Best Self Hosted Alternatives to GridPane

Nginx Proxy Manager is a web application packaged as a Docker image that provides an easy way to configure Nginx as a reverse proxy for your services. It focuses on simplifying SSL termination, host forwarding, and access control without requiring deep Nginx expertise.

Key Features

• Web-based admin interface for managing proxy hosts and related Nginx configuration
• Simple setup of forwarding domains, redirects, custom 404 hosts, and TCP/UDP streams
• Built-in Let’s Encrypt certificate issuance and automatic renewals, plus support for custom certificates
• Per-host access lists and basic HTTP authentication
• Advanced Nginx configuration fields for power users
• Multi-user management with permissions and an audit log

Use Cases

• Publish home-lab and internal web apps securely behind a single reverse proxy
• Centralize TLS certificate management and SSL termination for multiple services
• Add basic authentication and access restrictions in front of existing web applications

Limitations and Considerations

• Primarily intended to manage Nginx through its own UI; complex, highly customized Nginx setups may not map cleanly to the UI model

Nginx Proxy Manager is well-suited for homelabs and small deployments that want a straightforward, UI-driven approach to reverse proxying and TLS. It balances ease of use with optional advanced controls for users who need deeper Nginx customization.

Nginx UI is a self-hosted web interface for administering Nginx servers through a browser. It focuses on editing and validating Nginx configuration safely, managing certificates, and providing operational visibility via logs, terminal access, and system metrics.

Key Features

• Web-based editing for Nginx site and server configurations, including a visual block editor and code editor with completion
• Automatic configuration testing and Nginx reload after saving changes
• Built-in configuration backup with version comparison and restore
• Let’s Encrypt certificate issuance and automatic renewal
• Nginx log viewing from the UI
• Server monitoring dashboard (CPU, memory, load, disk)
• Cluster management with mirroring operations to multiple nodes
• Web terminal for server-side management tasks
• Two-factor authentication for securing sensitive actions
• Optional AI assistant features and agent integrations via MCP for automation workflows

Use Cases

• Manage one or more Nginx reverse proxies without editing configs manually over SSH
• Safely roll out and roll back Nginx configuration changes with versioned backups
• Centralize certificate lifecycle management (issue/renew) for Nginx-hosted sites

Limitations and Considerations

• Assumes a Debian-style Nginx config layout (sites-available/sites-enabled); other layouts may require adjustments

Nginx UI suits homelabs and small-to-medium deployments that want a practical Nginx control plane with safer edits, quicker certificate management, and basic observability. It is distributed as a single binary and is commonly deployed with Docker or system services for straightforward operations.

Cosmos Cloud is a self-hosting platform designed to run and secure home servers, NAS devices, and small business deployments. It combines an application gateway, app management, and built-in security controls to protect services that may not be hardened by default.

Key Features

• App store for installing and managing self-hosted applications, plus support for importing Docker Compose stacks
• Reverse proxy for routing to containers or external services, with automatic HTTPS certificate provisioning
• Built-in authentication server with SSO (OpenID Connect) and multi-factor authentication
• SmartShield protections including anti-bot and anti-DDoS features, plus security-focused access controls
• Container management and updates, with security auditing for managed apps
• Built-in VPN for secure remote access without exposing services directly to the internet
• Backup system with incremental, encrypted backups and support for remote targets (using restic)
• Monitoring with historical metrics, real-time status, and customizable alerts/notifications
• User management and identity-provider style features (invites, account recovery workflows)

Use Cases

• Securely publish multiple homelab services behind a single gateway with SSO and HTTPS
• Provide a private “personal cloud” experience for families with centralized access and user accounts
• Deploy and operate internal web apps for small organizations with tighter access controls

Limitations and Considerations

• License is “available source” (Commons Clause), which may not meet some organizations’ open-source requirements

Cosmos Cloud is best suited for users who want an integrated control plane for apps, networking, and security rather than assembling separate components. It aims to simplify deployment while adding protective layers for commonly self-hosted services.

YunoHost is a Debian-based operating system and web administration layer that streamlines installing and maintaining server applications. It provides a web admin, a user portal (single sign-on), an app catalog and tooling to manage domains, mail, DNS and backups with minimal manual configuration.

