I stopped paying for 3 cloud subscriptions after deploying Immich and Vaultwarden on a mini PC

Modern digital life means paying monthly, or sometimes annual, subscription fees for a range of services you need, whether that's cloud photo storage, a password manager, or file sync tools. All of these software services are steadily creeping up in price each year.

Realistically, a budget-friendly mini PC running a few lightweight Docker containers can completely replace enterprise cloud silos with faster, more private, locally owned alternatives. You don't need to rent your digital life from tech giants. By deploying Vaultwarden, Immich, and a local storage sync container on a dedicated mini PC, you can cancel three bloated cloud subscriptions and take permanent control of your data.

The hardware is the first step

Get yourself a suitable mini PC

If you want to move away from cloud subscription fees, one of the easiest ways is to run a containerized stack on your own hardware. There's been a shift toward low-power mini PCs powered by Intel N100 processors or even efficient mobile Ryzen chips.

This is a massive sweet spot for self-hosters and home lab enthusiasts, mainly because of the low TDP. A fully assembled headless mini PC running a Docker environment can sit between 6W and 12W at idle. This means running a continuous 10W load 24/7 translates to roughly 88 kWh per year, which will cost you roughly $13 to $18 for the entire year.

Older desktop hardware or enterprise servers often idle at much higher levels, so you actually save money in the long run on power costs alone.

Another benefit of a mini PC is its silence, small footprint, and form factor. Because these chips produce very little heat, mini PCs can be passively cooled or use tiny, whisper-quiet fans that stay silent under normal home lab loads. The physical footprint itself is so small, with most mini PCs measuring roughly 5 x 5 inches and fitting in the palm of your hand. This means you can tuck it discreetly behind a TV, mount it to the back of a desk, or slip it into a structured media cabinet alongside a router.

The software stack is completely self-hosted

You can replace a range of subscriptions

After you've got the hardware in place, the next thing to optimize is your software. We're going to use three specific apps to replace mainstream paid cloud services.

The first is Vaultwarden, which can replace premium password managers. You can swap pricey subscription-based password managers for Vaultwarden, an unofficial, ultra-lightweight Rust implementation of the Bitwarden server API that runs on minimal RAM while keeping full cross-device client compatibility. It works with the official Bitwarden apps on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, and browser extensions so you can still access your passwords across all of your devices.

Next is Immich, which we'll use to replace Google Photos, iCloud, or any other cloud-based photo backup service you use. Monthly cloud photo storage subscriptions can be very pricey, especially as you need to upgrade to higher tiers as your photo library grows. However, Immich is a lightning-fast self-hosted photo and video backup solution, complete with automated mobile background uploads, machine learning facial recognition, and zero artificial compression. The UI is fantastic and feels like Google Photos, letting you search your images by keyword, too.

Lastly, Nextcloud or local file sync can replace Dropbox or OneDrive. When you replace rented cloud drive storage with a local file-sync container or a straightforward Samba/NFS share backend (via external USB or NVMe storage), you get seamless document access across all your devices.

The hurdles of self-hosting

Backup your content

When self-hosting these applications, you usually get remote access, but it's still worth setting up a secure remote-access backup. This way, you can still reach your password manager and photo library securely while away from home without exposing vulnerable ports to the open internet. You can use tools like Tailscale or a secure reverse proxy to ensure you can access your files even when you're not at home.

The golden rule of self-hosting, especially with applications like this, is to ensure you have backups. When you're transitioning from cloud storage, it's easy to think all your files are safe, but local storage means you are responsible for the backup. Implement a simple 3-2-1 backup strategy: automate rsync or Borg backups to an encrypted external drive or secondary cloud target.

Save yourself some cash

Subscriptions are always creeping up

Self-hosting isn't just about privacy. It's also about saving yourself subscription fees in the long run. By trading a drawer full of monthly SaaS bills for a silent, efficient mini PC, you could save hundreds of dollars a year. With budget-friendly hardware, you can dust off an old mini PC or pick up an affordable N100 unit, deploy Vaultwarden and Immich, and permanently break free from the subscription trap.