OS with Containers Ready application

You can install an OS with the pre-installed Containers Ready application on a dedicated server.

The Containers Ready application includes:

• Docker version 28.0.3 — a containerization platform for developing and running applications;
• plugins for running Docker Compose version 2.33.0;
• Portainer version 2.27.0 — a graphical interface for monitoring and managing Docker containers, images, and Docker networks.

Before installing the OS with an application, review the software license agreements included in the image.

Install an OS with Containers Ready

For Containers Ready to work, the dedicated server must be accessible from the internet.

To set up Containers Ready and configure Portainer when creating a server, you can specify user data — custom configuration parameters for the operating system.

Open the Portainer panel using an IP address or domain. To open the Portainer panel via a domain, specify a domain in the user data — after the OS is installed, a TLS(SSL) certificate from Let’s Encrypt® will be automatically issued for it.

Specify a domain

1. In the control panel, in the top menu, click Products and select Dedicated Servers.

2. In the Servers section, open the server page → Operating System tab.

3. Click Reinstall OS.

4. Optional: for secure server connection via the encrypted SSH protocol, select a previously uploaded and placed SSH key or add a new one. Learn more in the Create and upload an SSH key to a dedicated server guide.

5. Enter user data. You can use user data to automate server configuration. User data can only be specified for servers without hardware HBA and RAID controllers.

   You can use a script in the user data to configure container settings. To open the Portainer panel via a domain, you need to insert the following script in the user data field:

   #cloud-config
   
   write_files:
     - path: "/opt/containers/docker-compose.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         version: "3.9"
         services:
           <containers>
   
     - path: "/opt/containers/.env"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         <environment-variables>
   
     - path: "/opt/user-values.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         portainer_use_le: true
         portainer_domain: "<example.com>"
         portainer_le_email: "<root@example.com>"

   Specify:

   • <containers> — the contents of the Docker Compose file for the docker-compose.yaml file. Learn more in the docker compose documentation in the Docker docs;
   • <environment-variables> — environment variables for the .env file. If the file is not needed, delete the code block. Learn more in the Use environment variables section of the Docker documentation;
   • in the content: code block for the /opt/user-values.yaml file, specify the configuration parameters for Portainer;
   • portainer_use_le: true — a parameter for automatic TLS(SSL) certificate issuance from Let’s Encrypt®;
   • <example.com> — the domain for accessing Portainer. To make the domain accessible via the server's public IP address, add an A record in your DNS hosting control panel and set the server's public IP address as the record value. You can copy the IP address from the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → tab Operating System → in the IP field click . If the domain is delegated to Servercore DNS Hosting (actual), use the Add a resource record instructions. After OS installation, a TLS(SSL) certificate from Let’s Encrypt® will be automatically issued for the domain. If the TLS(SSL) certificate issuance fails, the Portainer panel will be accessible via the server IP address;</g;
   • <root@example.com> — the administrator email for Containers Ready to create an account and receive Let’s Encrypt® notifications.
   Example script for User data

   #cloud-config
   
   write_files:
     - path: "/opt/containers/docker-compose.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         version: "3.9"
         services:
           web:
               container_name: web
               image: "busybox"
               env_file: "/opt/containers/.env"
           db:
               container_name: db
               image: "busybox"
               env_file: "/opt/containers/.env"
   
     - path: "/opt/containers/.env"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         APP_ENV=production
         LOG_LEVEL=info
         LOG_FORMAT=json
         LOG_OUTPUT=/var/log/app.log
   
     - path: "/opt/user-values.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         portainer_use_le: true
         portainer_domain: "example.com"
         portainer_le_email: "root@example.com"

6. In the Distribution field, select Container Ready.

7. Optional: partition the disks. You can select the disk where the root partition / will be created and the OS installed. If the server has four or more disks, you can create RAID pairs at different levels, such as RAID1 and RAID0.

   By default, the optimal RAID level is determined and only disks with partitions and disks in RAID are partitioned. If you leave the default partitioning, the OS will be installed on the first disk in accordance with the disk installation order on the server: NVMe → SSD → HDD.

