Iggy, get a server.

I don't run Claude Code on my laptop any more. It runs on a small server in Germany that never switches off, and I talk to it from my phone, my Mac or my other laptop. You should do the same. It costs about the same as a Netflix subscription and it changes how you work with it.

Why a server and not your laptop

It keeps going when you close the lid. Start a job, shut the laptop, go and do something else. It's still working when you come back.
You can check in from your phone. Same session, same terminal, from anywhere. Read what it's done, give it the next instruction, put the phone away.
Long jobs run overnight. Give it a big refactor or a test suite to fix before bed and read the result with your coffee.
Your laptop stays yours. Claude runs commands. If it does something daft, it does it on a box you can wipe and rebuild, not on the machine with your photos and your client files.
Every device sees the same setup. One place for your repos, your tools and your Claude settings. No "it's on the other laptop".

What to buy

Netcup is a German host. Their servers are cheap for what you get and it's what I use. For Claude Code on its own, this is what I'd get:

VPS 1000 G12.5 get this one4 cores, 8 GB RAM, 128 GB disk. Plenty for Claude plus git, Node, PHP and a database for local work.

€14.50 a month + VAT, on a 12-month term

VPS 2000 G12.58 cores, 16 GB RAM, 256 GB disk. Worth it if you'll run browser tests or several Claude sessions at once.

€26.92 a month + VAT, on a 12-month term

VPS 500 G12.52 cores, 4 GB RAM. 4 GB is the minimum Claude Code supports. It works but you'll feel it.

€8.26 a month + VAT, on a 12-month term

Prices from netcup.com/en/server/vps in October 2026. Month-to-month costs about 15% more, 24 months about 15% less. VAT is worked out at checkout from your country. Mine is a bigger box because it runs a lot more than Claude.

What else you need

A Claude plan with Claude Code in it. The free plan doesn't include it. Pro is $20 a month ($17 if you pay yearly) and is the place to start. If you hit the limits every day, Max starts at $100. Prices on claude.com/pricing.

Netcup VPS 1000 (12 months)	€14.50 + VAT
Claude Pro	$20
Roughly, a month	£30-ish

Setting it up

You'll want an SSH key on your laptop first. If you've ever pushed to GitHub over SSH, you already have one.

Order the server. Pick Debian 13 as the operating system and paste in your public SSH key when it asks. Netcup emails you the server's IP address.

Log in and make yourself a user. Don't do your day-to-day work as root.

ssh [email protected]
adduser iggy
usermod -aG sudo iggy
rsync -a ~/.ssh /home/iggy/ && chown -R iggy:iggy /home/iggy/.ssh

Put it on Tailscale. Tailscale is a free private network between your own devices. Once the server's on it, you reach it from your phone and laptops by name, and nobody else can reach it at all.
```
curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh
tailscale up --ssh
```
Open the link it prints and log in. Install the Tailscale app on your phone and laptop with the same account. Then check ssh iggy@SERVERNAME works from your laptop over Tailscale before the next bit.
Close it to the internet. Once Tailscale SSH works, block everything else coming in from outside.
```
apt install -y ufw
ufw default deny incoming
ufw allow in on tailscale0
ufw enable
```
Install your tools and Claude Code. Log in as your own user from here on.
```
sudo apt install -y git tmux curl
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
```
Open a new shell, run claude and log in with your Claude account. On a server it gives you a link to open on your laptop and a code to paste back.
Run it inside tmux. This is what makes it survive you disconnecting.
```
tmux new -s work
claude
```
Press Ctrl-b then d to leave it running. Come back any time, from any device, with:
```
tmux attach -t work
```
Get on it from your phone. Install Tailscale and an SSH app (Termius or Blink on iPhone, Termux on Android). SSH to the server by its Tailscale name and tmux attach -t work. That's it.

The catches

You're the sysadmin now. Turn on automatic security updates with sudo apt install unattended-upgrades and leave it.
Be careful what you put on it. It's a box where an AI runs commands. Don't park production keys there because it's handy.
12 months is a commitment. If you're not sure, go month to month first and switch when you're hooked.
Netcup is no-frills. The control panel is basic and support is email. It's a server, not a hand-holding service.