Escape GitHub: Self-Hosted Git with Gitea

Mission Briefing

GitHub’s acquisition by Microsoft was the canary in the coal mine. Today’s “Copilot” suggestions are tomorrow’s mandatory AI reviews. It’s time to take back control of your code.

Why Gitea?

Lightweight: Runs on a Raspberry Pi if needed
Feature-Complete: Issues, PRs, CI/CD, packages, wikis
Migration-Ready: Direct GitHub import tools
Community-Driven: No corporate overlord

The Liberation Process

Phase 1: Infrastructure Setup

# Docker Compose deployment
version: '3'
services:
  gitea:
    image: gitea/gitea:latest
    container_name: gitea
    environment:
      - USER_UID=1000
      - USER_GID=1000
      - GITEA__database__DB_TYPE=postgres
      - GITEA__database__HOST=db:5432
    restart: always
    networks:
      - gitea
    volumes:
      - ./gitea:/data
      - /etc/timezone:/etc/timezone:ro
      - /etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
      - "222:22"
    depends_on:
      - db

Phase 2: Data Migration

The migration tool preserves everything:

Repositories with full history
Issues and pull requests
Wikis and project boards
Stars and watches (as much as possible)

# Use Gitea's built-in migrator
gitea migrate --config /data/gitea/conf/app.ini \
  --type github \
  --url https://github.com/yourusername/yourrepo

Phase 3: CI/CD Liberation

Replace GitHub Actions with Gitea Actions (Drone CI compatible):

name: Build and Test
on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Run tests
        run: |
          npm install
          npm test

Advanced Defenses

Federation via ActivityPub

Gitea is implementing ActivityPub support, allowing:

Cross-instance collaboration
Decentralized issue tracking
Federated code search

Backup Strategies

# Automated backup script
#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/backups/gitea"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)

# Backup database
docker exec gitea_db pg_dump -U gitea gitea > $BACKUP_DIR/db_$DATE.sql

# Backup repositories and data
tar -czf $BACKUP_DIR/data_$DATE.tar.gz /var/lib/gitea

# Sync to remote storage
rclone sync $BACKUP_DIR remote:gitea-backups/

Performance Optimization

With proper tuning, Gitea can handle:

10,000+ repositories
1,000+ concurrent users
Sub-second page loads

Key optimizations:

Enable Redis caching
Use PostgreSQL over SQLite
Configure proper indexing
Enable Git LFS for large files

Cost Analysis

GitHub Enterprise: $21/user/month Self-Hosted Gitea: ~$20/month total for small team

VPS: $10-15/month (Hetzner, Contabo)
Backup storage: $5/month (Backblaze B2)
Domain + SSL: $15/year
Your time: Priceless freedom

Common Objections Debunked

“But GitHub has better uptime!” Your $10 VPS probably has better uptime than GitHub’s recent track record.

“What about discoverability?” Mirror to GitHub if needed. Keep the primary on your infrastructure.

“It’s too complex!” If you can deploy a Node app, you can run Gitea.

The Path Forward

Start with private repos
Migrate active projects gradually
Keep GitHub as a mirror initially
Cut the cord when comfortable

Remember: Every self-hosted instance is a beacon of resistance in the digital ocean.

Resources

“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The best time to self-host your code is now.”

LIBERATION TOOLS ARMORY