this post was submitted on 10 Apr 2025
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Is there a good solution for an entirely off-grid server?

Is it possible to use a smartphone hotspot/USB tethering for internet connection?

I have some solar panels & batteries and an old laptop (or I might get a raspberry pi) and am curious about whether I could selfhost literally in the middle of nowhere, without a residential internet connection?

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[–] hendrik@palaver.p3x.de 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Some people do it. For example we have this solar-powered website: https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/

You'd need an energy source like a solar panel, a battery and some computing device. Like a single board computer (Raspberry Pi) you can also run webservers on smartphones, or even a microcontroller. The server part works without an internet connection. But you obviously need some way to connect to it. A wifi (router) or a computer connected via an ethernet cable.

The tech isn't too complicated. Just install nginx if you have a raspberry pi, open a wifi and put your website on it. If you choose a phone, try Termux and a supported webserver. Both Linux and smartphones are designed to even work without an internet connection ;-)