Frequently asked questions

Felhom.eu is a service for households in Hungary that helps install and run a home server. We offer turnkey set-ups: we choose the hardware, set up the software, take care of the backups, and keep an eye on the system all the time.

The aim is simple: instead of the big cloud providers (Google, Microsoft, Apple), you keep your data on a server in your own home — without having to be an expert yourself.

Anyone who wants to take back control of their digital life. Typical customers:

Families who want their photos and videos safe, and do not want to pay for cloud storage every month.

Privacy-minded people who do not want Google or Microsoft to have access to their documents.

Media fans who want their own Netflix- or Spotify-like system for their films and music.

Small businesses that need document management, an internal wiki or appointment booking — under their own control.

No. We do the whole installation and set-up. Your part is to use the apps — in a browser or on your phone, just like a Google or Apple service.

After the installation we walk you through it in a short session, so you can use the system with confidence.

Synology and QNAP make NAS (network storage) devices built mainly for storing files, with their own closed software. We offer an open, Docker-based system instead, where the catalog's apps install in a few clicks — from a photo manager to a media server to a password manager.

A NAS offers a limited choice of apps and depends on the maker's software updates. With us you choose from 56 apps, and if something is missing, we look at whether it can be added.

1. A first talk — We talk about what you need: which apps you would use, how much storage you want, and what your budget is.

2. Choosing the hardware — We help you find the right machine for your needs and your budget.

3. Installation and set-up — We install the operating system, the container engine and the apps, and set up the backups and the monitoring.

4. Handover and training — We show you how to use the system and answer all your questions.

5. Ongoing care — We watch the backups, maintain the system, and help if anything goes wrong.

For most homes a mini PC (for example with an Intel N100 processor and 16-32 GB of RAM) is perfectly fine. They are quiet, energy-saving (15-35 W) and compact — one fits on the shelf next to the router.

If you want more storage (for a film library, say), you can add a NAS or external hard drives. More detailed set-ups are on the Technology page.

Often, yes! An older desktop PC can make an excellent server. In our first talk we check whether your machine suits what you plan (enough RAM, storage, reliability).

Power use and noise matter — an old gaming PC will work, but each month it uses far more power than a modern mini PC.

Anywhere with a power socket and a network cable (Ethernet). A cupboard, a shelf or the spot next to the router is best. Mini PCs are so compact and quiet that they fit on a living-room shelf.

It can work over Wi-Fi, but for reliability and speed we always recommend a cable.

A modern mini PC typically uses around 15-35 watts under load, which comes to roughly 5,000–15,000 Ft of electricity a year (depending on your tariff). That is less than a light bulb, and a fraction of what a year of a cloud subscription would cost.

Mini PCs are almost silent — many models have no fan at all, or one that only turns on now and then. In everyday use you can keep one on your desk or on a bedroom shelf.

Tower and rack servers are a different story — those are better off in a cellar or a storeroom.

During the installation we set the server's BIOS (where the option exists) to switch on by itself after a power cut. The operating system and all the apps then start on their own too. This setting is a standard part of every installation we do.

After a power cut the box recovers by itself — we have tried this with a real power cut. If reliability is critical, we can also suggest an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to bridge a few minutes without power.

For use at home (on your home network) any internet connection will do, because the apps run on your home network — not over the internet. How fast photos, films and documents load depends on your router and your cabling.

If you also want to reach your server from elsewhere (from work or on holiday, say), the upload speed matters: at least 10 Mbps is recommended, and more is better.

We offer 56 apps — the full list is on the Apps page. A few examples:

Immich — a Google Photos alternative that backs up photos and videos automatically. Jellyfin/Plex — your own Netflix for films and series. Nextcloud — store and share files (instead of Google Drive). Vaultwarden — a password manager for the whole family. Paperless-ngx — scan documents and make them searchable.

If something is not on the list, ask — we will look at whether it can join the catalog.

Yes, any time! Any app installs from the Dashboard in a few clicks. If you get stuck, tell us and we will help you set it up.

Yes! Most apps work perfectly well in a phone's browser. Many also have their own mobile apps (for both iOS and Android). Immich, Nextcloud, Jellyfin and Vaultwarden, for example, all have excellent mobile apps.

Yes, but know the current limit. Most of the apps (Immich, Nextcloud, Vaultwarden) support several users: in them every family member can have their own account and their own sign-in. The Felhom Dashboard, though, has one shared household password today — there are no separate family accounts on the Dashboard yet. The Dashboard is where you install apps and manage backups; for everyday use (photos, files) you use the apps' own accounts.

Yes! Most services let you export your data. With Google Takeout you can download all your photos, documents and calendar, and Immich, Nextcloud and others can import them. We help with the move.

How long it takes depends on how much data there is — moving a few hundred GB of photos can take a day or two, but afterwards the system works just the way you are used to from the cloud service.

Yes! The box is reached through an encrypted tunnel, over HTTPS, with no extra app. That means you can reach your photos, files and all your apps from anywhere — from work, on holiday or even abroad — as if you were at home.

The systems we install get several layers of protection: automatic HTTPS encryption, regular security updates, a sign-in for every app, and a family gate in front of some apps. Your server is inside your home — we open no port there, and from outside it is reached only through an encrypted tunnel.

Most home servers do not face targeted attacks; what they meet is automated scripts trying their luck. The right configuration protects very well against those.

That is an important, fair question, and we answer it honestly.

For support and maintenance we normally have remote access to your server — as any IT provider has to the systems it manages. We need it to check backups, install updates and fix faults.

The key to your remote backup, though, only you know: the recovery code appears once, on your screen, and we keep no copy of it. So we cannot read the remote backup either.

