Self-hosted infrastructure, Proxmox and backups, n8n automation, calm operations.
Self-hosted infrastructure,
calm to run.
I'm Zahara Schaefer. I design self-hosted infrastructure and the automation around it. These days I write up what I build, so the next person can run it.
Fractional infra and DevOps retainers are delivered and invoiced by LayerEight Solutions.
About
I design self-hosted infrastructure and the automation around it. These days I write up what I build, so the next person can run it.
That was where I learned that the people using a system matter more than the system.
I am a member of the LGBTQ+ community, my pronouns are she/her, and you can hear how to say my name on the pronouns page. When I am not at a terminal I am usually swimming, gaming, or out on a motorcycle.
Start with what is there.
I begin with the stack you already run and the thing that worries you most, not with a rebuild.
Small, reversible steps.
Changes go out in stages with a way back, so a bad day stays a small one.
Written down as part of the job.
Runbooks, diagrams and notes are part of what I hand over now, so whoever runs the system next has them.
Calm, clear, and honest about limits.
Good infrastructure work is mostly communication. I say what I will and will not take on, I tell you early when something is off, and during an incident I slow down before I speed up: first what is broken, then who is affected, then the smallest safe fix.
Where I have worked
// cv roles, oldest first
2019 to 2021
Game community, Virtual X
Made 2D and 3D assets, wrote the community's Discord bot in Node.js, and looked after the website's admin back end in PHP and SQL.
2021 to 2022
Freelance
Built web apps, then kept virtualized servers and firewalls healthy, then designed a storage cluster.
2021 to now
Principal Engineer, LayerEight Solutions
Runs the internal infrastructure.
2022 to now
Director of IT, client company
Looks after IT and integrations.
Stack
// platforms and tools I have built on, integrated or run. not partnerships or endorsements.
- Infrastructure and hosting
- Proxmox VEProxmox Backup ServerCephpfSenseDocker and Docker ComposeKubernetesNixOS and Nix flakesCloudflare (Workers, KV, Tunnel)HetznerAWSGoogle CloudAzure storageVercelNetlifyTailscaleTraefikCaddynginxMinIOGitLab
- Automation and workflows
- n8nZapierMakeCeleryKafka and Redpanda
- Data and databases
- PostgresMySQL and MariaDBRedisMongoDBSQLiteClickHouseSupabaseFirebase and FirestorePrismaDrizzlePgBouncerOpenSearch and Elasticsearch
- Analytics and observability
- PostHogSegmentSentryPlausibleOpenTelemetryPrometheusGrafanaELK StackZabbix
- CRM and marketing
- ActiveCampaignHubSpotMailchimpMauticKeapHighLevelSalesforcePipedriveClickFunnelsWordPress and WooCommerceShopifyCal.comCalendlyOnceHub
- Identity and auth
- KeycloakAuthentikAuth0Auth.jsFirebase AuthenticationSupabase Auth
Plenty of setups have backups. Fewer have backups anyone has restored.
Practical notes from real systems.
// 12 how-tos with real commands
all guides#backups
Proxmox backup checklist: jobs, PBS, off-site, restores
Set up Proxmox VE backups that you can restore: backup jobs, a Proxmox Backup Server datastore, encryption, an off-site sync, and a recorded restore test.
8 min read
#automation
Self-host n8n with Docker Compose, Postgres and HTTPS
Run n8n 2.x on your own server with Docker Compose, Postgres and Caddy for HTTPS, then set up backups, safe upgrades and a path to queue mode.
7 min read
#edge
Host a static site on Cloudflare Workers with static assets
Deploy a static site to Cloudflare Workers: Wrangler config, static assets, a custom domain, headers, a small API route with secrets, logs and rollbacks.
6 min read
#backups
The 3-2-1-1-0 backup rule, applied to a Linux server
Apply 3-2-1-1-0 to a Linux server with restic: a local repository, an off-site copy, an append-only copy, scheduled checks and a restore test.
7 min read
#virtualization
Install Proxmox VE 9 on one server: a first-week setup
Install Proxmox VE 9 on one server: the no-subscription repository, network bridge, storage, 2FA and firewall, then a first container and VM.
7 min read
#virtualization
Running Proxmox in production: clusters, HA and upgrades
Take Proxmox VE from one host to production: build a cluster, add a QDevice, set up HA and live migration, use cloud-init templates and upgrade safely.
7 min read
Services
Fractional infra and DevOps, through LayerEight Solutions.
For teams that run real systems without a full-time infrastructure engineer: monitoring, backups, upgrades, automation upkeep, and help when something breaks.
Contact me for pricing.
How the retainer worksSelf-hosted infrastructure checklist
Fourteen layers, from hardware and networking to backups and monitoring, with tool options and notes for each.
open the checklistContact
Need something scoped?
Tell me what you run and what is going wrong. I reply in writing.