Key Features

• Central web administration panel for users, domains, apps, services, upgrades and backups.
• App packaging and catalog (YunoHost packages) for one-click installation of common services (Nextcloud, forums, blogs, etc.).
• Single sign-on user portal for installed applications and account management.
• Integrated mail stack and admin helpers (Postfix, Dovecot, mail filtering/antispam tooling) and LDAP-based user management.
• Automated HTTPS certificate handling and TLS configuration managed by the system.
• Per-app web server configuration and reverse-proxying with NGINX, PHP-FPM support and app-specific vhosts.
• System-level tooling for backups, upgrades, service supervision and diagnostics.
• Lightweight footprints for Raspberry Pi, old hardware or VPS deployments; developer-oriented CLI and API for automation.

Use Cases

• Host personal cloud, file sync, calendars and contacts for individuals or small groups using packaged apps.
• Provide a simple mail, web and collaboration suite for small organisations or associations without deep sysadmin expertise.
• Run community services (forums, wikis, federated social software) with centralized user and domain management.

Limitations and Considerations

• App packaging quality and maintenance vary: some community-maintained packages may lag or require manual fixes when upstream changes.
• Compatibility with the very latest Debian releases can lag; the project sometimes needs time to adapt to new Debian stable versions.

YunoHost is focused on usability and openness: it aggregates common server components and automations to lower the barrier to self-hosting while leaving advanced configuration available to experienced administrators. The project is community-driven and designed for small-scale deployments, community projects and enthusiasts.

CloudPanel is a free, modern server control panel designed to configure and manage web servers with a strong focus on simplicity and performance. It helps you deploy and operate common web workloads such as PHP apps, Node.js services, Python applications, static sites, and reverse proxies.

Key Features

• Web-based control panel for managing sites, domains, and server services
• Support for hosting PHP applications, Node.js apps, Python apps, and static websites
• Reverse proxy configuration for routing traffic to upstream applications
• Automated SSL/TLS certificate provisioning and management
• Performance-oriented stack and configuration defaults
• Integration options such as Cloudflare support
• Works on major Linux distributions including Ubuntu and Debian (x86 and ARM)

Use Cases

• Host multiple web applications on a single VPS with a unified UI
• Provision and manage reverse proxies for containerized or external services
• Operate a small hosting environment with TLS and sane defaults

CloudPanel is a strong fit for individuals and teams that want a fast, streamlined alternative to traditional hosting panels while supporting modern application runtimes and common server operations.

CaddyManager is a web-based management interface for administering Caddy 2 servers from a single dashboard. It helps you organize multiple servers, edit and validate Caddyfiles, and control access for teams.

Key Features

• Multi-server dashboard to add, remove, and monitor multiple Caddy 2 instances
• Caddyfile configuration editor with syntax highlighting, templates, and validation workflows
• Authentication with JWT-based sessions and role-based access control
• API key management for programmatic access
• Audit logging to track user and system actions
• Dual database support: SQLite (default) or MongoDB
• Integrated API documentation via Swagger UI
• Runtime and application metrics endpoints suitable for Prometheus scraping

Use Cases

• Manage several Caddy reverse proxies across environments from one UI
• Maintain Caddyfile configurations with safer editing and validation
• Provide controlled access and traceability for teams operating Caddy infrastructure

Limitations and Considerations

• The project is in early development; configuration and data backups are strongly recommended before using in production

CaddyManager is a practical option for operators who prefer a graphical interface for Caddy administration while retaining API access, auditability, and flexible storage options. It is suited for homelabs and small-to-medium deployments, with MongoDB support for larger setups.

traefik-kop is a small Go-based discovery agent that reads Docker container labels on a local node and publishes equivalent service definitions to Redis so a single central Traefik instance (configured with a Redis provider) can route to services running on multiple Docker hosts.

