# Self-Hosted Photo Library — Project Meeting Notes

**Date:** July 30, 2026  
**Time:** 10:00–10:45 AM ET  
**Location:** Video call  
**Facilitator:** Maya Chen  
**Note taker:** Daniel Ortiz

## Attendees

- Maya Chen — Product Owner
- Daniel Ortiz — Infrastructure
- Priya Shah — Backend Engineering
- Lucas Martin — Frontend Engineering
- Erin Walsh — Security and Privacy
- Jordan Kim — Design

## Agenda

1. Confirm requirements and project scope
2. Select the photo library platform
3. Review storage, backup, and security needs
4. Agree on rollout phases and ownership

## Discussion Notes

- The initial deployment will support approximately 12 household users and an existing library of roughly 85,000 photos and videos.
- Required features include automatic mobile uploads, shared albums, face and object search, duplicate detection, and preservation of original metadata.
- The team compared Immich and PhotoPrism. Immich offers the preferred mobile experience and better fits the household-sharing use case, although its upgrade process requires closer operational attention.
- The application will run on the existing home server using Docker Compose. Original media will remain on the NAS rather than inside container-managed storage.
- Remote access will be provided through the existing VPN. The team does not want the service exposed directly to the public internet.
- Backups must cover originals, the application database, configuration files, and generated metadata. Thumbnails can be regenerated and do not require off-site backup.
- The first import will be staged in batches so metadata and duplicate handling can be validated before the entire library is indexed.
- Users will receive separate accounts. Shared credentials will not be permitted.

## Decisions

- Use Immich for the initial deployment.
- Deploy the application with Docker Compose on the existing home server.
- Store original photos and videos on the NAS using a dedicated media share.
- Restrict remote access to the household VPN; no public port forwarding.
- Use PostgreSQL backups nightly and back up original media daily.
- Keep one encrypted off-site copy of originals, database dumps, and configuration.
- Run a two-user pilot before inviting the remaining household members.
- Review release notes and create a manual snapshot before every application upgrade.

## Action Items

- [ ] Daniel: Confirm available NAS capacity and expected three-year storage growth by August 3.
- [ ] Daniel: Draft the Docker Compose configuration and persistent-volume layout by August 5.
- [ ] Priya: Test a sample import of 2,000 mixed photos and videos, including RAW and Live Photo formats, by August 7.
- [ ] Priya: Document database backup and restore procedures by August 10.
- [ ] Erin: Review VPN access, account permissions, and secrets handling before the pilot.
- [ ] Lucas: Validate mobile upload behavior on iOS and Android during the pilot.
- [ ] Jordan: Prepare a one-page onboarding guide covering login, uploads, albums, and sharing.
- [ ] Maya: Select the two pilot users and schedule a feedback session for the week of August 17.
- [ ] Daniel and Priya: Perform and document a full restore test before general rollout.

## Open Questions

- Should deleted items be retained for 30, 60, or 90 days?
- Is hardware transcoding available and reliable on the current server?
- Should users be allowed to create external share links, or should sharing remain internal?
- How often should the encrypted off-site backup be tested?

## Next Meeting

**Date:** August 12, 2026  
**Focus:** Review pilot readiness, sample-import results, and backup restore testing.