Windows Server first steps: Remote Desktop, updates and firewall
Connect with Remote Desktop, change the administrator password, restrict RDP to your address, install updates and add a standard admin account.
Read guide →GLWS · Operating systems
Pick your system.
Change it later.
15 Linux and BSD images and 3 Windows Server versions. You choose the image when you configure a plan.
GLWS Linux and BSD images.
Grouped by family, with advice on who each suits.
Ubuntu
The most common choice for servers and the one most guides and tutorials assume. Pick a long-term-support (LTS) release for years of security updates.
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS · Ubuntu 26.04 LTS · Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
Connect to your VPS with SSH
Create a Linux user with sudo access
Install software and apply Linux updates
Debian
A stable, conservative base that is popular for servers that should change slowly.
Debian 13 · Debian 12
AlmaLinux and Rocky Linux
Free, community-built Red Hat Enterprise Linux compatible systems, good if you want long support cycles and the RHEL way of doing things.
AlmaLinux 10 · AlmaLinux 9 · AlmaLinux 8 · Rocky Linux 10 · Rocky Linux 9
Configure a VPS firewall without losing SSH
Turn on automatic security updates
Fedora and openSUSE
Newer packages and faster change. Fedora Server moves quickly, and openSUSE Leap is a regular-release distribution.
Fedora Server 44 · openSUSE Leap 16.0
Alpine and Arch
Small and minimal (Alpine) or rolling and hands-on (Arch). Choose these when you know why you want them.
Alpine Linux 3.24 · Arch Linux (rolling release)
FreeBSD
A complete BSD operating system with its own tools, the pf firewall and ZFS heritage.
FreeBSD 15.1
Windows Server.
For software that needs Windows.
Windows Server 2025, Windows Server 2022, Windows Server 2019 are available on the Windows VPS plans. Licence keys and activation rights are not issued with the plan, so check your own entitlements.
How to choose.
Four rules that cover most decisions.
Match your tutorials
Guides and documentation are usually written for Ubuntu or AlmaLinux. If you are learning, use the system the instructions assume.
Prefer long-term support
LTS releases get security fixes for years. Avoid rolling or short-lived releases for a server you do not want to rebuild often.
Match your software
Check what your application officially supports before you pick. The vendor documentation usually names the tested systems.
You can reinstall with a different image later from the control panel, but a reinstall erases the disk, so back up first. The reinstall guide shows how.
Start with the basics.
Guides for your first hour on a new system.
Connect to your VPS with SSH
Open your first secure terminal session, check the server identity, and understand common connection errors.
Read guide →Create a Linux user with sudo access
Create a separate administrator account, grant the correct group membership, and test access before changing root login.
Read guide →First steps on Debian and FreeBSD servers
Update, create an admin user, set up SSH keys and a firewall on Debian and on FreeBSD, with the differences from Ubuntu and AlmaLinux explained.
Read guide →FAQ
Operating system questions.
Short answers.
Which Linux should a beginner choose?
Ubuntu LTS. Most tutorials, answers and guides assume it, and it has long support.
Can I run Docker, Nginx and databases on all of them?
These tools run on the major Linux systems. The guides on this site show Ubuntu and AlmaLinux commands, and other systems need small changes such as a different package manager.
Can I change the operating system later?
Yes, by reinstalling from the control panel. A reinstall erases the disk, so back up first.
Do you provide Windows licences?
Licence keys and activation rights are not issued with the plan. Check your own entitlements.