NetBay journal

Guides for operators

Practical guides for Linux, containers, CI/CD, self-hosting, and running VPS infrastructure from Netbay Engineering.

599 articles · 24 topics

Self-Hosted Backups: What to Back Up and How Often

Learn which self-hosted data actually needs backing up and how often, then wire automated off-site restores you can actually trust when it matters.

Self-HostingMay 1, 20267 min read

Network Bridges on Linux: When and How

Create and manage network bridges on Linux for virtualization, containers, and transparent network segment linking.

Linux NetworkingApril 30, 20267 min read

Working with Artifacts and Dependency Caches in GitHub Actions

Share build outputs between jobs with GitHub Actions artifacts and speed up repeated installs with dependency caches — storage limits and patterns included.

GitHubApril 30, 20267 min read

Filesystem Backups with Restic: Encrypted and Deduplicated

Use restic to snapshot entire directories daily: client-side encryption, content-defined deduplication, and restore that is a single copy command away.

Backups & DataApril 30, 20268 min read

HTTP Methods and Idempotency in Practice

GET, PUT, DELETE, and POST each carry a different retry guarantee. Use the method contract plus idempotency keys so clients retry safely.

API & AutomationApril 30, 20266 min read

How to Choose a Linux Distro for a Production VPS: A Decision Framework

Five questions that settle the distro choice for a production VPS: support windows, server lifetime, runtime needs, team familiarity, and ecosystem fit.

LinuxApril 29, 20268 min read

Managing Processes with ps, top, htop, kill, and nice

Identify runaway processes, understand their resource usage, and manage them cleanly using core Linux process tools.

LinuxApril 28, 20266 min read

Writing sudoers Rules That Are Actually Least-Privilege

Replace blanket sudo with scoped sudoers entries: command allowlists, aliases, NOPASSWD, and runas restrictions that survive a security review.

Linux SecurityApril 28, 20267 min read

systemd Timers vs Cron: Which Scheduler for Modern Servers?

Compare systemd timers with cron across persistence, logging, dependencies, and randomization, and learn when each scheduler is the right tool.

Linux AdministrationApril 28, 20266 min read

GitHub Apps vs PATs: Scoping Machine Access to Repos

A leaked personal token hands over your whole account. Scope every automation with a GitHub App or a fine-grained PAT — and rotate tokens by design.

GitHubApril 28, 20267 min read

TCP and Kernel Tuning for Latency-Sensitive Servers

Practical sysctl changes for high-traffic Linux servers, from socket buffers to queuing, that reduce latency without touching application code.

Hardware & PerformanceApril 28, 20268 min read

Keep Node.js Secrets Out of Git with env Files

Load production secrets from a root-owned env file, keep them out of git, and wire EnvironmentFile so systemd injects those values at start time.

App DeploymentApril 25, 20267 min read