Key Features

• Mirrors Traefik Docker provider logic: reads container labels and translates them into Traefik service/route definitions
• Publishes service definitions into Redis so a remote Traefik instance can consume them
• Flexible IP binding: explicit bind-ip, interface-derived IP, container networking overrides, or auto-detection
• Namespace and label-prefix filtering to target or isolate sets of containers
• Load balancer merging option to combine endpoints from multiple nodes for the same service
• Configurable via CLI flags or environment variables; supports redis auth, TTL, and poll interval

Use Cases

• Expose services from multiple non-swarm Docker hosts through a single public Traefik reverse proxy
• Centralized ingress routing for heterogenous Docker hosts where Traefik cannot run locally on every node
• Multi-tenant or environment separation using namespaces or custom label prefixes to control which containers are published

Limitations and Considerations

• Requires a reachable Redis instance and a Traefik instance configured to use the Redis provider
• Needs access to the Docker socket on each node; running with this access has security implications
• If redis-ttl is not used or load balancer merging is enabled, stale/backing IP entries can persist when node IPs change
• Some deployment modes (host networking, multiple port bindings) require explicit labels or host networking for correct port selection

traefik-kop is a pragmatic solution when you need Traefik-style label-driven routing across multiple Docker hosts without Swarm or Kubernetes. It is lightweight, configurable, and designed to integrate with existing Traefik Docker-provider semantics.

xsrv is an Ansible-based collection of roles, playbooks and utilities designed to install, manage and run a wide range of self-hosted network services and applications on your own servers. It provides modular roles, an optional command-line controller and templates to bootstrap a single-server project quickly.

Key Features

• Modular Ansible roles for many services (web server, mail, VPN, databases, media, collaboration and more) so components can be deployed independently.
• Optional command-line controller with utilities for common tasks (provisioning VMs, initializing templates, applying changes and upgrades).
• Built-in templates and example inventory to get a single-server deployment up quickly and reproducibly.
• Integration with libvirt for automated VM provisioning and with common OS/stack tooling used on Debian-based hosts.
• Centralized configuration via role variables and a documented list of configuration variables to control deployments and service options.
• Role-level maintenance and upgrade procedures; guidance for TLS certificate acquisition and DNS requirements for public services.

Use Cases

• Deploy and operate a personal or small-team self-hosted server running Nextcloud, Gitea, Matrix, Jitsi, media servers and similar applications.
• Create reproducible lab or test environments by provisioning Debian VM templates and automated roles via libvirt/Ansible.
• Manage ongoing maintenance, upgrades and role-based configuration for multiple Debian hosts from a single Ansible controller.

Limitations and Considerations

• Focused on Debian-based systems: documentation and many roles assume Debian/Ubuntu packaging and tools; non-Debian platforms will require manual adaptation.
• Requires familiarity with Ansible and SSH-based controller/host workflows; not a turnkey graphical control panel — operations are performed via playbooks and CLI tools.
• Services and resource usage depend on installed roles; plan CPU, RAM and storage per role and follow role-specific guidance for production use.

xsrv is intended for users who prefer infrastructure-as-code and reproducible Ansible-driven deployments for self-hosting. Its modular role approach makes it suitable for incremental adoption and custom configurations.

HomelabOS is a self-hosted platform that helps you deploy and manage a large catalog of services on your own servers. It focuses on reproducible setup, security defaults, and keeping services usable on a local network even when the internet is unavailable.

Key Features

• Curated “app store” catalog for deploying 100+ self-hosted services
• Automated provisioning and configuration using Ansible
• Container-based service deployment (Docker)
• Built-in backup and restore workflows using restic
• Optional S3-compatible backup targets (for example via MinIO)
• Security-oriented defaults for common homelab deployments
• Optional Tor hidden service configuration for exposing apps without port forwarding
• Optional Terraform workflow to deploy a bastion/reverse-proxy host

Use Cases

• Quickly stand up a homelab with common apps (chat, file sync, media, home automation)
• Create a more private alternative to multiple SaaS subscriptions under one admin workflow
• Run LAN-first services that continue working during internet outages

Limitations and Considerations

• App availability, updates, and configuration options depend on the maintained catalog/roles
• Managing many containers and backups can require planning for storage and system resources

HomelabOS is best suited for homelab operators who want an opinionated, automated way to deploy many services consistently. It combines infrastructure automation with a large app catalog to reduce ongoing maintenance overhead.