Haven

Haven is a self‑hosted blogging platform built with Ruby on Rails that lets users create and share posts only with invited friends or family. It provides a web interface for managing accounts, writing markdown‑formatted entries with live preview, and embedding images, video, and audio. Posts can be downscaled for low‑bandwidth use, and the system includes a private RSS feed for each blog as well as an integrated RSS reader to follow other private blogs.

The software is open source under the MIT license and is designed for privacy‑first sharing, without ads, trackers, or public sign‑up. Users control access manually, preventing spam and unauthorized viewers. Custom CSS and fonts can be added, and media handling is built‑in.

Haven can be deployed via Docker, AWS, PikaPods, KubeSail, or Heroku, and it offers a fully managed hosting option. The application is stable, free to run, and intended for personal or small‑group use rather than commercial sites.