Important: unlike the big cloud providers, we do no algorithmic analysis of your data and no profiling for advertising, and your data leaves your home only encrypted (the remote backup).

The server's apps run in isolated containers, which limits the damage if one app has a weakness. Regular updates, and having no open port at home, keep the risk down.

An encrypted copy of your backups is also kept in a separate place (off-site) — so even after a ransomware attack, there is a copy stored far away.

For personal use at home the GDPR does not apply directly (under the "household exemption"). Your data lives at home, on your own box. The box encrypts the backup copies before they leave your home; they are stored at Hetzner in the EU (in Germany), and the storage provider cannot read them. Remote access goes through Cloudflare's network, so Cloudflare could technically see that traffic. If you use it as a small business, our privacy notice says who handles what, and where. We are not lawyers, of course: for a specific legal question, ask a professional.

We follow the 3-2-1 backup rule: 3 copies of the data, on 2 different kinds of storage, 1 of them far away. It is an industry standard the largest companies use too. On the box this means three levels: a backup on the box, a second copy on a second drive, and an encrypted copy on remote storage.

The backups run automatically, at night. Databases and files are backed up incrementally — only the changes are saved, which saves space and time. The details are on the Backups page.

That is what backups are for! Your apps' data can be brought back from the copies on the second drive and on remote storage. The box watches the drives' health and the free space, and warns ahead of time if there is a problem.

We run a central monitoring system that checks every day whether the backups ran successfully. If there is any problem — a failed backup, low storage, or the server not answering — we are notified at once, and so are you when it matters.

This is not a "set it up and hope it works" arrangement — we watch it actively, and we also run restore tests from time to time.

An off-site (remote) backup means a copy of your data also exists in a physically different place. On a Felhom box that is storage we provide, where the copy goes encrypted. If disaster struck at home (fire, theft, flood), the remote copy would still be there.

The off-site backup is always encrypted — nobody at the remote place can read your data, even if they can reach the files.

No! Felhom.eu is not an "install and leave" service. We keep running it for you: monitoring, software updates, backup checks, and support whenever you have a question or a problem.

The apps run in containers, which makes updating easier. We follow new versions, and a new version reaches you only after we have tried it. The box's system gets its security updates by itself.

Before every app update a fresh backup is made, and if the new version does not start properly, the box puts the previous one back by itself, with your data.

Just e-mail support@felhom.eu. We can solve most problems remotely, without you having to do anything. For bigger hardware issues we also help in person.

The server and all the data are yours — they always were. If you decide you no longer want the service, the box keeps working on your home network, but you no longer get updates, monitoring or support. Remote access and the remote backup are part of the service: what happens to them, we agree when you cancel.

No minimum term, no cancellation fee. If you have the technical know-how (or have picked it up along the way), you can even keep running the system yourself. The data and the apps stay with you.

Your server and your data are yours. Almost all the apps are open source, which means anyone else can run them — you do not depend on a single provider. That is one of the biggest advantages of open-source software: no vendor lock-in.

By contrast, when Google or Apple shuts down a service, your data disappears along with it.

Your server is a compact box — unplug it, take it to your new home, plug it in, and everything carries on. If your internet provider changes, the remote access set-up may need updating — we help with that.

The cost has two parts:

One-off costs: the hardware (80,000–400,000+ Ft, depending on the set-up) and the installation fee. You buy the hardware — it is yours, for good.

A monthly management fee: for monitoring, support, updates and backup supervision. It depends on the package you choose.

We give an exact quote after our first talk — needs vary a lot. Write to us and we will make you a personal offer!

In the long run, almost always. A typical example: Google One 2 TB is about 36,000 Ft a year, iCloud 2 TB about 45,000 Ft, Spotify Family about 30,000 Ft, a password manager about 15,000 Ft. Together that is 120,000+ Ft a year — and that is only a few services.

A mini PC server "pays for itself" in 2-3 years, and after that you mostly pay for electricity. And your storage has no fixed cap — not 2 TB, but as much as your disks hold.

No. The costs are: hardware (one-off), installation (one-off), monthly management (optional), and electricity (a few thousand forints a month). The apps are free to use, and almost all of them are open source — there is no licence fee for the apps. (A few have paid extras, such as Plex Pass; those are optional.)

The remote backup's storage has a monthly cost that depends on how much data is backed up — we state it in the offer up front.

The server's base is Proxmox VE — a professional, Debian-based virtualisation system the whole Felhom system is built on. Your apps run in Docker containers in a separate system environment installed on the Proxmox base. So the whole system environment can be backed up too, and restored from that backup.

Proxmox is a professional virtualisation base — the same kind of technology data centres and companies use. It is on every Felhom box, quietly in the background; you do not need to deal with it. It makes the most important safety features possible:

A backup before each update — before an app is updated, a fresh backup is made, and if the new version does not start, the box puts the previous one back by itself.

The whole system can be backed up and restored — not only your data: the whole box goes into a backup too.

Clean separation — the control layer and your apps run apart, which makes the system more stable and safer.

A container is a "box" in which an app lives together with everything it depends on. Think of it as every app living in its own little flat — they do not disturb each other, they are easy to update or remove, and if one breaks, the others are not affected.

There is more about this on the Technology page.

Yes! If you have your own domain name (for example myserver.hu), we can make your apps reachable through it (for example photos.myserver.hu, films.myserver.hu). If you do not have one, we help you get one — it costs a few thousand forints a year.

Yes! Adding a new hard drive or SSD is usually a simple upgrade. You can even add an external USB drive if your machine has no free bays left. The system is built to grow with your needs.

You do not need one: by default the box is reached from anywhere through an encrypted tunnel, over HTTPS, with no extra app.

We do not set up household VPN access on the box today (where your phone or laptop connects as if it were at home). If you need that, ask us.