Creative Agency Stack
You handle the creative. We handle the infrastructure.
You handle the creative. We handle the infrastructure.
Creative agencies run on files — raw footage, final exports, client assets, brand libraries, project archives. Most agencies manage this chaos with a mix of Dropbox, Google Drive, external hard drives, and hope. There is a more professional way to run this.
Is this for you?
→ Your team spends meaningful time managing files, chasing assets, and recovering from storage failures → You've lost work to a hard drive failure, an accidentally deleted Dropbox folder, or a sync conflict → Your clients ask about data handling and you're not entirely sure where their assets actually live → Your storage costs are growing faster than your revenue as projects accumulate
What this means in practice
every project, every client, organized and searchable
the 3-2-1 rule implemented and running, not something you mean to set up
give clients a professional portal to review and download their deliverables
fixed monthly pricing that scales with your actual usage, not per-seat SaaS
What PILOT deploys for you
Media Storage & Asset Management
Nextcloud as your central asset library — all projects, all clients, all formats. Sync to desktop for local editing workflow. Access from anywhere. Version history so nothing is ever truly deleted. Storage that scales as your archive grows.
Automated Backup — 3-2-1
Three copies, two media types, one offsite. Your work is automatically backed up to separate storage, tested regularly, and recoverable quickly. Not something you manage — something that runs. When a drive fails (not if), you restore and continue.
Client Delivery Portal
A professional space where clients review and download their deliverables. No more sending WeTransfer links that expire. No more Dropbox folders shared with people who've left the client's company. A clean, branded portal that reflects the quality of your work.
Team Collaboration
Shared project spaces, task management, and communication for your creative team. Not another tool to add to the stack — integrated with the storage layer so files, tasks, and conversations live in the same place.
Business Mail
Professional email that matches the quality of your work. Not a Gmail address with your domain bolted on — a proper mail setup with Proofpoint security and a modern interface.
Infrastructure Your IT Doesn't Have to Think About
We monitor, update, and maintain everything. When something needs attention, TOWER catches it and we handle it. Your team focuses on creative work.
Who this is for
→ Design and branding agencies managing large asset libraries across multiple clients
→ Video production companies with terabytes of footage that needs to be stored, backed up, and accessible
→ Marketing agencies where client work is sensitive and storage needs to be professional
→ Any creative business where the tech backoffice is a distraction from the actual work
The stack
- Storage — Nextcloud + S3-compatible backend for large archives
- Backup — automated 3-2-1 backup pipeline
- Client portal — Nextcloud Share or dedicated portal instance
- Collaboration — Nextcloud projects + task management
- Mail — iRedMail + Proofpoint + CrossBox
- Identity — Authentik SSO
- Monitoring — TOWER on all services
// NERD TALK
Not your thing? Skip to Related missions.
- Storage architecture — Nextcloud on local VM with hot storage for active projects. S3-compatible backend (large object storage) for archives and backups. TrueNAS for local NAS if high-throughput editing workflows required.
- Backup — Restic or Borg for incremental encrypted backups. 3-2-1: primary storage + local backup + offsite S3. Backup verification runs automatically, restoration tested quarterly.
- Video workflows — for high-throughput video editing (4K+), we assess whether local NAS colocation (hangar.pm) or high-IOPS VM storage better fits the workflow.
- Client portal — Nextcloud Share with custom branding. Password-protected shares with expiry. Download-only access for clients. Full audit log of who accessed what.
- Storage sizing — we assess current archive size, growth rate, and retention requirements. Typical creative agency: 10–50TB active + archive. Storage scales independently of compute.
Want to build this yourself?
Read the Pilot Book: Creative Agency Stack — setting up Nextcloud for media storage, automated backups, and client portals.
Related missions
- Business Stack — full business infrastructure including mail and identity
- Teamwork Stack — team communication and project management
- AI/ML Stack — private AI for creative workflows
Related services
- Private Cloud — storage infrastructure details
- Managed Mail — professional mail setup
- TOWER Monitoring — infrastructure monitoring
Your creative work deserves infrastructure that takes it seriously. Let's talk.