Linux VPS
SSH, packages, services and everyday Linux administration.
265 guides · page 3 of 14
Configure a static IP and add extra IPs on a Linux VPS (Netplan and nmcli)
Set a static IPv4 address, gateway and DNS, and add additional IPs on Ubuntu with Netplan or on AlmaLinux and Rocky with NetworkManager (nmcli).
Configure Apache virtual hosts on Ubuntu and AlmaLinux
Install Apache, host several websites on one server with name-based virtual hosts, enable PHP-FPM and .htaccess, switch to the event MPM and add free HTTPS with Certbot.
Configure Proxmox high availability (HA) for VMs
Make Proxmox VMs restart automatically on another node when a host fails: cluster and shared storage requirements, fencing, HA groups, adding resources and testing failover.
Convert keys between PuTTY (.ppk) and OpenSSH formats
Use PuTTYgen to convert a PuTTY.ppk private key to OpenSSH format and back, understand PPK version 2 and 3, generate a new Ed25519 key and load it in PuTTY.
Convert VMware VMDK or Hyper-V VHDX disks to KVM qcow2
Migrate a virtual machine from VMware, VirtualBox or Hyper-V to KVM: export the disk, convert VMDK, VDI or VHDX to qcow2 with qemu-img, import it with virt-install and fix drivers.
CPU pinning and overcommit on KVM explained
How vCPUs map to physical cores, what CPU and RAM overcommit mean for VPS performance, how to measure steal time, and how to pin vCPUs with virsh for latency-sensitive VMs.
CPU steal time on a VPS: what it means and what to do
Learn what CPU steal time (%st) is on a virtual server, how to measure it with top, vmstat and sar, what values are normal, and how to tell host contention from your own load.
Create a cloud-init VM template in Proxmox VE
Build a reusable cloud-init template in Proxmox VE from an Ubuntu or Debian cloud image, set SSH keys and IPs per clone, and deploy new Linux VMs in seconds with qm commands.
Create a KVM virtual machine in Proxmox VE step by step
Create a Proxmox VM from an ISO: upload the image, pick CPU type, memory, VirtIO disk and network, install the OS through the console and add the QEMU guest agent.
Create a KVM virtual machine with virt-install
Use virt-install to create a KVM virtual machine from the command line: choose CPU, RAM and disk, attach an ISO or cloud image, connect a bridge and finish the install over VNC or serial console.
Create a Linux server lab VM in VirtualBox
Install VirtualBox on Windows, macOS or Linux, create an Ubuntu Server VM, choose NAT or bridged networking, set up port forwarding for SSH, and use snapshots to practise safely.
Create a shared folder several users can edit
Set up a folder on your Linux VPS that a team can all read and edit, using a shared group, the setgid bit, a 002 umask or default ACLs, and test it with two users.
Create an SFTP-only user limited to one folder
Give someone file access over SFTP without a shell, locked inside one folder. Configure internal-sftp with a Match block, set the chroot ownership right and test with WinSCP.
Create and extract tar, gzip and zip archives on Linux
Compress folders into tar.gz, tar.zst or zip files, extract archives to the right place, exclude files and stream archives over SSH on a Linux server.
Create isolated and routed networks in libvirt
Define libvirt virtual networks beyond the default NAT: isolated networks for private VM traffic, routed networks for extra public subnets, DHCP ranges and static leases, and how to attach VMs.
Create system users for apps and services
Run each app on your Linux VPS under its own system account with no password and no shell, so a bug or breach in one app cannot take over the whole server.
Create, resize and tune a swap file on a Linux VPS
Add a swap file to a Linux VPS, make it permanent in fstab, choose a sensible size and swappiness, and resize or remove swap safely.
Customise the login message (MOTD) on Ubuntu and Debian
Change the message you see when you log in over SSH. Edit /etc/motd, trim or add update-motd.d scripts, switch off Ubuntu news and show disk and load at a glance.
Dedicated vs VPS vs cloud vs bare metal servers: which do you need?
Compare dedicated, bare-metal, VPS, cloud and shared servers on performance, isolation, control, scaling and admin effort, and learn which fits your project.
Delete a user and their files on Linux
Remove a Linux user account cleanly. Stop their processes, back up what matters, delete the account with userdel or deluser and find any files they left behind.
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