How to Self-Host Jitsi Meet on Your Server (Tutorial)

Introduction

Want secure, high-quality video calls without Big Tech in the middle? Jitsi Meet is a powerful, open-source video conferencing solution you can fully self-host. It’s ideal for teams, communities, or individuals who care about privacy and control.

Who is this for?
Privacy-focused users
Educators, teams, or remote workers
Anyone tired of Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet

What you’ll get:
A self-hosted Jitsi Meet instance
HTTPS-secured access
Optional authentication and performance tuning

Why Choose Jitsi Meet?

Feature	Jitsi Meet (Self-Hosted)
Video Conferencing	Yes (1-on-1 and group)
Privacy	Full control, no 3rd party tracking
Encryption	Encrypted in transit
Screen Sharing	Yes
Recordings	Yes (with additional setup)
Authentication	Optional (JWT, LDAP, secure rooms)

Jitsi Meet is built for privacy and performance. Unlike Zoom or Google Meet, it doesn’t require an account and can be fully hosted on your own infrastructure.

Requirements

Ubuntu 20.04/22.04 VPS or local server (2+ vCPU, 4+ GB RAM recommended)
Root SSH access
A domain (e.g. meet.example.com)
Ports 80, 443 (HTTPS), and optionally 10000/UDP open

Installation Options

You can install Jitsi Meet via:

Official Debian packages (recommended)
Docker (community-maintained, more complex)

This guide uses the Debian package method on Ubuntu.

Step-by-Step Setup (Debian Packages)

1. Configure System Hostname

sudo hostnamectl set-hostname meet
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

2. Add Jitsi Repository

sudo apt install gnupg2 curl -y
curl https://download.jitsi.org/jitsi-key.gpg.key | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/jitsi-keyring.gpg

echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/jitsi-keyring.gpg] https://download.jitsi.org stable/" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/jitsi-stable.list

3. Install Jitsi Meet

sudo apt update
sudo apt install jitsi-meet -y

During installation, you’ll be prompted:

Enter your domain (e.g. meet.example.com)
Choose to generate a self-signed or Let’s Encrypt certificate

4. (Optional) Enable Let’s Encrypt

If you skipped Let’s Encrypt during install:

sudo /usr/share/jitsi-meet/scripts/install-letsencrypt-cert.sh

Follow prompts to secure your site with HTTPS.

Optional Configurations

Secure Room Access

Prevent uninvited guests:

sudo nano /etc/prosody/conf.avail/meet.example.com.cfg.lua

Change authentication method:

authentication = "internal_plain"

Then run:

sudo prosodyctl register YOURUSER meet.example.com YOURPASSWORD

Firewall Configuration

sudo ufw allow 22/tcp
sudo ufw allow 80,443/tcp
sudo ufw allow 10000/udp
sudo ufw enable

Access and Use

Open https://meet.example.com in your browser
Start a meeting (no sign-in required unless you enable auth)
Mobile: Use the Jitsi Meet mobile app and connect to your server under “Advanced Settings”

FAQs

Q: Does Jitsi support recording?
A: Yes, but it requires additional setup using Jibri or Dropbox integration.

Q: Is it scalable?
A: For a few dozen users, a single server suffices. For large meetings, consider setting up Jitsi VideoBridges.

Q: How is it different from Zoom or Google Meet?
A: Jitsi is 100% open-source, self-hostable, and doesn’t collect user data.

Final Thoughts

Self-hosting Jitsi Meet gives you full control over your video calls—without sacrificing usability. It’s reliable, scalable, and secure.

Your meetings. Your server. Your rules.

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