First, this makes more sense, thanks for the write up. Second, I really wish I knew this stuff when I went head first into fuck Microsoft mode (I have a feeling I’m gonna be resetting my main PC at some point to do it right, and really dreading that). I have an old laptop returning to me that I’m gonna throw Nix on and fuck with it.

Signed up yesterday and used it for work today. Seems to be a good alternative, just waiting for client confirmation.

Mind giving a bit of a breakdown of why? I’m new to Linux and heard a lot about docker (I think its like separate boxes for an apps?) after I switched and it just seemed too much at the time so I’ve put it on the back burner (was stotally new to terminal stuff).

I’m about to try rigging up an old laptop for self hosting and trying to learn. Was thinking of figuring out docker first before trying immich, keepass, calendar with calDAV and it’s all pretty overwhelming lol.

Got it. I suppose Thundermail is new so they’re still working on things.

I signed up yesterday. Really liking it so far but I’m still messing around with it. Do you have your app synced? I’m trying to figure out if I can change the settings on one PC and have them affect another PC/phone without exporting.

Absolutely. I’m kicking myself for not doing it when I moved to Proton in the first place but I didn’t know much about this stuff and needed an easy switch.

Additionally the other bonus to migrating from Proton is diversifying. Now if one company enshittifies it only affects one account.

What are you using for your domain emails?

I just switched to custom domains and Thundermail

This makes sense, thank you.

I moved to Linux a while back and only discovered docker after setting everything up. Haven’t got around to learning about it yet, Linux itself was a lot of info lol. Do you use docker containers for like every app you install? Like if I start with an old laptop and try syncthing, should that be installed in a docker container?

I’m looking into self hosting but I’m pretty new to all of this networking stuff. I’m going to be setting up an old laptop and try to self host a few things like immich and looking at syncthing. I set up KeePass yesterday and it works great, but without a server I’ve just been replacing the file per device as I make changes.

If I understand, with syncthing installed on each device I can point KeePass from each of my PCs/laptops/phone to the directory on my laptop server? This will also work remotely?

I spent hours yesterday doing exactly this. Years ago I went full Proton to get away from Google. I knew putting all my eggs in one basket wasn’t smart, but it was a big task so I did what I could at the time. I’ve learned a lot since, and in migrating this time I’m using custom domains to make it easier the next time.

I started with Proton Pass, arguably the most important of the Proton Suite. I went with KeePass, and was really concerned about the difficulty in switching but it was shockingly easy. It’s certainly less polished and has some hiccups and is a bit slower, but it works great.

2FA is with Aegis.

Drive. I looked into a lot of options and decided to go with Filen.io . I’ll be testing it this week (I use it for freelance work) but it seems solid so far. A year was around $35 CAD.

Still looking into a calendar (I’m new to self hosting so it’s a huge learning curve for me).

VPN. I need port forwarding so the only other option I’ve found is AirVPN, which seems pretty good, but it’s based out of Italy which is an eyes country. For now, I’m staying with Proton VPN.

Standard Notes was acquired by Proton, so I’ve switched to Obsidian but haven’t pulled the trigger on paying for a sub yet.

The big one, mail. I’ve gone full custom domain (Cloudflare for now) and have been switching my emails on all my accounts. I decided to go with Thundermail, and so far it’s working great. I’ll be looking into self hosting a server soon to try to sync settings between devices (no idea if I can get that to work lol). Once everything is migrated, if Thunderbird goes tits up like Proton is doing the switch will be really easy with domains.

Yeah, I’ve been struggling with this. I’m thinking when my mail gets sorted I’ll go down to just the vpn subscription for now. Keeping one service isn’t perfect, but perfect shouldn’t be the enemy of good. keeping 1 of the 8 services is way better than all 8 lol.

Thanks, I’ll give it a look. Self hosting is a huge learning curve for me, I hate network stuff lol.

I spent the day getting things set up to leave.

Pass went to KeePass, which was easier than I expected.

Drive is now replaced with Filen.io

Standard Notes is now Obsidian

Looking at AirVPN, but not ready to pull the trigger on that yet.

Still looking for a calendar. Thunderbird has one but it’s not on mobile for some reason.

The big one is mail. I was the same as you migrating from gmail so I’m learning my lesson now. Set up Thundermail today and have 3 custom domains set up. Spent hours today swapping out account emails. It’s rough, but I did it to myself. I knew going full Proton ecosystem was a bad idea, but at the time I just wanted out of Google. Take your time.