Upgrading a self-hosted Mastodon instance ensures you receive security patches, new features, and performance improvements. But a failed upgrade can cause downtime, data loss, or a broken federation connection. The primary risk is database schema changes that do not roll back cleanly if the upgrade stops mid-process. This article explains the exact steps to prepare, … Read more
When you open the Federated timeline in Mastodon, posts can take several seconds or even minutes to appear. This delay makes browsing the public feed frustrating, especially on large instances. The main cause is the sheer volume of data the server must fetch, filter, and display from other instances across the fediverse. This article explains … Read more
Moving a self-hosted Mastodon instance to a new server can feel like a high-risk operation. You need to transfer user accounts, posts, media files, and the relational database without losing data or breaking federation. This article explains the full migration process using the official Mastodon backup and restore tools. The root cause of migration complexity … Read more
Mastodon instance defederation is the process where one server blocks another server from interacting with it. When an admin defederates a remote instance, users on that blocked server can no longer follow local accounts, boost local posts, or send direct messages to local users. The blocked server also disappears from the local federated timeline. This … Read more
If your Mastodon instance feels slow during peak hours or returns database timeout errors in the web interface, the default PostgreSQL configuration is likely the culprit. Mastodon relies heavily on database queries for timelines, notifications, and search. Out-of-the-box Postgres settings are designed for a typical web application, not a federated social network that can serve … Read more
Mastodon instances store user uploads such as images, videos, and files. Every instance operator must choose between storing these files on the local disk of the server or using an object storage service like Amazon S3 or a compatible alternative. The choice affects performance, cost, scalability, and data durability. This article compares the two approaches … Read more
When you run your own Mastodon server, background jobs like sending emails, processing media uploads, and delivering posts to other instances are handled by Sidekiq. If Sidekiq queues are not configured correctly, your instance can become slow, unresponsive, or fail to deliver messages. This article explains how Sidekiq queue configuration works in Mastodon and provides … Read more
If your Mastodon instance suddenly stops serving images, videos, or new posts, a full disk caused by the media cache is often the culprit. The media cache stores all images, videos, and previews that users on your instance view from other instances. Over weeks or months, this cache can grow to tens of gigabytes, filling … Read more
Mastodon’s default search only finds exact usernames and hashtags. This limitation frustrates power users and community managers who need to locate posts by keywords or phrases across the federated timeline. The cause is that Mastodon stores posts in a PostgreSQL database without a full-text index by default. This article explains how to install and configure … Read more
Running a Mastodon instance with Docker Compose in a production environment requires more than just copying the default configuration files. Many administrators find their instance becomes slow, unresponsive, or suffers from database connection failures after a few days of live use. These problems usually stem from missing performance tuning, inadequate resource allocation, or incorrect volume … Read more