally host my own stuff, and I would prefer something more 'open' like plain-text / markdown behind the scenes... if possible. I thought Obsidian might do the trick because we can easily share and sync the markdown files behind the scenes but I find Obsidian bloated and not a great mobile experience and I found out recently it's not open source. I could easily host something like wiki.js, or some other option but if our home infra goes down she / we don't have access to the doc which I don't like. Plus there is the whole "If I die" thing which is another reason I'm hesitant to self host the doc / wiki. What is everyone else doing for this? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ElevenNotes · 2023-12-06 04:00 Hedgedoc? Outline? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ttkciar · 2023-12-06 04:24 I self-host a few [Fossil](https://fossil-scm.org/) instances on our colo server, mostly for the wiki. One of them is for home/family documentation. I'd like to use its ticket-tracking system for household tasks, too, but my wife prefers Google Keep for that (ugh). Its entire state is self-contained in a single sqlite file, which makes for easy backups and data extraction/manipulation. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- F1DNA · 2023-12-06 04:25 I have a deadman's switch on my LastPass (will be migrating away from LastPass soon but that's irrelevant anyway.) account with a note in there for her. All the info she needs is in there and lists 2 of my tech friends that can help her decommission everything and save just the data that would be important to her. As well, we're my crypto lives, what accounts I have that are important, etc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 04:28 >Hedgedoc Looks pretty good. I like the robust [support](https://demo.hedgedoc.org/s/features) for different code languages, diagrams, and even music notation. Crazy. It's less about the specific app though and more about how it's setup, where it's accessible from, etc. Can't decide if I want to self-host and accept the "risks" of it not being available if my wife needs it (for example) or cloud host in some fashion and pay fees and/or not have full control over the format or data. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 04:30 Seems overkill for my needs. I really only need the Wiki right now. Plus it looks pretty dated. Granted I didn't call that our as a criteria because it's more of a personal preference but some of the other options I mentioned feel / look much more modern with also helps with wife adoption / usability a lot. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 04:32 Haha, we use a shared 1Password vault for basically all of this and I have an "When I die" secure not with similar instructions. But, that doesn't cover documentation for things like our Actual Budget workflows, now to more easily do stuff in MyDoh for the kids, how to give the kids money in their Microsoft account for Minecraft purchases, etc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ElevenNotes · 2023-12-06 04:33 You are on /r/selfhosted not cloud hosted. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- F1DNA · 2023-12-06 04:36 Ah gotcha. I guess I read all that and my only takeaway was Incase your dead. I'm actually in the market for a better documentation system myself. I've been using one note for years but it just ain't cutting it and I've been real lazy about putting a proper documentation system together. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- flicman · 2023-12-06 04:42 how often is your home server going down? that seems like a much more important problem to be tackling than making your wife look up a wikipedia page to turn on the basement lights to feed the gimp. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Common_Scale5448 · 2023-12-06 04:46 Bookstack is pretty nice ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 04:52 I'm aware. Self-hosted is an option for part of the decision as per the original post. There's arguments to be made for both in this case and I'm looking for feedback from other people who have tackle the considerations either way. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 04:54 It almost never goes down on its own but sometimes I take it down when I'm doing work on it or tinkering, etc. It's not super often but could be annoying sometimes if she's trying to do something with it. Moreso I don't want to have doc she needs self-hosted in the event I die since I don't expect her to do the care and feeding of the home lab after I'm gone. Plex and other parts of the lab can easily be replace with Netflix, etc but the doc not so much. I may just have to settle for a cloud based system so I know it will always be up and she won't have to manage it after I'm gone. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Gel0_F · 2023-12-06 04:57 I’m using Confluence too. I suggest exporting Confluence as pdf/doc and store it on Google Drive or OneDrive or just email it to her. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 05:01 Actually setting up an automated process to do that every so often from a self-hosted Wiki might be the perfect combo! I get all the benefits of self-hosted (data privacy / control, storage format choice, UI choice, free, etc) but I get the longevity and access safety, easy of access from anywhere, etc if I pass away. Thanks for the idea by proxy! lol ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ElevenNotes · 2023-12-06 05:20 You make an elephant out of a mosquito. I doubt either your wife nor you have an issue when your self hosted version of this is not working for an hour or two because you nuked a config or something. Yes it puts you in charge of everything, but that’s why we are here or not? If you don’t want that, use cloud solutions and pay for it, it’s pretty simple. No need to overthink such minors aspects of your life. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- flicman · 2023-12-06 05:26 With the way I live, my server will live long after I'm gone. Then again, I don't have anything complex enough to need to replicate wikipedia for, so it's probably a different use case. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- PM_ME_TO_PLAY_A_GAME · 2023-12-06 05:32 LaTeX and a printer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- wtfbreeze · 2023-12-06 05:40 I use bookstack myself for documenting my server such as list of apps hosted, ports used by which services, how the service/app was installed or setup and some credentials. Give it a shot ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 05:44 Bookstacks and some others I've looked at seem nice. It's mostly about how / where to host it or have contingency plans and access upon my death though. I think I have a decent solution in mind (see update at the bottom of the OP). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- koffienl · 2023-12-06 05:47 Wordpress with BasePress I use it for everything, from server installation guides to articles containing information about bought household appliances (like washing machine) with receipts and extended warranty. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 05:54 Sounds like a good fit but I always hated working with Wordpress in general back in the day and would rather have stuff stored in .md so it's easy to shift to another platform if I choose to and to have it in an open standard. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Gel0_F · 2023-12-06 06:57 That should work if you don’t need her to edit it. It probably can have a section on how to login into your self-hosted solution (if it still working). Potentially make the exported document password protected if it has sensitive information in it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- fuuman1 · 2023-12-06 06:57 I use bookstack too. But it has a real database behind it. The stuff is not stored as plain markdown. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- murd0xxx · 2023-12-06 07:04 Notion ? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bufandatl · 2023-12-06 07:44 What documentation? What are you documenting about your homelab for your SO that it must be always available. Mine knows how to use the TV and the AppleTV and on that how to start Plex. That’s all she need to know. (her words not mine) and the mess my homelab is only I need to know and I have everything in terraform and ansible so it’s documented for. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- wtfbreeze · 2023-12-06 08:27 The google drive backup solution seems good. But are you gonna export it all manually and upload to gdrive? And yes you're right, i dont see any option to import a doc in bookstack. :( ---------------------------------------------------------------------- McRx71-Dragon · 2023-12-06 08:29 Notion, Obisidian or Anytype as Notion alternative. Anytype can be selfhosted, but I am not sure if they already implemented. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- thesearenot_my_pants · 2023-12-06 08:43 I’m working on a system based on Sphinx. I can generate both a .pdf and static site from .md files, with nice support for cross- referencing and themes/plugins. Trilium is also worth looking into. I’d like to integrate it as a sort of frontend for my data (with some way to sync it with my .md files) since you can basically use it as a low-code application framework. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ssddanbrown · 2023-12-06 08:58 BookStack dev here. There's no specific "import" option but you can use the Markdown editor in BookStack and paste in your Markdown content there. The API is essentially just an endpoint to accept the same kind of data, for of course you could automate against the API for batch import. One thing to keep in mind is that BookStack markdown support is fairly tightly scoped to ([commonmark](https://commonmark.org/) + tables + tasklists), although HTML within MD is supported. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ssddanbrown · 2023-12-06 09:02 Just to build on this as a dev for BookStack, The plain markdown you enter is stored, but indeed within the database. If really desired, you could utilise our extension system to also save contents out to disk. An example of this can be see [in the blogpost here](https://www.bookstackapp.com/blog/bookstack-release-v22-07/#new- activity-logged-logical-theme-system-event) (although that's for HTML and might be a little outdated for current BookStack versions). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 09:23 No I would do it via an automated process and ideally based on documents with specific tags. How exactly would depend on the wiki platform I choose. Some might have features for the built in and others might have APIs, CLI commands, etc. In some cases maybe 3rd party tools that could just convert the markdown files. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- wtfbreeze · 2023-12-06 09:25 If you manage to do this later anytime, would you mind sharing the process or steps here or maybe in this sub? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Accomplished-Moose50 · 2023-12-06 09:25 But if your sever is down what's the point of having the wiki? If that thing someone wants to access is off. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 09:35 The wiki is for waaaaay more than just the home lab. There are some comments elsewhere in this thread about other data in the wiki but I keep thinking about more and more. Will share tomorrow. Also remember I also want to cover the “in the event of my death” scenario Quick examples are: * our financial workflow (balancing budget, etc) * seasonal home maintenance tasks * home automation docs * list of all our high-value items in case of insurance claims if say the house burns down There’s just more and more that keeps coming to mind. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Shotokant · 2023-12-06 09:43 One note. In one drive.. Easy. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Shotokant · 2023-12-06 09:46 He's on about the situation of you die. How does she keep it up, or get someone in the diaaemble it. Or migrate off the family photos and video backups etc. Stuff like that. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 09:48 One note isn’t a wiki. Also I use it at work and really hate the UI. It barely meets any of my criteria. Proprietary storage, data not easily transferable or really owned by me, etc. I might as well continue to use Confluence. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 09:51 If I get that far for sure. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Gel0_F · 2023-12-06 09:56 I think exporting wiki to a file should not be too difficult to achieve either by the software itself or some script. Instead of emailing files I would suggest just syncing it with the cloud. I use Synology and its CloudSync does that fairly easily. I’m sure there are other sync solutions out there. You can load it to your own Cloud and share the access with your partner. Or you can sync directly with their cloud. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- gs-red · 2023-12-06 10:33 Sled hosted Gitea, Readme mds + Wiki ---------------------------------------------------------------------- kuzared · 2023-12-06 12:15 I run DokuWiki. Pretty easy to setup and manage, the markdown and editing in general is a bit of a pain at times but if you’re using Confluence that shouldn’t be a problem. It doesn’t ise a database so backing it up is dead easy. I’d also consider Obsidian or something similar - I use it for work and it again offers very easy backups, everything is just basic text files in the background (in markdown). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guptaxpn · 2023-12-06 12:19 This seems snarky, but legitimately a paper notebook is going to be important for the bus factor. Especially if you want any of this to hold legal weight. IANAL but it sounds like you might want to talk to one about estate planning. Side effect they'll probably have stories of how they were unable to get ahold of documents after previously mentioned bus factor type event. It's not if but when death comes for us. I'm genuinely curious if any lawyers have recommended actions for data preservation. Any lawyers here? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guptaxpn · 2023-12-06 12:20 I think the thing here is that he was asking if he falls victim to the bus factor of one. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Dziabadu · 2023-12-06 12:32 If I wanted such setup I'd use mikr.us. They even have free tier shared vps. It's over ipv6 but you can route it through cloudflare. They prohibit video or sound though so no teamspeak servers . If you're not tech savvy you can buy small nextcloud plan managed by them for like~ $18 a year. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- t0ms88 · 2023-12-06 12:45 I'm using a mixture at the moment. Ready to Go how to guides - BookStack (Official HA Addon) Using this for a friend that's just getting into HA so writing up a bunch of full tutorials which I'm planning to publish online at some point. Then I'm using Jira / Confluence package on top. Jira - Several projects here but one for my own HA setup and one for my friends. An easy way to log issues when things didn't work as intended. Confluence - Have used this for setup documents of what I've done if I need to reference something setup ages ago. It's liked with jira so easy to link issues and documents. