A control panel for the rest of us [tend.host – Das Open-Source-Control-Panel für App-Deployments, Backups & Server-Verwaltung]

Hallo zusammen,

ich möchte euch heute tend.host vorstellen — ein Open-Source-Control-Panel, an dem ich arbeite und das sich ideal für VPS- und Server-Setups bei netcup eignet.

❓ Warum noch ein Control Panel?

Wer eigene Server oder Applikationen hostet, kennt das Dilemma: Komplexe Docker-Setups, Command-Line-Jonglieren, manuelle SSL-Zertifikate, Restic-Backups per Cronjob und die ständige Sorge um Sicherheits-Updates. Viele vorhandene Panels setzen tiefes Wissen über Reverse Proxies und Container-Netzwerke voraus.

tend.host ist das Control Panel für den Rest von uns:

• Klar verständliche Oberflächen ohne Fachjargon
• Sicherheit out-of-the-box
• Volle Kontrolle über eure eigene Infrastruktur – ohne Hersteller-Lock-in

🚀 Die wichtigsten Features im Überblick

• 1-Klick App-Deployments: Direkt aus Git-Repositories, Docker-Hub-Images oder docker-compose-Dateien.
• Integrierter Restic-Backup-Manager: Automatisierte Volume-Backups, S3/Object-Storage-Support, Aufbewahrungsregeln und Wiederherstellung mit Sicherheits-Snapshot.
• Server-Hardening & Audits: Basisschutz für frische VPS (UFW, Fail2ban, SSH-Schlüssel, Kernel-Härtung) und fortlaufende Security-Scans.
• Caddy Reverse Proxy & Automatische SSL-Zertifikate: Vollautomatische Routing- und TLS-Verwaltung für eure Domains.
• Kein Agent auf Zielservern: Verbindet sich einfach via SSH und Docker-Socket. Minimaler Footprint auf euren Hosts.
• Moderne UI: Gebaut mit Svelte 5, FastAPI und SQLite — schnell, schnörkellos und inkl. Command Palette (Ctrl + K).

🛠️ Technischer Stack

• Frontend: Svelte 5, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS v4, DaisyUI
• Backend: Python 3.12+, FastAPI, Uvicorn, SQLite, PostgreSQL
• Orchestrierung: Docker Engine, Caddy, Restic, APScheduler

🔗 Links & Mitmachen

Das Projekt ist quelloffen und wird aktiv weiterentwickelt. Feedback, Feature-Wünsche und Vergleiche mit euren aktuellen Setups sind sehr willkommen!

tend.host — We’re tending the garden

Ich freue mich auf euren Input und eure Meinungen!

ENGLISH-SPEAKING

The Fair-Code Control Panel for App Deployments, Backups & Server Management

Hi everyone,

Today I’d like to introduce tend.host — an open-source control panel I’ve been building that’s designed to run seamlessly on VPS and server setups.

❓ Why another control panel?

Anyone hosting their own servers or applications knows the drill: complex Docker setups, juggling terminal commands, manual SSL certificate setups, Restic backups via cron jobs, and constantly worrying about security patches. Many existing control panels require a deep understanding of reverse proxies and container networks.

tend.host is the control panel for the rest of us:

• Clear, easy-to-understand interfaces without jargon
• Security out-of-the-box
• Full control over your infrastructure — zero vendor lock-in

🚀 Key Features at a Glance

• 1-Click App Deployments: Deploy directly from Git repositories, Docker Hub images, or docker-compose files.
• Integrated Restic Backup Manager: Automated volume backups, S3/Object Storage support, retention rules, and safety-snapshot restores.
• Server Hardening & Audits: Baseline protection for fresh VPS setups (UFW, Fail2ban, SSH keys, kernel hardening) and ongoing security scans.
• Caddy Reverse Proxy & Automatic SSL: Fully automated routing and TLS certificate management for your domains.
• Agentless Managed Servers: Connects via standard SSH and Docker socket. Minimal footprint on target hosts.
• Modern UI: Built with Svelte 5, FastAPI, and SQLite — fast, clean, and includes a built-in Command Palette (Ctrl + K).

🛠️ Tech Stack

• Frontend: Svelte 5, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS v4, DaisyUI
• Backend: Python 3.12+, FastAPI, Uvicorn, SQLite, PostgreSQL
• Orchestration: Docker Engine, Caddy, Restic, APScheduler

🔗 Links & Getting Involved

The project is fully open source and under active development. Feedback, feature requests, or thoughts on how it compares to your current setup are always welcome!

tend.host — We’re tending the garden

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and feedback!
Comming soon...

Zitat von webdesignheld

https://tend.host looks all ready to ship

Almost... just giving final touch for initial release. We are very exited to show it to you all.
P.S This is the first public announcement.

