Servus is a free, open-source content management system and blogging engine for people who want to publish their own site and run their own Nostr infrastructure from one program. It is written in Rust and ships as a single self-contained executable, so you do not have to assemble a stack of separate services before you start writing.
Besides generating and serving your blog, Servus acts as a personal Nostr relay for your posts, and it also includes a Blossom file server and a NIP-05 identity server. It suits bloggers, hobbyists and developers who want their content to live on infrastructure they control. The project is at version 0.1.12, so treat it as an early-stage tool. The project describes Windows builds as likely, so check the Releases page for a Windows file before you plan a setup around it.
Where Servus Fits Between Jekyll and WordPress
Jekyll builds static websites from files on your computer, which makes the output fast and easy to host but leaves publishing workflows to you. WordPress runs dynamically with a database and an admin panel, which gives writers a familiar interface but adds more moving parts to maintain.
Servus is positioned between the two. Like Jekyll, it keeps the blog simple and file-driven, and it fits the spirit of a lightweight generator. Like a traditional CMS, it handles publishing and serving in one program, so you do not need a separate tool to host your posts.
That middle position matters most if you want a site that is easy to reason about but still behaves like a complete publishing system. You get a single program to back up and move, rather than a chain of components that each need updates.
Who Is Servus For?
Servus is most useful for three kinds of people. The first is a writer who wants a personal domain for essays or notes and also wants those posts available on Nostr. A personal relay and NIP-05 identifier let that writer publish once and be findable under a name tied to their own site.
The second is a developer or home-lab enthusiast who already runs a small server and wants fewer services to manage. Because Servus bundles the blog, relay, file server and identity server, it gives that person one process to monitor and one configuration to keep track of.
The third is a community member who wants to experiment with decentralized publishing. If you are new to Nostr, it helps to first use a client to read and post, then move to self-hosting once you understand how relays work. If you need a large ecosystem of themes and plugins, a mature platform like WordPress covers that ground better.
How Relays, Blossom Servers and NIP-05 Work Together
Nostr is built on signed events. Each post, reply or reaction is a message signed with a private key, and anyone holding the matching public key can verify that it came from its author. A relay is a server that receives these events and passes them along to clients that ask for them.
A Blossom server is a complementary piece for media. Instead of stuffing large files into events, a client uploads a file to a Blossom server, which stores it under a content hash, and the event then points to that file. Hosting both on your own machine keeps the pieces of a post under one roof.
NIP-05 is the naming layer. It publishes a small file on your domain that maps a name to your public key, so a client can check that a readable address really belongs to that key. Together these three parts let a single self-hosted server act as a complete Nostr presence.
Key features
Single self-contained executable
Personal Nostr relay
Personal Blossom server
NIP-05 identity server
Supported coins
The project documentation names Nostr as the network Servus is built around. Servus works with Nostr clients that connect to a relay, so it is a publishing and hosting tool rather than a wallet or a trading program.
How to install Servus on Windows
- 1
Find the official release
Open the official GitHub repository at github.com/ibz/servus and go to the Releases section. Download the Windows build from there, and use only the official repository for the download. If no Windows file is listed, the repository includes build instructions for compiling the program from source, which requires the Rust toolchain.
- 2
Verify the file
If the release publishes a SHA-256 checksum or a signature, compare it with the file you downloaded before running anything. You can calculate the hash with the built-in Windows tool certutil. A mismatch means the file should not be run, and you should download it again from the official source.
- 3
Place the executable in a folder
Move the executable into a dedicated folder, such as one under your user profile, so that its data and any configuration stay together. Keeping the program in its own folder also makes backups and future upgrades easier to manage.
-
Start the server from a terminal
Open PowerShell or Command Prompt in that folder and run the executable. Use the -p option to choose a port other than 443, whether or not you enable SSL mode. Once the server is running, leave the window open or set it up to run as a service.
System requirements
- Binding to port 443 requires elevated privileges, which means sudo on Linux.
- Other ports can be selected with the -p option, with or without SSL mode.
How to use Servus
Once Servus is installed, treat your first session as a test run before you publish anything publicly. The steps below take you from a local start to a working relay that a Nostr client can reach.
- Start Servus from a terminal. If port 443 is taken or you do not have elevated rights, pass a different port with the -p option.
