How to Set Up a VPS for the First Time

What You'll Need

• A VPS with a Linux operating system (Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04 recommended for beginners)
• Your server's IP address (provided by your hosting provider)
• Your root password or SSH key (also provided by your host)
• An SSH client: Terminal (Mac/Linux) or PuTTY / Windows Terminal (Windows)

Step 1: Connect to Your VPS via SSH

SSH (Secure Shell) is how you remotely control your VPS through a command-line interface. Open your terminal and type:

ssh root@your-server-ip

Replace your-server-ip with the IP address from your hosting provider (e.g., ssh [email protected]).

The first time you connect, you'll see a message about the host's authenticity. Type yes to continue. Enter your password when prompted.

On Windows, you can also use PuTTY — enter your IP address in the "Host Name" field, keep port 22, and click Open.

Step 2: Update Your System

The first thing to do on any new VPS is update all installed packages to their latest versions. This patches security vulnerabilities and ensures you have the newest software:

apt update && apt upgrade -y

This command does two things: apt update refreshes the package list, and apt upgrade -y installs all available updates. The -y flag automatically confirms the installation.

This may take a few minutes. If prompted about configuration files, press Enter to keep the existing configuration.

Step 3: Create a Non-Root User

Running everything as root is a security risk. Create a regular user with sudo privileges:

# Create a new user (replace 'myuser' with your preferred username)
adduser myuser

# Add the user to the sudo group
usermod -aG sudo myuser

# Test the new user
su - myuser
sudo whoami  # Should output: root
exit  # Return to root

From now on, you can log in as this user and use sudo before commands that need admin privileges.

Step 4: Set Up SSH Key Authentication (Recommended)

SSH keys are more secure than passwords. They use cryptographic key pairs — a private key on your computer and a public key on the server.

Generate a Key Pair (on your local computer)

# Run this on YOUR computer, not the VPS
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "[email protected]"

Press Enter to accept the default file location. Optionally set a passphrase for extra security.

Copy the Key to Your VPS

# From your local computer
ssh-copy-id myuser@your-server-ip

Now you can log in without a password: ssh myuser@your-server-ip

Disable Password Authentication

Once SSH keys work, disable password logins to prevent brute-force attacks:

sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

Find and change these lines:

PasswordAuthentication no
PubkeyAuthentication yes

Save with Ctrl+O, exit with Ctrl+X, then restart SSH:

sudo systemctl restart sshd

Step 5: Configure the Firewall

UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall) is the easiest way to manage firewall rules on Ubuntu:

# Allow SSH connections (IMPORTANT: do this BEFORE enabling the firewall!)
sudo ufw allow ssh

# Enable the firewall
sudo ufw enable

# Check status
sudo ufw status

Add rules for services you'll run:

# Web server (HTTP + HTTPS)
sudo ufw allow 80/tcp
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp

# Minecraft server
sudo ufw allow 25565/tcp

# Custom port
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp

Warning: Always allow SSH (port 22) before enabling the firewall. If you enable UFW without allowing SSH, you'll lock yourself out of your VPS.

Step 6: Install Common Software

Depending on what you want to run, install the appropriate software:

For Web Applications

# Install Nginx web server
sudo apt install nginx -y
sudo systemctl enable nginx
sudo systemctl start nginx

# Your server now shows a welcome page at http://your-server-ip

For Node.js Applications / Discord Bots

# Install Node.js 20 LTS
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt install -y nodejs

# Install PM2 for process management
sudo npm install -g pm2

For Python Applications

sudo apt install python3 python3-pip python3-venv -y

For Java Applications (Minecraft servers, JDA bots)

sudo apt install openjdk-21-jre-headless -y
java -version

For Docker

curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh
sudo usermod -aG docker myuser
# Log out and back in for group changes to take effect

Step 7: Set Up Automatic Security Updates

Keep your server patched automatically:

sudo apt install unattended-upgrades -y
sudo dpkg-reconfigure -plow unattended-upgrades

Select "Yes" to enable automatic updates. This installs security patches automatically without requiring manual intervention.

Essential Linux Commands Reference

Command	What It Does
ls	List files in current directory
cd /path	Change directory
pwd	Show current directory path
mkdir name	Create a new directory
cp file1 file2	Copy a file
mv file1 file2	Move or rename a file
rm file	Delete a file
nano file	Edit a file in the terminal
cat file	Display file contents
htop	Monitor CPU, RAM, and processes
df -h	Check disk space usage
free -h	Check RAM usage
sudo reboot	Restart the VPS

What's Next?

Your VPS is now secured and ready to use. Here are some next steps depending on your project:

• Host a Minecraft server — Follow our modded server setup guide
• Deploy a Discord bot — See our 24/7 bot hosting guide
• Host a website — Set up Nginx with a domain name and SSL certificate
• Learn more about VPS — Read our What is a VPS? guide

Need a VPS? Azion Cloud offers Linux VPS plans with NVMe SSDs, DDoS protection, and a Mumbai data center. View our VPS plans and deploy your first server in minutes.