The tools we work with
Open-source tools from our practice. What they do, what we use them for, where they fit our clients — and what they cost.
Why this page
Every client setup we run leans on tools that are transparent, durable and free of cloud lock-in — mostly open source, always , always GDPR-fit. This collection documents the tools we use, with a concrete client example per tool. If you're considering whether a tool fits your situation, you'll find an honest take here instead of a product pitch.
Tools by cluster
We group the tools into three layers: infrastructure carries everything, & brings the intelligence, apps are what staff open every day. Each cluster has its own overview page.
AI models
→ Model picker in detailOpen-weight models we deploy with customers: Llama, Mixtral, Qwen, , DeepSeek, Phi, GPT-oss. Compared by size, license, VRAM, and — plus cloud-vs-local routing.
Infrastructure
→ More in InfrastructureDocker
Container engine for isolated services on your own server
Licence cost
Free
Apache-2.0 licensed container engine: containers, Compose, volumes, networks. Example: how a construction company with 25 staff runs eight services (Caddy, Nextcloud, Mailcow, BookStack, Vaultwarden, , , ) isolated on a single mini PC — no SaaS, no cloud lock-in.
Portainer
Container management in the browser for Docker and Swarm
Licence cost
Free (CE)
Zlib licensed web UI for , Compose and Swarm: stack editor, log stream, volume browser, multi-endpoint, container console. Example: how a marketing studio with its own UGREEN NAS manages twelve containers in the browser — without SSH, without vocabulary.
Caddy
Web server and reverse proxy with automatic HTTPS
Licence cost
Free
Apache-2.0 licensed web server with automatic certificates, HTTP/3, declarative Caddyfile syntax and hot reload. Example: how a web agency runs 30 client domains in a single Caddyfile — no Certbot jobs, no SSL outage tickets.
docker-mailserver
Self-hosted Postfix/Dovecot stack with Rspamd
Licence cost
Free
MIT licensed mail-server container: Postfix + Dovecot + Rspamd + ClamAV + , DKIM/SPF/DMARC ready, setup.sh for every admin task. Example: how a German structural engineering office migrated from Strato to its own mail server — unlimited project aliases, Bayes-trained spam filter, 100 % mail sovereignty.
Uptime Kuma
Self-hosted monitoring
Licence cost
Free
Open-source monitoring for websites, APIs, mail servers, databases and containers. Status pages for customers, notifications into your own inbox, all data on your own server. Example: how a tax office monitors its client portal, DATEV login, mail server and backup jobs with it.
Grafana
Open-source dashboards with 200+ data sources
Licence cost
Free
AGPL-3.0 licensed platform for dashboards, alerting and multi-data-source visualisation. Example: how a German private brewery with 18 staff monitors 12 fermentation tanks with IoT sensors — real-time fermentation curves, Slack alerts on drift, automatic brew protocols.
Workflow & AI
→ More in Workflow & AIOllama
Local LLM server with OpenAI API
Licence cost
Free
MIT licensed server for 100+ open-weight models (Llama, Mistral, Qwen, ): OpenAI-compatible , acceleration (NVIDIA/AMD/Apple), quantisation for RAM/VRAM efficiency. Example: how a German machine-building company with 80 staff replaced shadow IT (clandestine ChatGPT use) with a local server — IP protection instead of data leakage.
Open WebUI
Self-hosted chat interface for your own AI models
Licence cost
Free
Browser interface for local models (Llama, Mixtral, Qwen) via : multi-user with , , over your own documents, OpenAI-compatible . Example: how a German law firm with 8 staff runs § 203-compliant brief drafting, contract analysis and case-law research — without client data ever leaving the firm.
n8n
Workflow automation, self-hosted
Licence cost
Free
Fair-code tool for email triggers, , DATEV export, Slack bridges and CRM integrations. 400+ pre-built nodes, visual editor, runs on your own server. Example: how a tax firm with 60 clients automates its document intake, monthly P&L dispatch and deadline watchdog.
Camunda 7
BPMN workflow and DMN decision engine
Licence cost
Free
Apache-2.0 licensed engine + DMN decision engine in Java with user task inbox and cockpit. Example: how a German special machine builder with 60 staff turns engineering approval workflows from email threads into processes with user tasks, parallel paths and audit trail.
Self-hosted apps
→ More in Self-hosted appsVaultwarden
Self-hosted password manager (Bitwarden compatible)
Licence cost
Free
AGPL-3.0 licensed Rust reimplementation of the Bitwarden server: one container, ~50 MB RAM, fully compatible with every official Bitwarden app (iOS, Android, browser extension). Example: how a German architecture firm with 12 staff and 80 building projects manages 1,800+ logins without a SaaS vault.
Paperless-ngx
Self-hosted document archive with OCR and full-text search
Licence cost
Free
GPL-3.0 licensed DMS for trade businesses and SMBs: Tesseract local, full-text search, ML auto-tagging, REST , GoBD-compliant retention. Example: how a German HVAC business archived 7,400+ delivery notes, maintenance contracts and subsidy applications in 18 months — search in under a second.
BookStack
Self-hosted wiki with books-chapters-pages structure
Licence cost
Free
MIT licensed wiki with WYSIWYG + Markdown, full-text search, REST , multi-user. Example from our own practice: we have used BookStack for 18 months for 400+ pages of internal knowledge — this entire tools section was developed from BookStack storyboards.
Cal.com
Self-hosted scheduling tool (Calendly alternative)
Licence cost
Free
MIT licensed scheduling tool: self-service slots, availability management, recurring appointments, reminder emails. Example: how a German psychotherapy group practice with 4 therapists and 240 patients runs its scheduling Art. 9 GDPR compliant — saving €5,000–9,000 per year compared to Doctolib.
WordPress
The CMS behind 43 % of all websites — radically rethought with AI
Licence cost
Free
Vanilla WordPress + Block Editor + (ChatGPT, Claude, , ) replaces the expensive plugin stack. Example: how a neighbourhood restaurant maintains its site daily — from €700/year plugin stack down to €190/year, daily updates in 15 minutes via smartphone.
TinaCMS
Git-based headless CMS for Next.js and Astro
Licence cost
Free
Apache-2.0 licensed headless CMS with content as Markdown/MDX in a Git repository and a visual editor in the browser. Schema definition in TypeScript, automatic type generation. Fits Next.js, Astro or Hugo sites with editorial maintenance.
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