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- FlattusBlastus · 2023-12-06 13:46 Nextcloud AIO. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ObjectiveDiligent230 · 2023-12-06 13:46 A private GitHub repo? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vivekkhera · 2023-12-06 13:57 In my Wiki I have notes to myself how to recover the main boot drive from the local backup, for example. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vivekkhera · 2023-12-06 14:02 I have been using a thin layer on top of Google docs. My current favorites are spaceli.io and kbee.app. They provide a nice navigation interface and Google provides the editor and storage. I use a plugin to let me make diagrams in Mermaid syntax. If you really want to have everything in markdown, you can use a site builder like Hugo and host on Cloudflare pages or GitHub pages. I use a plugin to VS Code called Frontmatter as the UI to edit the pages. Just push to GitHub and server actions make it live. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- unixuser011 · 2023-12-06 15:08 >Confluence and/or the free tire could go away at some point Not really going away, more like forcing their customers to move to their cloud After Jan 2024 you won't be able to get the installers anymore but the way I read it, as long as you have the executable downloaded locally, you can still install it. IDK about licensing tho ---------------------------------------------------------------------- terAREya · 2023-12-06 15:09 Hopefully I am going to change your life here (changed mine). ​ Install [Homebox](https://hay-kot.github.io/homebox/) ​ Very easy to use home inventory application. Not only can yoou essentially catalog every item in your home but it gives you a printable QR code for each item. So I add "Cuisinart 5.5-qt Tilt-Back Head Stand Mixer". I fill in all the fields like purchase date, warranty info, notes, attachments (pdf of the manual for the product), etc. I print the QR code and stick it to the bottom or side of the item. ​ Now when my wife goes to use an item and she has a question she can scan the QR code and it takes her to everything she wants to know about that thing. You can use the QR codes to bring them to other tools too. Example: Add plex as a service to homebox with all the relevant info yadda yadda but under notes . But add a custom link called "support link". That link might point to your local wiki or whatever place you house documentation. You could even do something like make a custom link called "Fix Plex" and point it to a link in Olive Tin or some other automation tool that restarts the plex service or whatever. ​ ​ You end up with QR codes on all your important devices and expensive items and those QR codes point to actual useful info. I also use this for boxes of stuff. Example: Take down all the christmas shit and throw it in a plastic bin. Add an item to homebox called "Xmas decorations", list all the items that you put in the box, print QR code, attach QR code to box. ​ Next year when you are going through the boxes looking for the xmas stuff you can just scan the QR code and see exactly whats in the box. ​ The possibilities are really endless ---------------------------------------------------------------------- terAREya · 2023-12-06 15:10 Forgot to add this is also very cool for insurance purposes and documenting your house in general. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mr_whats_it_to_you · 2023-12-06 15:41 I‘m currently testing different open source wiki softwares. I like dokuwiki pretty much. Effortless setup, full data ownership, no costs, simple file system, no database. This is something you could easily host on a VPS if you wanted to. A Diagrams implementation does not come out of the box and I don‘t think that a up to date plugin exists for it. What I dislike is that files are written in markdown, but it‘s not the official markdown syntax. It has it‘s somewhat own syntax which annoys me since I really like markdown. Another thing I dislike is that you may need several plugins for different functions. Another option would be wiki.js. You can install it with docker or install with it‘s dependencies. Either way it‘s also simple to setup, but requires a database, recommended would postgresql. Aside from that it looks modern, you have multiple inbuilt features like authentication, diagrams or editors. It‘s quite feature-rich. But I dislike that the wysiwyg editor does not support different blockquote styles which the markdown editor does and the markdown editor is lacking some features which other editors have. Also the folder structure is a bit „exceptional“ Last wiki I want to try, but did not yet is bookstack. This one also supports what you want. It‘s easy to install, manage and has a nice modern design. I like both editors it‘s using. You write in markdown too. I actually do not like confluence at all. We use it at work and it feels too „clunky“ to use. I don‘t get a hand of it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mr_whats_it_to_you · 2023-12-06 15:43 I‘m currently testing different open source wiki softwares. I like dokuwiki pretty much. Effortless setup, full data ownership, no costs, simple file system, no database. This is