Zitat von terence

Beim GitHub-Link bekomme ich 404. Ist das Repository noch nicht public?

Hi Terence,

We are almost there, just doing some final touches before initial release. Set up threat notifications, I will udate here on the next milestone.

Zitat von DiamantThomy

Which authentication methods are planned for the initial release of tend.host?

Native WebAuthn/FIDO2 support would be particularly important to me. The panel is intended to have extensive administrative access through SSH and the Docker socket. If it is operated as an externally accessible service, phishing-resistant authentication should therefore not be an optional feature to be added at some later point. Passwords and TOTP alone are no longer appropriate for this in 2026.

I regularly criticize other projects where FIDO2 apparently was not considered from the beginning despite its age, often without even an issue being opened for it. That is why I prefer to ask during the first announcement, while the repository cannot yet be reviewed publicly.

Is FIDO2 already planned? OIDC would also be useful as an additional option, but should not replace native support.

Thank you for your comment, Thomy.

I feel your pain, and that was actually one of our main motivations for creating tend.host. I honestly can’t comprehend how, in 2026, there are still control panels that haven't even implemented 2FA. It doesn't matter how well you secure the server if you’re basically leaving the front door unlocked!

But we have good news: This is already implemented, as security is our top priority.

Plus, we support passwordless logins! Regardless of your login method—whether using a passkey or a regular password—2FA is always enabled by default, making that second layer of security mandatory. We also do not support email or SMS recovery, as both methods are easily compromised.
The only way to recover an account is by using the recovery code generated when the account was first created (which can also be regenerated from within the account panel) or by using a passkey added from a FIDO key or another device. The user can add more than one Passkey as a security layer to avoid getting locked out in the event they loses one key and recovery codes all together. Unlikely to happen, but it could.
We thought about disabling password all together, but realize this would confuse many users; mandatory 2FA seemed like the best approach.



P.S. On a brand-new VPS, tend.host performs an initial security audit and applies essential safeguards before installing any applications. It then periodically scans the server and installed apps for security vulnerabilities, kernel updates, and OS patches. You can apply these updates manually with a single click or set them to run automatically—though auto-updates carry a slight risk for applications sensitive to dependency changes. This can be implemented to a VPS that was setup before using tend.host to manages it, but that will require a little bit more of work from the user.

Additionally, whenever you deploy or update a container, tend.host runs a health check to ensure it meets strict pass criteria. If a check fails, you’ll receive detailed error logs explaining what went wrong. This especially includes security checks. Your live site stays uninterrupted throughout the process, as the previous container remains active and the broken build is never pushed live.



BTW: tend.host can be setup to run locally with zero access from the outside world.

Default Home design. But you can makes it your own by customizing the colors or adding a beautiful cozy wallpaper.

Plus a beautiful Dock!
Jumpshare: Communicate in seconds. Visually

More than just web hosting servers.

You can also manage buckets from major providers—and even your Google Drive. Combine buckets, files, and images from different providers to view them all in a unified file manager. Move files seamlessly from one provider to another, and view your pictures in a beautiful gallery.

This is ideal for users with free tiers across multiple cloud services: combine your 5 GB, 10 GB, and 20 GB tiers, distribute your photos among them, and browse everything in one gallery as if it were stored on a single drive.

Zitat von Copro

That is more of a jump scare ... but the link is another 404 like the GitHub repository.

But keep it simple and straightforward and focus on the control panel until a first release.

Just my two cents for the nice feature of having an image gallery with multiple cloud sources ... this would not be something I want on my server control panel. Even in my private home NAS where such an application would be more than welcome, containing most of the images I would not willingly put them on "small" public or free cloud storage providers for 5 - 20 GB but either one big one that I trust and will be paying for the secure storage or host them directly on my own server(s).

Thank you so much for your input—I will absolutely take it into account.

Just to clarify, even though this control panel can be installed directly on the server box, the recommendation is to host it either on a private (non-main-server) machine or on a small, inexpensive ($5.99) dedicated VPS.

What you see is a production environment where the icons represent apps installed by the user; they are not mandatory or included by default. Features like the file manager, however, are native to the panel.

The panel itself can easily run on 1 shared vCPU and 1 GB of RAM. To put this into perspective, in a clean, real-world deployment managing 20 application records across 3 servers, the tend.host container used about 125 MiB of RAM, Caddy used about 63 MiB, and the entire Linux host sat at around 0.9 GiB of used RAM at idle.

Actual resource usage will vary based on deployment activity, enabled integrations, the operating system, Docker caching, and overall workload size, so the recommended specifications above intentionally include plenty of headroom.