If a Mastodon server closes down, members can download offline post archives, but there's currently no official way to display these archives online.
A proposed solution by @oliphant is a static website generator they have created called "Posty", which turns Mastodon public post archives into standalone static public websites:
️ https://codeberg.org/oliphant/posty
It could be useful for servers that are closing down, admins could perhaps offer this as a service to their members.
Hey self-hosting people!
A couple of years ago I asked about people's experiences with self-hosting email:
https://social.growyourown.services/@homegrown/108555028721713290
The consensus at the time seemed to be that self-hosting email wasn't worth the trouble, and that it was a pain compared to other forms of self-hosting.
Has anything changed? Is email still much more difficult to self-host than other online services?
You don't need to be rich or technically skilled to start your own server on Mastodon or the rest of the Fediverse.
"Managed hosting" means a company hosts your server and also does everything technical for you behind the scenes. You pay them a small monthly fee which covers everything.
I've done a guide to setting up a Mastodon server through managed hosting for non-technical people:
https://growyourown.services/making-your-own-mastodon-server-in-10-steps
Most of this guide applies to creating any type of Fediverse server.
You can start your own E2EE messaging server very easily and cheaply via @snikket_im, they are trying to make XMPP more user-friendly and easy to set up:
XMPP (also often called Jabber) is the original open messaging standard, sort of like the Fediverse but for messaging. Just like on the Fediverse, people on one XMPP server can talk to people on other XMPP servers.
If you just want to sign up without making a server, try https://joinjabber.org
Hey Mastodon admins!
Have any of you got recent experience of running a server in Limited Federation Mode? Is it still broken when trying to use the official Mastodon apps? Does it work okay with third party apps?
There's a tips page about this topic at https://biosphere.wilmarigl.de/en/?p=3171 but it hasn't been updated in a couple of years, wondered if the app situation had improved at all?
Hey, welcome new followers! 
There are three ways of running your own online services & servers:
EASIEST: Use a managed hosting service, it does all the technical stuff for you. More info at https://growyourown.services
MODERATELY TECHY: Use special software that makes installing your own services much easier. More info at https://yunohost.org, https://freedombox.org & https://libreserver.org
VERY TECHY: Install & maintain totally manually using official software docs.