- Open the local address in your browser and confirm that the site responds.
- Create your first blog post following the project documentation, then reload the page to confirm it displays correctly.
- Set up a NIP-05 entry for your public key so that your readable address resolves to your domain.
- Add your relay address to a Nostr client such as Amethyst or Gossip, then check that your test post appears.
- Keep the server running on a machine that stays online, and restart it after you update to a new version.
After the test run, decide whether you need public access. Exposing a relay and file server to the internet means you are responsible for uptime and for backing up your content.
Pros & cons
- Free and open source, with the code available on GitHub
- One executable covers blogging, relay, file hosting and NIP-05 identity
- Written in Rust, a language known for memory safety
- Lets you publish to Nostr from infrastructure you control
- Fewer separate services to maintain than assembling a blog, relay and file server yourself
- Version 0.1.x signals an early-stage project that may change between releases
- Windows support is described as likely rather than confirmed, so check the Releases page
- Binding to port 443 requires elevated privileges
- Running a relay and file server means you handle uptime and backups yourself
Is Servus safe?
Download Servus only from the official GitHub repository at github.com/ibz/servus, not from mirror sites, file aggregators or search-ad pages. Where a release publishes a SHA-256 checksum or signature, compare it with the downloaded file before you run it. Servus is not a wallet, but your Nostr private key is effectively your identity on the network. Never paste it into a third-party website, including sites that offer to convert or verify keys. Because the program opens network ports, run it on a machine you control and open ports to the internet only when you intend to host publicly. The project is at an early 0.1.x version, so check the latest version on the official website before installing.
- Official source only. Download from github.com/ibz/servus. Ignore ads and lookalike domains.
- Check the SHA-256. Compare the installer hash with the value the developer publishes before running it.
- Never share your seed phrase. No developer, support agent or website — including CryptApps — will ever ask for it.
Alternatives
Servus is a server, while most of the Nostr programs in this catalog are clients. Amethyst and Gossip are apps you use to read and post notes, and NAK and Nostr Commander RS are command-line tools for working with events. Servus sits on the other side of the connection: it hosts your posts, files and identity so that those clients have something to talk to.
If you want a client to read your own blog, you would pair Servus with one of these apps. Compared with a traditional CMS such as WordPress, Servus trades a large plugin ecosystem for a lightweight single executable that also works as Nostr infrastructure.
Specifications
- Price
- Free
- Type
- Open source
- License
- —
- Latest version
- v0.1.12
- Last update
- 5 Oct 2026
- Windows support
- Likely (builds for Windows; check releases)
- Source code
- github.com/ibz/servus
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Servus is free and open source, and its code is hosted on GitHub. The project describes Windows builds as likely rather than confirmed, so check the GitHub Releases page for a Windows file before you plan an installation.
Servus is a blogging and content management engine that also runs as a personal Nostr relay, a Blossom file server and a NIP-05 identity server. People use it to publish a blog from their own domain while making the same posts available on the Nostr network.
It can be, provided you get the executable from the official GitHub repository and verify its checksum or signature when one is published. Because the code is open source, you can review it. Never share your Nostr private key with third-party websites.
Ports below 1024 are privileged on Linux, and port 443 is one of them, so binding to it requires sudo. You can avoid this by passing a different port with the -p option, in SSL mode or not.
The project lists Linux and Docker as platforms, and it also includes a web-based component. Windows builds are described as likely, so check the Releases page to confirm a Windows file is available for the version you want.
Yes, as long as the client can connect to your relay. Nostr clients connect to a relay by its address, so you add your Servus relay URL in the client settings. After that, the client can fetch events you publish through your server.
Only for some users. Servus covers blogging and adds Nostr relay, file hosting and identity features, but it does not offer WordPress's large library of themes and plugins. Choose it if Nostr integration matters to you.
Verdict
Servus suits developers, Nostr enthusiasts and bloggers who want a lightweight, self-hosted site that also works as their own relay, file server and NIP-05 identity. It is free and open source, but it is an early 0.1.x project, and Windows support should be confirmed on the Releases page before you commit. If you mainly want a polished app for reading Nostr, look at the alternatives below. If you want a mature, plugin-rich blogging platform, WordPress is the safer choice. Try Servus on a test machine first.