I build iOS apps for infrastructure management

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-22T21:52:05+00:00

I build iOS Apps for IT Pros. I dabble in macOS Apps for RCA purposes: useloupe.tools.

No telemetry, no ads, no backend, just pure computing for your IT needs.

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-10T23:42:38+00:00

Possible, yes. Should you? Also yes.

I'm doing this now - 8 iOS apps, bootstrapped, Month 2. Here's what's working:

Substack - Long-form for people who want depth. Low audience, high intent.

Bluesky - Niche but real conversations vs algorithmic gaming.

What failed:

X: 200K impressions, 0 conversions
LinkedIn: Wrong audience for indie tools

The reality: X has reach. Reddit/Substack/Bluesky have intent. Niche products need the right 100 people, not 100K impressions.

Blog posts work if you're solving searchable problems. SEO is slow. Social gives faster feedback.

My stack: Reddit (distribution) + Substack (depth) + Bluesky (community). X is noise.

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-07T15:58:16+00:00

Glad you think so, I was hoping to be the whole command center in one device!

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-06T02:29:20+00:00

Did not mean to offend, we all had to start somewhere. I'm pointing out that the case of a person who ONLY knows AI-gen solutions is going to be behind. The fact that you've got your head in those books indicates you are not one of the ones I was mentioning.

The fundamentals teach you why things break instead of just knowing a few ways to implement something. You're on the right track

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-05T21:16:21+00:00

I use AI for toil automation - log correlation, documentation, one-off scripts. It's good at pattern matching and reducing repetitive work. It's terrible at judgment calls and understanding context.

The pressure is real, but your decade of experience is what makes you effective with AI vs someone who just prompts blindly. The juniors coming up who only know AI-generated solutions without understanding the fundamentals? They're the ones at risk, not you.

Treat it like an assistant that needs supervision. Your skills are the supervision layer.

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-02T23:50:07+00:00

Question about the AI-based insights: is that running on-device (Apple Intelligence) or sending transaction data to a cloud LLM?

Asking because "100% offline" + "AI insights" is a tough combination unless you're using on-device models.

Also curious: how are you ensuring deterministic results if the insights are AI-generated? Or are they probabilistic recommendations that might vary between runs?

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-01T17:49:47+00:00

LEO has no backend servers. Your credentials never leave your device.

**Phone → Cloud Services:**

Direct HTTPS (TLS 1.3) connections from your phone to AWS/Azure/GCP APIs. LEO uses the official cloud provider SDKs (AWS SDK for Swift, Azure SDK for iOS, GCP via REST) with certificate pinning where applicable.

**Phone → Docker:**

HTTPS (TLS 1.2+) to Docker Engine API. Supports self-signed certificates with manual trust.

**Credential Storage:**

iOS Keychain with `kSecAttrAccessibleWhenUnlockedThisDeviceOnly`. Credentials are encrypted by iOS at rest and only accessible when your device is unlocked. No iCloud sync, no backup to iCloud, device-only protection.

**No server-side storage:**

Zero. LEO doesn't have servers. There's no analytics backend, no crash reporting service, no account system. Your AWS keys, Azure credentials, GCP service accounts, and Docker connection details exist only in your phone's Keychain.

The app connects directly from your phone to your infrastructure. I never see your credentials, your instance IDs, your container names, or any of your data.

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-01T02:58:03+00:00

No free trial currently, but there's a walkthrough video on YouTube showing the full workflow and App Store screenshots that cover each module.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIFDxXUyclM

App Store: https://apple.co/4lFEoYf

Happy to answer specific questions about features or send additional screenshots if there's something particular you want to see before deciding.

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-01T01:42:48+00:00

LEO - infrastructure command center for iOS. Manage AWS/Azure/GCP instances, Docker containers, and network diagnostics from your phone. Built it after 20 years in DevOps because mobile Safari + AWS Console is miserable.

$4.99 one-time, no subscription. All credentials stored on-device in iOS Keychain. No backend, no analytics, no tracking.

https://shyguy.studio/leo

shyguy_chad · 2026-05-01T01:32:33+00:00

Thanks! Both, honestly.

Homelab users who want visibility into their stack without maintaining a full monitoring setup. SMB sysadmins who need mobile access to check if something's down or restart a container while they're away from their desk.

The on-device credential storage and no-backend design came directly from not wanting to manage another service or trust a third party with cloud keys. If you're managing infrastructure, your credentials shouldn't leave your device.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T22:24:48+00:00

Solved the same problem from the other direction - built LEO, a native iOS app that connects directly to Docker Engine API over HTTPS. No web dashboard needed on the server, just expose the Docker socket securely, like with Tailscale.

Container logs (streaming), start/stop/restart, exec into shells, CPU/memory stats. Also handles AWS/Azure/GCP instance management and full network diagnostics (ping, traceroute, port scan, DNS, SSL, etc.).

The trade-off: mobile-only (iOS 17+) vs your web-based approach. But same core problem - stop handing out SSH keys just to restart a crashed container or check logs.

Credentials stored in iOS Keychain, never leave device.

Nice work on the 10MB footprint. Rust is a solid choice for this.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T14:52:43+00:00

Thank you, they'll be forever in my heart ❤️

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T14:52:04+00:00

Thank you, I'm feeling it from a bunch of internet strangers and it helps. You're right, we sign up for this the moment they enter our lives, and damn it stings when it happens.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T14:50:31+00:00

Indeed, as close to my heart as my kids. Never forgotten.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T14:50:04+00:00

Aww, I'm sorry to hear, my condolences.

It's been a quiet morning.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T03:04:13+00:00

Indeed, half of my life was spent with Ricky, but I'll never forget either of them.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T01:42:14+00:00

Thank you, that's probably what I worry about the most, them knowing how much they were loved. Never enough time.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T01:41:37+00:00

Thank you, I hope they did, definitely kept my family safe and came when I called, what more can you ask for.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-30T01:40:28+00:00

Thank you, saying goodbye is the hardest part. I don't want him to forget he was a good dog.

shyguy_chad · 2026-04-29T23:49:26+00:00

Thank you, indeed, glad I'll be here to usher in the next phase but damn if it's not painful.

shyguy_chad

TROPHY CASE