Learn the first steps of managing your Kimsufi, So You Start, or Rise dedicated server. A dedicated server is a physical server located in one of our data centers for which you are fully responsible for the administration.
Requirements
- access to the OVHcloud Control Panel
- a Kimsufi, So You Start, or Rise dedicated server in your OVHcloud account
- administrative access (sudo) via SSH or remote desktop (Windows) to your server
Instructions
Topics
- Installing or reinstalling an operating system
- Logging on to your server
- Restarting your dedicated server
- Securing your dedicated server
- OVHcloud Monitoring
- Network configuration
- Rescue mode
- Access using IPMI
Installing or reinstalling an operating system
When your dedicated server is first set up during the order process, you can select which operating system will be installed. You can easily reinstall your server and choose a different OS image.
From the OVHcloud Control Panel:
- Click
Bare Metal Cloudfrom the top navigation bar. - Select
your serverfrom the left-side menu under Dedicated Servers. - In the General Information panel, click the more options
...button next to Operating system (OS) and selectInstall.
In the pop-up window, select one of the installation options:
-
Install from an OVHcloud template: You can select the OS and customize the server configuration.
NOTE: You can install from a custom image by selecting Custom on the following screen. Please see our BYOI/BYOLinux Comparison guide for more information.
-
Install one of your templates: To apply a customized template, you need to have saved at least one server configuration. To do this, check the option
Save this installationin Step 4 of the installation process.
You can manage all your licenses in the Bare Metal Cloud section by clicking Licenses. In this section, you can also order licenses or add existing ones via the Actions button.
Click Next to continue.
After choosing Install from an OVHcloud template you can select the operating system from the drop-down menus.
If you need to modify the partitioning scheme of your operating system, check the Customise the partition configuration box before clicking Next.
After you have finished your adjustments, click Next to arrive at the summary page.
On the summary page, you will find additional questions specific to the chosen operating system.
For example, if you are installing a GNU/Linux-based operating system, you can add your SSH key in the last step of the installation process.
Click Confirm to trigger the operating system installation on your dedicated server.
Logging on to your server
Linux
Once the installation is completed, you will receive an email containing instructions for administrative access. You can connect to your server through a command terminal or with a third-party client by using SSH which is a secure communication protocol.
Use the following examples to log on to your server, replacing the credentials with your actual information (IP address and server reference name are interchangeable).
Example:
You can learn more about SSH in this guide.
Windows
Once the installation is completed, you will receive an email containing your password for administrative (sudo) access. You will need to use these credentials to connect to the server via RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol). After logging in, Windows will guide you through an initial setup.
Please also refer to our guide on configuring a new Windows server installation.
Restarting your dedicated server
A reboot might become necessary to apply updated configurations or to fix an issue. Whenever feasible, perform a "soft reboot" via the command line:
However, you can carry out a "hard reboot" at any time in your OVHcloud Control Panel. From the General information tab, locate the Service status panel, and click on the more options ... button next to Status. Then click Restart and Confirm the action in the pop-up window.
Securing your dedicated server
As the administrator of your dedicated server, you are responsible for your data and its security. You can learn more about securing your server in this guide.
If your server runs Windows, use this guide instead.
OVHcloud Monitoring
You can set the monitoring status for a dedicated server from the General information tab in your OVHcloud Control Panel (in the Service status panel).
The default setting is "Enabled with proactive intervention," which is the most hands-off, automated monitoring option you can choose. If you would like to change this setting, select the Disable interventions button.
In the pop-up window, you have three options for the monitoring behavior:
- Disabled: This option stops alert messages and interventions by OVHcloud. Choose this if you are executing pertinent administrative actions on the server which prevent an ICMP response.
- Enabled with proactive intervention: If the server stops responding, an alert email is sent to you and the server will be checked by a technician.
- Enabled without proactive intervention: You will receive an alert message by email in case the server stops responding. To initiate an intervention, you will need to create a support request.
You can find more information about OVHcloud Monitoring in this guide.
Click on Confirm to update your monitoring configuration.
Network configuration
Network bridging
Network bridging is the action taken by network equipment to create an aggregate network from either two or more communication networks, or two or more network segments. Bridging is distinct from routing, which allows the networks to communicate independently while remaining separate.
The Network Bridge configuration is most commonly used in the context of virtualization, to allow each Virtual Machine to have its own public IP address.
For more information on network bridging, please refer to our guide on Network Bridging.
IP aliasing
IP aliasing is the process of associating two or more IP addresses to the same network interface. This allows your server to establish multiple connections to a network, each serving a different purpose.
For detailed instructions on how to configure IP aliasing, please refer to this guide.
IPv6 configuration
OVHcloud dedicated servers are delivered with a /64 IPv6 block. To use the addresses in this block, you will need to make some network configuration changes. Please refer to our guide on IPv6 Configuration.
Rescue mode
For any kind of issue, the first general troubleshooting step to take is rebooting your server into rescue mode from your OVHcloud Control Panel. It is important to identify server issues in this mode to exclude software-related problems before contacting our support teams.
Please refer to our rescue mode guide.
Access using IPMI
OVHcloud deploys all dedicated servers with an IPMI (Intelligent Platform Management Interface) console which runs in your browser or from a Java applet, and enables you to connect directly to your server even if it has no network connection. This makes it a useful tool for troubleshooting issues that may have taken your server offline.
For more information, please refer to our guide on using the IPMI with dedicated servers.
Go further
For more information and tutorials, please see our other Dedicated Server support guides or explore the guides for other OVHcloud products and services.
If you need training or technical assistance to implement our solutions, contact your sales representative or click on this link to get a quote and ask our Professional Services experts for a custom analysis of your project.