Install an OS via autoinstall

Auto-installation is a tool for installing and reinstalling an operating system on a dedicated server automatically via the control panel. Standard OS images and OS images with applications are available for auto-installation. If you want to use your own image, install the OS manually.

OS autoinstall is not available for prebuilt servers with upgrades.

Install an OS via autoinstall

carefully

Automatic OS reinstallation will delete data on all disks, even if you partition only the boot disk.

We recommend saving your data or creating a backup before reinstalling the OS.

Linux

For your information

Once the OS installation is complete, the number of authentication attempts when connecting via SSH will be limited. After 10 failed password attempts from a single IP address, this IP address will be blocked for 24 hours. If you forgot your server password, you can reset and recover it.

1. In the control panel, on 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: change the hostname.

5. Optional: select a public IP address for the server. The IP address will be automatically configured on the port. The list shows IP addresses that are assigned to the server in the control panel and for which a VLAN is configured on the network port.

6. Optional: select a private IP address for the server to automatically configure it on the port. The list shows IP addresses that are assigned to the server in the control panel.

7. Optional: for secure server connection, add an SSH key. You can add a new public SSH key or choose an uploaded key from the SSH key storage.

8. Optional: enter user data. Using user data helps automate server configuration. This field is not available for all OSs. User data can only be specified for servers without hardware HBA and RAID controllers.

9. Select an image to install the OS.

10. Optional: if the server configuration has RAID controllers, configure hardware RAID arrays. OS auto-installation is only available for RAID1 and RAID0 levels. Only two disks can be added to RAID1.

    If RAID controller configuration and disk partitioning are not displayed in the OS configuration, OS installation will require assistance from Servercore engineers. In this case, after clicking the Install button, a ticket will be created to change the OS configuration. After the work is completed, the RAID controller will appear in the OS configuration, and hardware RAID configuration and disk partitioning will become available.

11. 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 pair them into different RAID levels, for example, 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, following the disk installation order on the server: NVMe → SSD → HDD.

12. Click Install. Installation may take from 7 to 60 minutes; its duration depends on the server performance and the selected distribution. If more time has passed, create a ticket.

13. After OS installation, a password for connecting to the server will be generated. The password can be viewed in the control panel on the server page → Operating System tab. It is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment the OS installation is complete.

Windows

A trial version of the OS will be installed.

The OS will be installed on the first disk, following the server disk installation order: NVMe → SSD → HDD.

1. In the control panel, on 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: change the hostname.

5. Optional: select a public IP address for the server. The IP address will be automatically configured on the port. The list shows IP addresses that are assigned to the server in the control panel and where a VLAN is configured on the port.

6. Select an image to install the OS.

7. Optional: select the system disk where the OS will be installed.

8. Click Install. Installation may take upwards of 120 minutes; its duration depends on the server performance and the selected distribution. If more time has passed, create a ticket.

9. After OS installation, a password for connecting to the server will be generated. The password can be viewed in the control panel on the server page → Operating System tab. It is available for viewing for 24 hours from the moment the OS installation is complete. If you forgot your server password, you can reset and recover it.

10. Partition disks using Windows tools or configure a software RAID.

Partition disks

Linux (partitioning for each disk)

You can partition disks in the OS autoinstall process at step 11.

Separate partitioning for each disk can be performed for the following OSs: Ubuntu 24.04LTS, Ubuntu 22.04LTS, AlmaLinux 9.2x86_64, Oracle 9x86_64, Debian 12x86_64, Debian 11x86_64, Proxmox, Rocky 9.2x86_64.

1. In the Partitioning block, select a disk and click Make system — the root partition / will be created on this disk, and the OS will be installed.

2. Optional: add disks to a RAID array. On one server, you can add disks to different RAID arrays. For example, if your server has four disks, you can add two of them to RAID1 and the other two to RAID0.

   Select the RAID level:

   • RAID1 – mirroring, all data is written to separate physical disks in the RAID set. A RAID1 array is assembled from at least two disks;

   • RAID0 – stripping, disk interleaving. If one of the disks fails in RAID0, all data will be lost without possibility of recovery. A RAID0 array is assembled from at least two disks;

   • RAID10 – mirroring, disk interleaving. All data is written sequentially to several disks. A RAID10 array is assembled from at least four disks.

3. Check the disk or RAID partitioning. The partitioning table displays required partitions with mount points — /boot, /, swap. The minimum size of the root partition / — 20 GB.

4. Optional: add a partition — select a file system and enter the partition size in GB. The choice of file system for a partition depends on the OS limitations.

5. If installing the OS on a disk, ensure there is no unallocated space left on it.

6. Partition every disk on the server.

7. Proceed to step 12 in the OS autoinstall process.

Linux (partitioning only the boot disk)

You can partition disks in the OS autoinstall process at step 11.

Only the boot disk will be partitioned. Other disks can be partitioned using OS tools after installation.

1. In the Partitioning block, select a disk and click Make system — the root partition / will be created on this disk, and the OS will be installed.

2. If the server has one disk, skip this step. If the server has two or more disks, add the disks to RAID and determine its level:

   • RAID1 – mirroring, all data is written to separate physical disks in the RAID set. A RAID1 array is assembled from at least two disks;

   • RAID0 – stripping, disk interleaving. If one of the disks fails in RAID0, all data will be lost without possibility of recovery. A RAID0 array is assembled from at least two disks;

   • RAID10 – mirroring, disk interleaving. All data is written sequentially to several disks. A RAID10 array is assembled from at least four disks.

3. Check the system disk or RAID partitioning. The partitioning table displays required partitions with mount points — /boot, /, swap. The root partition / minimum size is 20 GB.

4. Optional: add a partition — select a file system and enter the partition size in GB. The choice of a file system depends on OS limitations.

5. Ensure that no unpartitioned space remains on the disk. If you need to leave unpartitioned space, create an additional partition with the free space and delete it after the OS installation is complete.

6. Proceed to step 12 in the OS autoinstall process.

Windows

1. Connect to the server via RDP or a KVM console.

2. Press Win + R.

3. Run the disk management utility:

   diskmgmt.msc

4. Right-click on the partition you want to split and select Shrink Volume.

5. In the Enter the amount of space to shrink in MB field, specify the size of the space to allocate.

6. Click Shrink. Information about the allocated space will be displayed with the label Unallocated.

7. Create a new partition by right-clicking on the allocated space and selecting New simple volume.

8. In the Simple volume size in MB field, enter the partition size.

9. Optional: select a partition drive letter.

10. Specify the file system for the partition.

11. Click Finish.