The Raspberry Pi is a great product that can be used for a wide range of purposes, from learning computer science skills to use in industrial applications. But it’s also possible to run your blog on a Raspberry Pi, letting you run a blog without having to pay hosting fees.
Invest in The Right Hardware
Any Raspberry Pi product is suitable for hosting a blog, but for the best experience it’s worth getting a Raspberry Pi 2 or later. You’ll also need a large SD card as web servers require a lot of storage space- consider getting at least a 16GB card. Next, connect your Pi to your local network.
Simply visit a Raspberry Pi store online, find the product that’s right for you, and then follow these simple steps to get your blog up and running.
Use Ghost
Ghost is an open-source Content Management System (CMS) that enables you to create your own platform on the internet. Using Ghost, you can easily host your own blog on your Raspberry Pi, thus eliminating costs from hosting on another platform.
To use Ghost on your Pi, you’ll need to install Docker Compose. If you aren’t confident in installing Docker on your Pi, you can find numerous guides for free online.
Once Docker has been installed, you’ll be able to run Ghost on your Raspberry Pi. You can also find instructions on how to install Ghost on your Pi. Once installed, run Ghost to ensure it works without any problems. Once you’re sure Ghost is running correctly, you can configure it to your liking.
Now that you’ve got Ghost running on your Pi, you can create a custom domain so that visitors can easily discover your blog. You can put your blog on a cloud platform so that visitors can easily be directed to your domain name, rather than continually having to enter the IP address. Using a service like this will also help keep your blog secure. You can also enable SSL encryption, which will make your blog more secure and SEO friendly.
Port Forwarding
In order to access your blog on your Raspberry Pi, you’ll need to forward the relevant port in your router. This is so visitors to your blog won’t be blocked by home broadband security. This process can vary depending on your router and service provider, but, again, thankfully there are guides online showing you how you can do this.
Test The Quality of your Blog
Now that you’ve got your blog running on your Raspberry Pi, you can test the quality of it. After going through all the trouble of setting up your blog, you don’t want it to be taken down by spelling mistakes or incorrect links. There are many free services that you can use to check your blog for various quality issues.
Running your blog on a Raspberry Pi can be an arduous process, but the benefit of hosting your own blog and avoiding hosting fees makes it very worthwhile. By following these steps, you’ll be on your way to running a successful blog on your Pi with minimal issues.
Cover photo credit: Pixabay
