Self-Hosted CDN
A self-hosted CDN (Content Delivery Network) is a custom-built or open-source solution that developers deploy and manage on their own infrastructure or cloud servers to distribute content globally. It replicates and caches static assets like images, CSS, and JavaScript files across multiple geographic locations, reducing latency and improving load times for users. Unlike commercial CDNs, it offers full control over configuration, security, and costs, but requires more technical expertise to set up and maintain.
Developers should use a self-hosted CDN when they need complete control over their content delivery, such as for compliance with data sovereignty laws, custom caching rules, or to avoid vendor lock-in and reduce long-term costs. It's ideal for organizations with high traffic volumes, specific performance requirements, or those operating in regions where commercial CDNs have limited coverage. However, it requires significant upfront investment in infrastructure and ongoing maintenance compared to managed services.