Convert Phone into Home Lab/Server

January 11, 2026

📱 Turn Your Old Phone into a 24/7 Home Server

Here is the quick guide to converting your Android device into a Linux server using Termux.

1️⃣ Prepare the Phone

Open Termux and run these commands one by one:

# Update everything
pkg update && pkg upgrade -y

# Install SSH
pkg install openssh

# Set a password (you need this to log in!)
passwd

# Find your local IP (look for 192.168.x.x)
ifconfig

# Start the SSH Daemon (CRITICAL STEP)
sshd

2️⃣ Connect from Laptop

Open your terminal (PowerShell or Terminal) and type:

# Replace with your phone's IP
ssh -p 8022 192.168.1.XX

Enter the password you set in Step 1.

3️⃣ Transfer Your Code

You can either git clone your repo or upload a zip file. To upload a zip from your laptop:

# Run this on your laptop, NOT inside the SSH session
scp -P 8022 my-app.zip 192.168.1.XX:~

Back on the phone:

pkg install unzip
unzip my-app.zip
cd my-app

4️⃣ Install Node.js & Run App

# Install Node.js (LTS version is best)
pkg install nodejs-lts

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Install PM2 (Process Manager)
npm install -g pm2

# Run your app (Adjust for your specific script, e.g., "start" or "dev")
pm2 start npm --name "my-app" -- start

5️⃣ Make it Public (Cloudflare Tunnel)

Expose your localhost to the world for free.

pkg install cloudflared

# This gives you a random public URL
cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:3000

💡 Pro Tips

🌍 SSH from Anywhere (Tailscale) If you aren't on the same WiFi as your phone (e.g., you are at a cafe), the local IP won't work.

  1. Install the Tailscale App on both your Android phone and your Laptop.
  2. Log in to both with the same account to create a secure mesh tunnel.
  3. Use the Tailscale IP (usually starts with 100.x.x.x) instead of the WiFi IP. Now you can SSH into your phone from anywhere in the world!

🚫 Prevent the App from Sleeping Android kills background apps to save battery. To stop this:

  1. Pull down your notification bar.
  2. Tap "Acquire Wakelock" on the Termux notification.
  3. Or run this command: termux-wake-lock

🪟 Multitasking (Tmux) To keep multiple terminal windows open inside one session:

pkg install tmux
tmux

⚠️ Next.js 15+ Issues? If your app crashes on native Termux (common with newer Next.js versions), install Ubuntu inside Termux:

pkg install proot-distro
proot-distro install ubuntu
proot-distro login ubuntu
# Now you are in a real Ubuntu environment! Install Node/PM2 here.