8. Click Install. Installation can take from 7 to 60 minutes; the duration depends on the server's performance and the chosen distribution. If it takes longer, create a ticket.

9. After OS installation, a password will be generated for server access, which is also used for authorizing in the Portainer panel. The password can be copied in the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → tab Operating System → in the Password field, click . The password is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment OS installation or configuration change begins. If you forget your server password, you can reset and recover it.

Not specifying a domain

1. In the control panel, in the top menu, click Products and select Dedicated Servers.

2. In the Servers section, open the server page → Operating System tab.

3. Click Reinstall OS.

4. Optional: to securely connect to the server via the encrypted SSH protocol, select a previously uploaded and placed SSH key or add a new one. Learn more in the Create and upload an SSH key to a dedicated server guide.

5. Optional: enter user data. You can use user data to automate server configuration. User data can only be specified for servers without hardware HBA and RAID controllers.

   To set up container configurations, you need to insert the following script into the user data field:

   #cloud-config
   
   write_files:
     - path: "/opt/containers/docker-compose.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         version: "3.9"
         services:
           <containers>
   
     - path: "/opt/containers/.env"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         <environment-variables>

   Specify:

   • <containers> — the contents of the Docker Compose file for the docker-compose.yaml file. Learn more in the docker compose section of the Docker documentation;
   • <environment-variables> — environment variables for the .env file. If the file is not needed, delete the code block. Learn more in the Use environment variables section of the Docker documentation.
   Example script for User data

   #cloud-config
   
   write_files:
     - path: "/opt/containers/docker-compose.yaml"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         version: "3.9"
         services:
           web:
               container_name: web
               image: "busybox"
               env_file: "/opt/containers/.env"
           db:
               container_name: db
               image: "busybox"
               env_file: "/opt/containers/.env"
   
     - path: "/opt/containers/.env"
       permissions: "0644"
       content: |
         APP_ENV=production
         LOG_LEVEL=info
         LOG_FORMAT=json
         LOG_OUTPUT=/var/log/app.log

6. In the Distribution field, select Pre-installed Apps → Container Ready 28.0.0 (Ubuntu 24.04 LTS).

7. Optional: partition the disks. You can select the disk where the root partition / will be created and the OS installed. If the server has four or more disks, you can create RAID pairs at different levels, such as RAID1 and RAID0.

   By default, the optimal RAID level is determined and only disks with partitions and disks in RAID are partitioned. If you leave the default partitioning, the OS will be installed on the first disk in accordance with the disk installation order on the server: NVMe → SSD → HDD.

8. Click Install. Installation can take from 7 to 60 minutes; the duration depends on the server's performance and the chosen distribution. If it takes longer, create a ticket.

9. After OS installation, a password will be generated for server access, which is also used for authorizing in the Portainer panel. The password can be copied in the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → tab Operating System → in the Password field, click . The password is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment OS installation or configuration change begins. If you forget your server password, you can reset and recover it.

Connect to the Portainer panel

The address to connect to the Portainer panel depends on whether you specified a domain in the user data when installing the OS on step 5.

Domain is specified

1. Open the following page in your browser:

   https://<domain>:9443

   Specify <domain> — the domain name you entered when installing the OS on step 5 in the User data field.

2. Log in to the panel. Use:

   • login — admin;
   • password — your server password. The password can be copied in the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → tab Operating System → in the Password field, click . The password is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment OS installation or configuration change begins. If you forget your server password, you can reset and recover it.

Domain is not specified

1. Open the following page in your browser:

   http://<ip_address>:9000

   Specify <ip_address> — the server's public IP address. You can copy it in the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → Operating System tab → in the IP field, click .

2. The browser will warn you about an insecure connection because there is no SSL certificate. Confirm that you want to proceed to the page.

3. Log in to the panel. Use:

   • login — admin;
   • password — your server password. The password can be copied in the control panel: in the top menu, click Products → Dedicated Servers → server page → tab Operating System → in the Password field, click . The password is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment OS installation or configuration change begins. If you forget your server password, you can reset and recover it.