something you could easily host on a VPS if you wanted to. A Diagrams implementation does not come out of the box and I don‘t think that a up to date plugin exists for it. What I dislike is that files are written in markdown, but it‘s not the official markdown syntax. It has it‘s somewhat own syntax which annoys me since I really like markdown. Another thing I dislike is that you may need several plugins for different functions. Another option would be wiki.js. You can install it with docker or install with it‘s dependencies. Either way it‘s also simple to setup, but requires a database, recommended would postgresql. Aside from that it looks modern, you have multiple inbuilt features like authentication, diagrams or editors. It‘s quite feature-rich. But I dislike that the wysiwyg editor does not support different blockquote styles which the markdown editor does and the markdown editor is lacking some features which other editors have. Also the folder structure is a bit „exceptional“ Last wiki I want to try, but did not yet is bookstack. This one also supports what you want. It‘s easy to install, manage and has a nice modern design. I like both editors it‘s using. You write in markdown too. I actually do not like confluence at all. We use it at work and it feels too „clunky“ to use. I don‘t get a hand of it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- cakee_ru · 2023-12-06 15:59 I just use a gitea server and a git repo. Write stuff in markdown, keep history, render on the web. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 16:39 Holy shit Thad’s really cool! Not super keen on having QR codes on everything but it’s a dope idea. Might look into this, thanks! I would say I’d prefer using NFC tags instead of QR codes but that would mean setting up each tag individually in the Shortcuts app in iOS which would be a huge pain. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- u14183 · 2023-12-06 16:45 https://github.com/gollum/gollum ? I like asciidoc and plantuml So I would look for an static site generator that supports both. Jbake Jekyll Hugo Are some you might check Together with caddy as Webserver which has lets encrypt support https://gist.github.com/briandominick/e5754cc8438dd9503d936ef65fffbb2d ---------------------------------------------------------------------- groutnotstraight · 2023-12-06 16:47 Perhaps logseq? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- terAREya · 2023-12-06 17:05 No problem! ​ And yeah QR codes on everything is a bad idea. But one on the back of the TV or the remote can lead your family to the documentation they need. ​ I do it for all my appliances as well and expensive stuff. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NETSPLlT · 2023-12-06 17:53 You're missing the number 1 overriding criteria. 1 - She'll enjoy using it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-06 17:58 Very valid point, though lucky for me she's already using Confluence for certain processes. Took a while of her asking me and me telling her to look in Confluence because I was busy with something but we got there. lol. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- BCIT_Richard · 2023-12-06 18:25 In addition to your cloud idea, I recommend printing instructions on paper, and include with a usb, and keep the data on the usb up to date, then she just needs to retrieve the usb from a safe. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Shotokant · 2023-12-06 18:47 I also use text files in windows Explorer. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Varnish6588 · 2023-12-06 20:17 thinking of the simplest solution, i use a Synology NAS, and for documentation, i would just create a folder and create my documents in markdown format and share across computers using Synology drive. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Blown_Capacitor_2021 · 2023-12-06 21:35 This was where I landed... opted to use a dual approach. Hard copies in a folder in the safe, and a shared folder in Apple Notes she can access. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Zestyclose-Run2406 · 2023-12-06 22:15 Otterwiki looks nice. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-07 05:04 So I played around with Bookstack a bit and there are a lot of things to like. However, it doesn't meet some of the criteria important to me like storing in markdown format to make interoperability easier (requires import / export style mechanisms to get content in / out of it). It also has a weird almost skeuomorphism style structure where everything is in the concept of "books" and "shelves". This doesn't flow nicely for me and feels weird. I'm much more used to the standard hierarchy structure and prefer that. The visual and navigation flow of Bookstack is just too different and cumbersome for me. Some people might light it but it's not my thing. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Silencer306 · 2023-12-07 08:18 Is confluence a self hosted application? Can someone link it? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- guesswhochickenpoo · 2023-12-08 04:57 >Is confluence a self hosted application? No >Can someone link it? The link: https://google.com/search?q=confluence