Bluesky to let users set up their own servers to host data

Usually, user data on social media platforms like X are stored by the company whose services one signs up for

Jack Dorsey’s X rival platform Bluesky announced on Thursday that it is going to start letting its users set up their own servers to host their data, a move it hopes could offer them more control over their content.

Usually, user data on social media platforms like X are stored by the company whose services one signs up for, and leaving a platform may mean losing one’s connections and content.

An alternate model backed by many, including Dorsey, is to have platforms run in a decentralised manner, similar to how the internet itself works.

For instance, on the internet, anyone can host a website, and choose from one of many firms to host their site and when they change their mind, it can be moved to a different hosting provider.

We think social media should work the same way, the social network said in a blogpost.

When you register on Bluesky, by default we will suggest that Bluesky will store your data. But if you’d like to let another firm store it, or even store it yourself, you can do that, the social network said.

Users may also move their data to another provider at any point “without losing any of your existing posts, likes, or follows,” the social network said.

By self-hosting their data, users may gain more control over their social media, the firm said, adding that it has “guardrails” in place to keep running the network smoothly.

Presently, Bluesky is letting users self-host only their main accounts.

In the next phase, it said self-hosted servers will be restricted to 10 accounts each with usage restrictions, and subsequently this baseline would be raised as “trust and reputation is established” among those who self-host.

The firm is also planning to roll out new tools for independent moderation services to combat abuse on the platform.

Bluesky’s move comes as it started permitting anyone to create an account and join the service earlier this month as previously anyone hoping to join the platform needed an invitation.

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